Round wonders...

    For as long as we can remember, we have all played with bubbles and they have always occupied a special place in our imagination. Be it their lighter than air presence or the sheer thought of them being there making the world around them a little bit more wonderful, children are always fascinated at the sight of bubbles blowing around.

   They are round, they glitter and when you touch them, they pop! It’s hard to imagine how this could ever fail to make anyone smile. But what adds to the amazement of bubbles is the amount of science that goes around the creation and sustenance of a single bubble.

   Have you ever wondered what makes a bubble round? What makes them form such a constant shape? Well the answer to that is simple physics. When you blow a bubble, the surface tension makes the thin film of soapy water form the smallest surface area that it can. It assumes the shape of an orb. If air wouldn’t have been blow within the soapy film, the soapy water would have continued to shrink down in size. And the shrinking would have gone on till it would have assumed the shape of a solid spherical droplet, resembling a raindrop.

   It is amazing what can be achieved with a little soapy water. Mother Nature is an artist herself. Her creations are seemingly beautiful and fundamentally complex. So, the next time you see a bubble, make sure you appreciate the beauty behind the bouncy wonder.