Trial # Observations Answers

1 Water holds 15 pennies, without Water can hold the amount

spilling.
2 Ice floats on water.
3 Paper clip floats due to the
surface tension
of 15 pennies without
spilling because of its
adhesion characteristic to
the side of the jar. Adhesion
means water molecules
being attracted to materials
due to water’s structure.
When a larger surface area
is put in water, the water
will rise and spill over
because the displacement of
the marble is greater than
the adhesive bonds.
The special property of
water in this trial is that
water is less dense when
freeze. Usually, when other
liquid are froze into a solid,
they will contract and
become denser. However,
with water, it expands,
because of the hydrogen
bonds that spread out and
form a crystal structure. The
crystal structure takes up
more space, thus making it
less dense. Water freeze at
the top of the lake and if
water froze at the bottom,
organisms at the bottom will
freeze to death. Once the
top freezes, all organisms in
the pond will die.
The property of water which
makes the paper clip floats
is surface tension. Surface
tension is the
cohesion/attraction of water
molecules at the surface of
water. The paper clip floats
because the water molecules
which are attracted to each
other will form a chain of
beads where the paper clip

4 Smaller diameter straw had more The property of water in
upward thrust of water while
larger diameter did not.
6 Water dissolves the salt while oil The property which gives
does not.
Trial 5: Since hydrogen bonds hold the water molecules tightly together, much heat is needed to
break these bonds to change water from liquid to gas.
could just lay upon. An
example of which surface
tension can support life is
that some animals such as
water striders insects use
water to escape from
predators or hunt for preys.
This property is different
from trial 1 because this
situation applies the concept
of cohesion while trial 1
applies adhesion. As
mentioned before, adhesion
is the attraction of water
molecules to other materials
while cohesion is the
attraction of water
molecules at the surface.
this trial is the capillary
action. Capillary action is
when water molecules are
attracted to other material
molecules. In this case, the
water molecules are
attracted to the straw
molecules. Therefore, the
water moves up the straw.
Water will move higher up
in a narrow straw because
the contact between the
liquid and the tube is
proportional to diameter of
the tube.
the water this ability is that
it is a good solvent.
Therefore, any polar
substance like sugar and salt
will dissolve in water.
a. Define the properties of water listed at the top of the page and provide one example of an
impact that each property has on living systems (cell or organism).

 Stick to other water molecules- Water have the ability to stick to other water molecules
known as cohesion. As a result, surface tension is formed at the surface of the water. This
allow for some materials and animals such as paper clip and water insects to float/walk
on water. Surface tension allows animals such as water insects to survive by escaping
from predators in the land and hunting for preys in the water.

 Stick to surfaces- Water has the ability to stick to other surfaces/materials, a phenomenon
known as adhesion. This characteristic is shown through capillary action where water
rises up in a tube through attraction of water molecules to the tube molecules. This
property impact cells when developing into an organ. When a liver is developing, cells
stick together to create this organ. Therefore, the property of adhesion is very important
in the development of the human body.

 Absorb large amounts of heat before changing temperature or boiling- Water also has the
ability to retain large amount of heat because of its strength in hydrogen bonds. This can
impact living system because aquatic animals require warmth especially when they live
up north near the Arctic or the south near Antarctica. Since water have a high heat
capacity, those aquatic animals will not freeze to death.

 Dissolve numerous substances by surrounding charged particles and keeping them apart-
Water is a great solvent which means that it can dissolve many things such as sugar and
salt. Water acting as a good solvent could have negative impacts on life. Water’s ability
to dissolve and carry materials can contribute to the spread of pollutants that can be
harmful to wildlife.