SPM Physics-AHA! Rubber Tires Save Ships with Physics

 

At the docks in Miri, students wonder why massive steel ships float while tiny iron nails sink. Isn’t that a contradiction? This comic reveals the physics truth: Buoyancy (FB = ρVg). A ship’s wide hull displaces a huge volume of water, and the water pushes back with equal force, keeping it afloat. And those “ugly tires”? They’re not decorations — they extend collision time, reducing force by impulse 

$F=\frac{m(v\text{–}u)}{t}$

Join the AHA moment where physics explains both floating giants and the humble tire fenders that protect them.

Life Reflection:Standing at the Miri docks, you’ll see ships of all kinds anchored along the coast—shipbuilding is one of our city’s true signatures. But I always tell my students: ships were never built to stay safely in the harbor; they were built to brave the open sea.

Life works the same way. SPM might feel like a towering wave that makes you want to shrink back. Yet, look at the ships—they were engineered for the voyage. You, too, were made to face this exam with courage.

AHA! Moment: True purpose isn’t found in the safety of the shore, but in the courage to set sail against the waves.

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