This project will answer a question the writer had when stating the rule that the weight of a floating object is the same as the weight of the water it displaces. I wondered
whether there is some kind of rule about stuff that sinks, because it would displace water just as stuff that floats.

Now we know. The real scientist who gave the directions for these projects has explained that objects sink when they weigh more than the water they displace.

We can check this by doing the same thing we did before with the overflow container and the smaller container to catch the water that is displaced. Only we can use a rock, or something else that we know won't float. Just weigh it first, then weigh the water from the overflow container. If the rocks weighs more, that is the reason that it sinks.

Well, that's just fine. However, it still does not explain aircraft carriers. Those things weigh thousands, maybe millions, of tons. If they displaced THAT much water, the
oceans would spill over. What that means is, since we know that the oceans don't spill over just because there are ships all over it, we know that neither of the rules we have just learned can apply to aircraft carriers. Or to any large ship. Or maybe even to small boats.

One of the great things about having gone to school, and having learned to read is that when we are curious about something, there is usually some way of finding the information. The easy way is to ask somebody. How do we know we got the right answer? The best way is to find a book that has information about the stuff we need to know.

From a book about ships, I have learned that anything can be made to float if it is made into the right shape. THAT is how aircraft carriers can float without making the ocean spill!

Isn't that wonderful?