LAVC Opposite Will Attract Discussion

Please comment to each post.

1/A thin stream of water bends toward a negatively charged rod. When a positively charged rod is placed near the stream, it will bend in the same direction, not the opposite direction. Why?

You would assume that opposites attract, and it would bend in the opposite direction. This is not the case. The reason that this happens is that water (H2O) is a polar molecule. According to Tro, 2017 polar molecules are molecules with polar bonds that add together to create a net dipole moment. One end is slightly positive, and the other end is negative. The positive rod attracts the negative end of the water, and the negative rod attracts the positive end of the water, causing the bend in the same direction. The interaction between the charged rod and the water stream is due to the diploe nature of water molecules.

The attached helps you understand this concept easily.

2/The thin stream of water bends toward the negative charge rod because the water is attracted to the rod, whether it is a negative or positive charge. Water is a neutral conductor made of hydrogen and oxygen molecules. Hydrogen is a positive charge, and oxygen is a negative charge. Therefore, no matter what direction the rod has, either negative or positive, water will always be attracted to it, and in this instance, bending its way to the rod.

Another example is when you rob a balloon in your hair; the negatively charged atoms are transferred to the ballon, and when you hold it near your hair, the harmful particles from the ballon with be attracted to the positive electron on your hair; therefore, it will attract each other.