A surprisingly bouncy ball

It all began when Quentin was to be seen surreptitiously playing with a golf ball.  Not normally the thing to do when we are mid-discussion about something else entirely.  But never let it be said that I let a teaching opportunity pass me by.

So a golf ball. 

What’s is for?  Harrison, our resident golf pro, tells us that golf balls are meant to be hit really hard.

And what’s it like?

Hard (very hard confirms Raamy).  Shiny.  Bumpy (dimpled).  Made from metal?

Let’s ask Virginia, our temperature-tester extraordinaire.  Compare it with a known piece of metal.  Does it feel the same temperature?  Warmer?  Colder?

Quite definitely warmer.  Which means that it is not metal.  So most likely plastic.

Now, if I hold it out in front of me and just let go, what do you expect will happen?  Will it

• land on the ground and roll away?
• bounce a little bit?
• bounce a lot?

Most people thought that because it was so hard it would just bounce a little bit.  So it came as a gasp-worthy surprise when it bounced back almost to my hand.  How could that be?

Leon thought that maybe it was ‘air inside it’ that made it bounce so high.

Thomas agreed.  He told us he thought it was ‘hollow inside’.

Ryoma said he thought it was ‘heavy’ so it fell to the ground really fast.

Quentin thought it was because it was ‘hard’ that it bounced so high.

Owen thought it may have ‘something inside’.

Something especially bouncy, perhaps?

Well, there’s only one way to find out.  We will have to cut a golf ball in half and take a look at the inside.  What do you think we will discover?