Background
Gravitational force of attraction exerted by a planet on an object on its surface determines the weight of an object. The force of gravity experienced by the object depends on the masses of the planet and object as well as the distance between the planet and the object.
Discrepant Event: Chicken Truck
A truck of live poultry is stopped before a bridge on a country road. Its driver, beating the side of the truck with a stick, is asked what he is doing and he explains that his load is too heavy for the bridge so he is making the birds fly to lighten his load before proceeding. For this problem imagine that the truck is completely sealed. No air in, no air out. Your question for this week is: Did the driver get his physics right? Is the truck lighter?
Concepts involved:
- weight, gravity (gravitational force of attraction), mass, distance
