Mad Science of Sacramento Valley - Money Multiplier!
Channel: Mad Science of Sacramento Valley
Date: 2013-12-04

What you need:
2 Flat mirrors (same size if possible)
Tape
Coin

What you do:
1. Tape the two mirrors together along one edge. They should form a hinge.
2. Stand the hinge up and open it to make a right-angle.
3. Place a coin in front of the hinge. Look in the mirrors. How many coins do you see?
4. Open and close the hinge to change the amount of money in the reflection!

What's going on?
You're playing with reflections! A reflection is the light that bounces off a shiny surface. Your reflection is the light that bounces back at you when you look in a mirror. Angling two mirrors makes the reflections bounce off each other many times. You see the many reflections when you look into the two mirrors. When you change the angle of the mirrors you see more of less reflections of your coin. This makes your coin look like more money!

Now try this:
Use a protractor to measure the angle of your hinge. Which angle gives you the most reflections (and the most money?)



Mad Science of Sacramento Valley
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