World's Longest Vertical Straw

[crispimp213]

they got ragging clues

[tilakai]

Who drinks a bottle of pop with a straw?

[Mirage469]

@tilakai Drinking straight from the bottle damages your tooth enamel, as does acidic juices. Its best to drink them with a straw so its not constantly washing across your teeth.

[longforgottensoul]

theoretical maximum of 10m?... Sasha grey could do 100m 

[ThePaulooza]

I bet that guy could suck start a leaf blower

[amberarak]

They didn't think! Stairs are not straight up, therefore, making the straw sucking be easier at the angle the stairs are.

[infernape425]

i would like to remind you that there is no such thing as a perfect vacuum because even nothing is unstable

[Ramsez]

an asian guy with an australian and an american using the metric system. im 12 and what is this?

[IvarHuisman]

You wouldnt need a 10 meter long barometer to do the air pressure scale thing, you'd need a very wide one so it can hold a lot of water. But your measurements wouldn't be very accurate that way though.

[IcEye89]

@IvarHuisman Nope, water pressure is determined by the amount of water above you - or your point of reference - not by the amount of water in total. Otherwise the water pressure at the bottom of a small pool would be less than the pressure in the ocean at the same depth. Still you don't need a column 10 meters high because you are not interested in the total air pressure but rather in chances in pressure and even with lower levels of water you get chances in the hight based on the pressure.

[IvarHuisman]

Isn't it spelled meter?

[3LCONEJO]

dam im thirsty now



[3LCONEJO]

id rather just not use a straw

[ghuegel]

Nigel should have cheated and blown your mind for a couple seconds... out of sight on the cliff, he could have attached a tapered tube to the main tube, maxing out at as wide as he could open his mouth and hold a seal on it. Since he'd be sucking on a larger area, he could probably generate enough force to pull the liquid all the way up the cliff.

[ghuegel]

@ghuegel This might work, but only because he was a little short of the theoretical max, since the straw wasn't vertical at all points.

[zacthebold]

I really hate it when my friend tells me to get up and get him something when he's not doing anything I'm not also doing. Like I'm his maid or something.

[galesx95]

I love that music when he is sucking the coke xD

[Tridecalogism]

I tried this with punch. We used 2 or 3 1 metre straws. it was quite the task...

[MegaMoonse]

Blowing from below will help alot.

[uBenDovar]

Surely you couldnt ask him to make a perfect vacuum. No such thing.

[BboyDrMadison]

Decades ago, I saw this on a show called Mr. Wizard's world.

[mcr500]

and now i'm thirsty...

[Tzs08]

I tilt my head up while watching Nigel suck the juice from upstairs.

[Patrik97BEAST]

Here is the equation for much you sucked at the long straw, i think¿

((3 x 3 x 7 000) ÷ 100) x 78,5 = 49 455 mm2

[yngve1993]

forget it i didn't watch the whole video :P

[yngve1993]

How did you measure the theoretical maximum length of the straw?

[wwjd3d]

If you used a tube with less volume you could have a longer straw than 10.3 meters.  :)

[FeatLow]

@wwjd3d i'm pretty sure it's all about height, a long time ago a scientist made a barrel of vine explode by pouring vine into a long but thin straw from a high place; pressure in general is just caused by the height of the column of fluid above sth., yea sounds mad.

[lazzerbear]

fuck this i could do 11 meters.

[antho862008]

1:41 min "Oh look at that, look at that...he shoots up"...THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID

[TiagoTiagoT]

Is this maximum height the same if the straw is thin enough for the capillarity effect to become significant? Would you be able to suck the same amount of liquid as you can with a regular straw to a much bigger height if you used several very thin straws at once?

[MsHojat]

@TiagoTiagoT I'm 99% sure that capillary effect increases the height, since it counter-acts the downwards force via weight/gravity, which are the only reason why the limit was in place.

Very good question though.

[MrChin000]

Would the bending of the tube not work in his favour as now instead of having to go directly against gravity he will be going against a particular component depending on how you define your axes either parallel to the tubing or to the ground? Eg. at 5:26 where the tubing bends along the cliff.

[jrgyable]

TOO MANY NEMBERRRRRRRSRRRRRRSSSSS

ERROR ERROR ERROR

:(

[gregiep]

But in the case of a Coke downstairs, you could create higher than atmospheric pressure by having a sealed system. Carbonation, bitches!

[AlecTBM]

Suck a perfect vacuum with your mouth. Well, that is something that I will pay to see :D

[TyZi187]

My GF could do this 

[666FLiP666]

So jelly of your beard.

