Benjamin Franklin flies floating on a pond

In 1773 Benjamin Franklin describes in a letter to William Brownrigg the experiment with oiled flies floating on a pond. This experiment is repeated here with pieces of Aerogel and with clips from the public domain film Curtain Up.

From the letter:
He was about to clean a little Cup in which he kept Oil, and he threw upon the Water some Flies that had been drowned in the Oil.
These Flies presently began to move, and turned round on the Water very rapidly, as if they were vigorously alive, tho' on Examination he found they were not so.
I immediately concluded that the Motion was occasioned by the Power of Repulsion, and that the Oil issuing gradually from the spongy Body of the Fly continued the Motion.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Benjamin
• Franklin
• Aerogel
• Nanotechnology
• Oil
• on
• Water
• history
• experiment

[EighteenCharacters]

That actuallly makes sense. Problem is such a means of propulsion would cause more harm than just burning it, sadly...