Why does a ship made of steel sail whereas a small piece of steel sinks in water?

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Answers:
The ship displaces a great volume of air . A piece of steel displaces no air.

Things float because their DENSITY is less than 1. The ratio of weight to volume is the Density. A ship has a weight to volume ratio that is less than 1.
A piece of steel has a very dense ratio. Solid.
A piece of wood is big, but weighs very little... it floats.
BUT. if you add too much weight to a ship, then the density rises to become MORE than 1. and it sinks.
Once you throw things in the water, the issue of their buoyancy comes under a law called the Archimedes Principle (also known as the law of buoyancy). This law basically says the object is pushed up in the water by a force equal to the weight of the water thats displaced. If you have a 500 lb steel beam its narrower and more more compact so its going to displace less water than the hull of a 500lb boat. Boat hulls are designed to "spread out" more and are therefore displacing more water. Their volume is much greater than that of the beam. The heavier your object is, the more water it needs to displace to keep it afloat in the water. You have to change the shape until the ratio of the objects mass to volume (density) is equal to or less than the water's which equals 1.
Have you ever noticed how the bottom of a big ship is pointed at the bottom? It has to do with water DISPLACEMENT.
Water pressure at greater depths can hold more up than the very surface can. So you push a little water out of the way that's deep down in there, and the water pushes back harder. Try pushing a water ballon under water and you'll see what I mean.

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