Edd GentIf you’re a water sports fan looking for a new thrill, what about upside-down sailing? The idea might not be so outlandish.
In a new study, physicists have managed to float tiny boats on the underside of a layer of liquid levitating in midair (see video, above).
Besides opening up some unusual nautical possibilities, the discovery quite literally flips our understanding of buoyancy on its head.The science behind why boats float has remained largely unchanged since the ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes explained how the downward force of gravity is balanced by upward pressure from the displaced water.