[xtamared]

Try it with peanut oil or vodka and see if you can get it up 10m. Because these things have a lower density they should be significantly easier to suck

[rave0220]

you can really suck*



[rave0220]

nigel you really suck



[deltaanic]

The Asian guy went to James Ruse!

[chrisiscool575]

chuck norris can do this with his nostril

[willghass]

meters? really? come on now

[shadowofcloud9]

Coke and Mentos would have gotten all the way up XD

[Knightfall316]

This video sure could be a lot shorter.

[mrglobbster]

lol i fauht one thing when the coke is out he have to go down eny way to change they dident think of dath

[TehLamzaks]

What was the point, of making that long straw, instead of going downstairs for a coke? O_o (I know, it can be used for future uses, but seriously)

[PLaris89]

The real question is who drinks coke with a straw? good vid all the same!

[Sixty63rd]

He should've been standing upright.

[eamo2020]

attach one of these to the end and it would work, amazon .co .uk/Camelbak-90011-Big-Bite-Va­lve/dp/B0019DCVTA/ref=sr_1_17?­s=sports&ie=UTF8&qid=133061847­7&sr=1-17

[cleodel88]

This just makes me want to drink pop.

[what3man3]

extreme sippin time

[sharkwomen123]

lol he can do it but the other guy cant

[deleriousexile]

Well I guess Nigel is the bottom.

[ubidubster]

The issue is not really how dense the liquid is, but rather what the boiling point and vapor pressure of the liquid is. A liquid with low vapor pressure would vaporise at in a much shorter straw then water. I think due to mercuries higher vapor pressure it would be theoretically possible to suck it up a lot higher.

[Briancmwilliams]

@ubidubster Thermometers are just vacuums on the other side of mercury and they don't even go up a foot, so I'm certain you couldn't get it higher than 10.3 meters.

[zooperpogi]

@ubidubster interesting... i was drafting a counter to your theory but i thought about it and it makes sense...(" ,) does this mean if there's no air between a plunger and liquid in a cylinder/hose there is no limit how high the liquid can go up? And in this case would the type of liquid matter?

[FriesForLife]

nigel sucks!

[diatribe82]

how high would you be able to suck it if you would also add the fluid inertia into the equation?

[ChemaShima]

Science is sooo cool! Love it!

[TheDesertDiver]

Thank god for the metric system.

[etrinh00azn]

@TheDesertDiver No, thank france

[RespectMyHate]

@etrinh00azn God gave france the idea.

[KillaStorm1000]

@RespectMyHate SPOILER ALERT: Scientists came up with the idea because god doesn't exist ;)

[Buddy1306]

I have that same zombie shirt! Twinzies!

[xxCyylonexx]

LIES! This was clearly a HORIZONTAL straw turned sideways. I'm on to you.

[finster796]

Asians ....

[karmendcastro]

did you miss the whole tennis match?

[Annihilord]

that is one awesome cliff there

[ZequeZ1]

You should have your own mythbusters-like TV show.

[TheTLTLHeadquarters]

Informative and mildly arousing? Now see if he can suck the golfball through the garden hose.

[cornejor23]

Nigel seems to be very good at sucking things...

[Nulliuskly]

The last sentence should include 'on earth'.

[AdityaPuranik1]

My dad says that the maximum suction life is 25feet(7.62m).He says that water will vaporize at more height.What is the truth???? @1veritasium

[vilondero]

@AdityaPuranik1 There can't be any liquid in a perfect vacuum, it's either solid or gas. You can check that out in that temperature/pressure graph about phase transitions

[mrhaislip]

You suck, Nigel! Woo-hoo! You suck for science. Cool!

[stuch11]

Does the guy say "fuck" right at he start.

"You come to my house and you wont even get me a coke"

"Yeah Fuck its a tie break off"

[dimmddr1]

Your mother is so proud.

[ChocolateBunny0x0]

This experiment has already been done by a J-pop band called "Arashi" =_=

[GeekyNine]

don't the walls of the tube start to collapse when you create the perfect vaccum?

Gravity pulling the water down, vaccum pulling up as well as allowing the pressure from atmosphere to collapse the walls of the tube due to the difference, maybe Nigel had his tube collapse? you should try with a reinforced tube perhaps.

[XatechChaos]

.. Who comes to someone else's house to watch tennis?

[PykohYT]

It's easier in Australia because they're upside-down.

[dyce003]

what if the straw was placed diagonally instead of upright, would that make any difference?

[brainbeau]

can't believe such smart people would drink coke.

