Page 9 - My FlipBook

"That is absolutely correct Tania." Papa smiled and ruffled Tania's hair.

"Okay. So why is water peculiar?" Tania asked.

"At most temperatures water behaves normally, meaning the space it occupies
increases, when it is heated, and decreases when it is cooled. But something
strange happens when water reaches 4 degree Celsius." Mama said.

"Why? What happens then?" Tania was eager to know.

"If you cool a bowl of water at 4 degree Celsius, the space occupied by the
water starts increasing slowly, and then it suddenly increases a lot, when it
forms ice." Mama explained.

"Oh!" Tania looked puzzled. "Why?"

"Water particles behave like a disorganised crowd huddling together, while ice
is like a marching band, where every particle knows its place and doesn't break
formation. This tendency of water particles to get organised below 4 degree
Celsius, makes it behave peculiarly. When the particles are in formation, there
are lots of empty spaces. So, ice occupies a lot more space than water. You'll
learn more about it someday but, for now it is interesting to take a look at the
effects of this strange behaviour of water." Mama replied.

"Like the pipe bursting you mean? How does this strange behaviour of water
cause a pipe to burst?"

"As Mama said, the space occupied by water keeps increasing when it is cooled
below 4 degree Celsius, while the particles start getting organised. Ice forms at
0 degree Celsius, when the particles suddenly get in a rigid formation. So ice

9