• Question: why are bubbles round ??

    Asked by anon-197606 to Sonal, Rosanna, Matthew, Marleen, Dan, Atreya on 5 Mar 2019.
    • Photo: Matthew Selwood

      Matthew Selwood answered on 5 Mar 2019: last edited 5 Mar 2019 11:59 pm

      In my, very basic, understanding it is all about energy. Like any self respecting scientist, atoms and objects are inherently lazy. They want to be in the lowest energy state possible. Why should I use up lots of energy in my abs to dangle upside down and watch TV like a bat, instead of using up very little energy and curling up on the sofa? Bubbles are much the same – they don’t want to flex their metaphorical abs, and instead want to stay as a couch potato. Trying to make points or more complex shapes requires a lot of energy as the bonds at the corner will be under more strain. So instead they are round, and would be perfectly spherical if there weren’t any other factors (wind and stuff) blowing about.

      Edit: Spelling… As always

    • Photo: Marleen Wilde

      Marleen Wilde answered on 11 Mar 2019:

      I agree with Matt, it’s a geometrical form that required least energy to remain rather stable in its shape. I do pottery in my freetime, and even my pottery teacher tells me that if we start we a sphere when making teapots, sculptures etc, it is the most stable form and most difficult to break in comparison to other shapes.

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