Questions: 2.4.2 Quiz: Civil Engineering Question 6 of 10 Which of the following best describes why a cruise ship floats? A. Its volume and mass are equal. B. It displaces more than half of its weight in water. C. Its volume is greater than its mass. D. It displaces an equal or greater amount of water than its own weight.

Solution Steps

To determine why a cruise ship floats, we need to understand the principle of buoyancy, which is governed by Archimedes' principle. This principle states that an object submerged in a fluid is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object.

Let's analyze each option in the context of buoyancy:

• Option A: "Its volume and mass are equal."
  This statement is incorrect because volume and mass are different physical quantities. Volume is a measure of space occupied, while mass is a measure of the amount of matter.

• Option B: "It displaces more than half of its weight in water."
  This statement is misleading. For an object to float, it must displace a volume of water equal to its own weight, not necessarily more than half.

• Option C: "Its volume is greater than its mass."
  This statement is incorrect because volume and mass are not directly comparable in this context. The key factor is the relationship between the weight of the displaced water and the weight of the object.

• Option D: "It displaces an equal or greater amount of water than its own weight."
  This statement correctly describes the condition for floating. According to Archimedes' principle, a floating object displaces a volume of water whose weight is equal to the weight of the object.

Final Answer