Air is a remarkable substance.
Not only does it allow us to breathe,
which I think we can all agree is a good thing,
but if you compress it and contain it,
you can have loads of fun.
Like defying the laws of physics.
Or for wacky furniture.
Whack!
See?
The secret to understanding and using compressed
air is to realize that all it wants to do
is stop being compressed air.
It wants to escape and in so doing air
teaches us valuable science on pressure differentials
and conservation of energy.
If air in one part of a container is compressed,
it will apply pressure to all other parts
until all areas are the same pressure.
This is due to conservation of energy.
When a container of compressed air is open to the atmosphere,
the high pressure inside equalizes
with a lower pressure outside, producing
a force as the air escapes.
And whatever is containing the compressed air needs to have
the material strength to withstand
the pressure differential, otherwise, it will fail.
To sum up, pressure changes will be transferred
to all parts of the container.
Give something at high pressure an opening,
and it will take it and escape with force.
And finally, whatever you do, make sure the container
you're using is strong enough.
So now you know.
But do our researchers know?
Yes, they do.
The jumper has cleverly demonstrated
a basic pneumatic system.
He adds kinetic energy, with his jump, which causes
a pressure change in the bag.
And due to conservation of energy,
the kinetic energy is transferred to her,
and she then transfers that same energy to the bedside table
via her head.
How about something a little more high tech?
Surely these amateur rocket engineers
understand pneumatics.
Turns out, they don't.
The young researcher was trying to compress
air by jumping on the pump.
Unfortunately, he misses.
But Oliver does it.
When the pump is pressed, the pressure differential created
applies a force that launches the rocket.
Good to get a closer look at the physics.
Understanding the science allows you to take
advantage of the science.
Like building a beach trampoline.
Fun times.
Yeah, less fun times.
The membrane of the beach ball didn't have the material
strength to contain the higher pressure produced by our more
sure footed researcher.