Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I am doing a project on how the shape of ice effects the melting time. I am using a rectangular prism, a cone, a cylinder, and a cube. I calculated the surface area of each of the 4 objects and noticed the cylinder had the most surface area the cone had the least. I conducted the experiment and to my surprise, the prism which the 3rd largest surface area melted 1st and the cube with the 2nd largest surface area melted last. Do you know the order in which they are supposed to melt?

As you can see I really need your help.

Hi! Cool project!! The larger the surface area the easier it should be for a shape made of ice (of a specific volume) to melt. When comparing the effect of surface area on the melting of these shapes you should make sure the volume of all of them is the same- i.e. you are only changing the surface area- the volume stays constant. If this is not the case, the differences in volume will also affect your results (the melting). Hope this helps.
Veronica

I agree with VSegarra; if you have unintentionally introduced volume as a variable into your experiment, the objects might not melt in the order you had expected them to. Ensure that the surface area is the only aspect that is different for all of the ices, so as to avoid error. Just be careful when making the volume the same for all of them; this might be a little tricky because you don't want to chip away too much or alter the shape to the point where you no longer have a distinct rectangular prism, a cone, a cylinder, and a cube.