Water droplets can be pyromaniacs

A team from Hungary's Eotvos University conducted both computational and experimental studies to determine how the contact angle between the water droplet and a leaf affects the light environment on a leaf blade.

The aim was to clarify the environmental conditions under which sunlit water drops can cause leaf burn.

These experiments found that water droplets on a smooth surface, such as maple leaves, cannot cause leaf burn.

However ,in contrast the team found that floating fern leaves, which have small wax hairs, are susceptible to burning.

This is because the hairs can hold the water droplets in focus above the leaf's surface, acting as a magnifying glass.

The latter not only partly confirms the widely held belief of gardeners, but also opens an issue of sunburn on hairy human skin after bathing.

So if you're hairy and you've just been for a dip in the sea, it's best to dry off quick!

Weird Science Factoid: Sound at the right vibration can bore holes through a solid object. You can make a joke about your most hated singer here...

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