Question:
Where do loose tea leaves settle after stirring in a cup of tea?
You need for the experiment
- some tea (loose or from a tea bag), or other small particles that are slightly heavier than water, e.g. chopped fruit or kiwi peels
- water
- a cup
- a teaspoon
Performing the experiment:
Fill some tea into a cup with water and stir with a teaspoon.
Observe how the leaves move in the current and what happens when you stop stirring? What happens if you don’t stir in a circle, but just move the spoon back and forth? How do the pieces then settle at the bottom of the container?
Observation:
While stirring, the leaves move in circular paths in the cup like the water. If you stop stirring, they sink to the bottom and collect as a small pile in the center of the container.