A student places a small amount of water in a glass dish and then carefully places a small paperclip on the surface of the water. The paperclip floats. What happens if the student adds a drop or two of dish soap to the water? Check all that apply.

The water’s surface tension helps support the paperclip. Dish soap acts as a surfactant, which decreases the water’s surface tension, so the surface can no longer support the paperclip and it falls to the bottom. The soap does not increase surface tension.

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