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Mystery #3Tier 2water / cohesion

Why does water bead up into little round drops?

Spill water on a freshly waxed car or a leaf and it doesn't spread out flat; it pulls itself into neat, rounded beads that sit up like tiny domes. Why does water gather into balls instead of lying flat?

Round water droplets beading up on a lotus leaf.
Photo: GJ Bulte · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

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