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The Cracked Bottle Brain Teaser
A full, tightly sealed plastic bottle of water is left in a freezer overnight. In the morning it has cracked, with no damage from outside. What caused this?
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What's the puzzle?
A full, tightly sealed plastic bottle of water is left in a freezer overnight. In the morning it has cracked, with no damage from outside. What caused this?
What's the explanation?
Water is unusual: unlike most substances, it expands as it freezes rather than contracting. A full, sealed bottle leaves no space for that expansion, so the pressure of the growing ice cracks the bottle.
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