[capetownsurfer]

Not sure if I'd want to be on a video seeing how hard I could suck

[MrPeeepe]

Cool :) It was a fun science video with a great explanation = typical Veritasium ^_^

[ipodman80]

what if the air pressure was higher/lower?

[missmakeupshow]

Sucking. Pressure.  Sounds a bit sexual lmao

[OwenVinni]

I weep for humanity

[joey6961]

two cute bois comparing sucking ability..... love it ha ha

[becaro0nie]

Nigel is sexy!

[theniftyneddd]

@andytrevortran

u gay, bro??

[ChairmanChopper]

The guy on the right looks stoned.

[TwoStupidGirlsYT]

When i get my wisdom teeth out im not allowed to drink with a straw as it changes the pressure in your mouth

[gdaymatemusic]

7.21...for drinking out of a straw.

I wonder how much was left on the cutting room floor?

[RyanSmithization]

coke in this case to go up the straw,....mmmmh? 

[valioyamaha]

I think it is a good idea to explain to the people why the same 10,3m. law does nor apply for trees, even if they are higher than that. How does the water reaches to the tops of the more than 100 meter high trees? Here is an idea for a next video.

[suziesusen]

Is this filmed I'm Melbourne?

[andytrevortran]

WHY ARE THEY BOTH SO CUTE. NOW KISS!!!!!!

[andytrevortran]

i get so hot when he says suck.

[cd1250]

Just had a "what the fuck am I watching" moment

[iGnoTusGFX]

g = GravitationalAcceleration

isn't it ? not the gravitational strength?

[speeps84]

@iGnoTusGFX 9.8 m/s/s

[zelda0is0so0cool]

wow, you guys suck!

lol, get it bc they where sucking on the- oh forget it!

[LuyangLiuable]

You sucks big

[Freddybob912]

2:21 good onya mum

[JDOG13596]

Nice! Where did you say this was filmed at?

[xhable]

?v=sz9eddGw8vg <- cool related video.. much longer straw

[partypoison485]

Worst acting ever! And who drinks a 600ml coke with a straw???

[xhable]

Would salt in the water make it go higher?

[1veritasium]

@xhable lower because salt water is denser.

[1999zman]

@1veritasium Couldn't u put the straw flat and it wud b easier?

[reaperseeker]

@1veritasium What would happen theoretically if you did this in a hydrogen atmosphere (ignoring the fact of how dangerous it is.)

[lrpbpb]

@1veritasium But if mercury is denser than water, then why do does atmospheric pressure only need a small tube to push the mercury up and we need a few meters to make a water barometer?

[1veritasium]

@lrpbpb since the mercury is denser, the atmospheric pressure can't push it as high, hence the shorter tube.

[BrianDopeFresh]

@1veritasium but salt water is more dense so wouldn't it make the straw more buoyant?

[hiperson641]

@1veritasium would carbonated water go higher or lower than regular water?

[1veritasium]

@hiperson641 I'm not sure but my bet is it would be much the same.

[Creepyseven]

@1veritasium

also the water would be "decarbonated" by the low pressure really fast id guess. (same effect like when you are opening a bottle of carbonated water)

[ba3cool]

@1veritasium All right, I get how the pressure difference between the atmosphere and your lungs results in a working straw.

Don't siphons work on similar principles? Aren't they essentially straws bent over - with one end receiving a little boost from gravity?

If so, then how do they work in the absence of an atmosphere, where the vacuum is equally great on both ends? I gather it's something to do with the surface tension. Would an ordinary straw work under a similar circumstance?

[ThoumasTube]

@ba3cool In a siphon, you dont have equal pressura in both ends, the pressure in the siphon is much, much higher. This is evident when you try to crush it when is full and you cant.

[jrgyable]

@1veritasium  ?

[MsHojat]

@1veritasium you guys didn't explain why the narrower tube was easier than the wider tube. I suppose the explanation is capillary effect (although I didn't think it would have much of an effect at that width).

You should also state that the height of 10 m was for water, not any liquid.

[mrbruni99]

@lrpbpb Because water is less dense than mercury, small changes in atmospheric pressure would be able to "push" more water up or down the tube. If we use mercury, these changes in pressure would only move the mercury a little bit. Therefore you can make a barometer that is very small rather then a water one which would be several feet tall. Also since mercury wont evaporate, it is just a better substance to use.

[bridgetisadreamer]

:) Its cool how you mix banter with physics :D

[TheFennahh]

who the fuck uses straws

[slayer9207]

Whaaa..

