You have a bag of cotton and an iron bar, each indicating a mass of 100 kg when measured on a weighing machine. In reality, one is heavier than other. Can you say which one is heavier and why?

Solution:

The correct answer is the cotton bag is heavier than an iron bar. The bag of cotton is heavier than the bar of iron. The cotton bag experiences a larger air thrust than the iron bar. Therefore, the weighing machine indicates less weight than its actual weight for the cotton bag. The reason is

True weight = (apparent weight + up thrust)

The cotton bag’s density is less than that of the iron bar, so the volume of the cotton bag is more compared to the iron bar. So the cotton bag experience more upthrust due to the presence of air.

Therefore, in the presence of air, the cotton bag’s true weight is more compared to the true weight of the iron bar.