Which Jar Will Finish First? 🍯💧🫒

Which jar do you think will finish first—honey, water, or oil?

At first glance, the answer might seem obvious. The three jars are filled with different liquids, but each one is pouring through an opening into a glass below.

So what do you think?

My Guess: Water 💧

If all three jars have the same amount of liquid and the openings are identical, water should finish first.

Why? It all comes down to viscosity, which is simply how resistant a liquid is to flowing.

Water has a much lower viscosity than honey or oil, so it flows much more easily. Honey is thick and sticky, making it pour slowly. Oil falls somewhere in between, depending on the type of oil and its temperature.

That’s why the water stream in the picture is so much wider and faster-looking than the honey and oil streams.

But There’s More to It!

The size of the opening, the amount of liquid in each jar, temperature, and the exact type of oil or honey can all affect how quickly the jars empty.

For example, warming honey makes it thinner and easier to pour. Cold honey can be incredibly slow compared with room-temperature honey.

Oil also varies considerably in thickness depending on what kind you’re using.

What Would You Choose?

Before reading the explanation, take another look at the picture.

Honey 🍯
Water 💧
Oil 🫒

Which one do you think reaches the bottom first?

Drop your answer in the comments before checking everyone else’s guesses!

And if you got water, congratulations—you were paying attention to the clues. 😉

Now share this with someone and see if they can figure it out!