[SINDRIKARL1]

Would the weight of the liquid in the tube have any effect at all and if so then how big would that effect be?

[CODtroll]

ohmygad its derek

[intheshitter]

Shit I bet I can do it. 

[alvarezp2000]

You assumed 1000 kg/m^3 for the density, so 10.3 m is the theoretical limit for pure water. It would be interesting to know what's the density of your red beverage and calculate with that, and check if the theoretical limit was actually closer or further from what you got in the beach.

[h0niels]

who seats down and drink a coke with a straw come on guise

[sawgunner13]

If you set the pressure difference equal to the downward force of the liquid wouldn't they cancel each other out leaving you with 0 net force and just holding the liquid in place?

[ThatGuyMason]

@sawgunner13 Yup you're exactly right, the height where that happens is the height from which the liquid cannot be sucked any further since the forces cancel out. Up until that point they aren't in equilibrium which is why it moves in the first place.

[Yamibakeru]

Mmm. The math works out. I wasn't convinced empirically, but the mathematical explanation make a whole lot more sense. Which is bad scientific practice, but numbers backing up your argument never hurt.

[debook454]

At 10.3 meters the weight of the liquid in the straw would make a low enough pressure in the straw, that the water at the top of the straw would boil, in the same way that water boils at a lower temperature at a higher altitude.Therefore, the space above 10.3 meters will be filled with water vapor.

[tazaabha]

i love physics. it all goes way over my head but it's still very fascinating.

[TheDesertDiver]

Love the video & stoked that you did the 10.3 meter test! If you think about this at a particle level, there isn't really such a thing as "sucking." It'd be more accurate (and easier to understand I think) to say that the pressure of the air particles on the surface of the liquid in the glass push the liquid up the straw.  Thoughts?

[WakingxtheMisery]

need a woman to suck it

[CaptainCocknee]

Wow, Nigel really sucks! He sucks more than you!

[anteggma]

super entertaining and informative! 

[manugkenny]

noobs i did this with a 50 foot garden hose

[house1098]

I have your shirt guy on the right, sickest shirt

[rayschalch]

thank you it means a lot... LOL!!!

[getsuga97]

Is this a physics drinking game?

[evanismybro]

6 people use sippy cups

[MastererClark]

The area where the air pressure is acting in the straw is not equal to the area surface area of the juice the in the glass therefore they cannot be cancelled out at the beginning.

[markderosa]

Fun to watch, good work.

[karolis685]

guys should never drink though a straw!

[falafel1995]

It would be impossible to suck a straw on earth if a vacuum surrounded you then?

[burstymy]

A hooker needs to give it a try.

[tanner1ie]

Sucking hell! :) .

[DanyKreep]

Couldn't you just make a thinner straw?

[jawayetti]

Unless that is surgical tubing (which a hardware store generally would not have), it is mildly toxic. However, exposure is quite limited, so don't sweat it.

[KKOBII]

I'm so glad I found this channel. Really interesting videos!

[bessiemooo]

so you spent all that time making a giant straw and testig it out...while it would only take 3 mins to get another one! you, sir. are my god

[LudwigSpiegel]

Very entertaining and educational..... Good puns too

[lynixai]

Hey there 1veritasium! I saw someone complaining about the free music library thing. Anyways, if you need music to put on your videos that you can use and is 100% copyright free, check out the website: incompetech com. Its over 2000 songs of varying lengths thats 100% copyright free, You can search by feel, so if you want something uplifting you can search for that, or if you want something dark you can search for that as well

Anyways, hope you find something, great video as always!

[brentzittel]

ok seriously, what is wrong with his eyes?

[961kgb]

7:10 it's not the maximum hight of liquid, it's the maximum hight of distilled water to be precise (because of 1000kg/m^3)

[Tonjevic]

I find it surreal seeing parts of the eastern suburbs which I know and love on Youtube.

(creepy)Also, now I know where you live!(/creepy)

[miraj0072004]

strawman fallacy !

[DelphianSociety]

Why if you close the upper end of the straw, the liquid inside the straw doesn't fall out? Is it because of the pressure from under the straw?

[1206549]

@DelphianSociety it's because of the pressure in the straw. air will want to be the same pressure everywhere. when you close one end of the straw, the air inside will have a lower pressure than the outside so the outside air pushes the liquid up the straw so they will have equal pressure again

[jcn9122]

Wouldn't 10.3 be for water?

[ilikemunting]

I bet he could suck a golf ball though a hose pipe

[bogiwennerstrom]

damn Australian servers! the rest of the world hates buffering!