The Vacuum Cleaner—continued

Step 2. Your Vacuum Cleaner

1.	Take your vacuum cleaner out. It can be a portable one or a central vacuum hose.
2.	Tear up some paper into small pieces.
3.	Plug the vacuum cleaner into the wall socket and turn it on (or plug the hose into a central vacuum receptacle).
4.	Bring the nozzle within a meter of the pieces of paper – just far enough so that the paper doesn’t quite get drawn into the vacuum hose. What do you notice? Answer The pieces of paper will be drawn into the vacuum cleaner.
5.	Now bring the hose closer to the pile of paper. What happens? Answer The pieces of paper will start to vibrate.
6.	Describe what is happening that enables dust and other small objects inside the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner hose to enter the vacuum cleaner. Answer The air in the nozzle moves into the vacuum cleaner. This creates a vacuum, which results in air pressure from the atmosphere pushing more air, and associated bits of paper and dust, into the nozzle.
7.	Place your hand over the exhaust port of the vacuum cleaner. What happens to the ability of the vacuum cleaner to draw objects into it? Answer The motor is no longer able to create a negative pressure inside the vacuum cleaner, resulting in little or no pressure difference between the outside and inside; so, no suction is generated.

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