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student is investigating the distribution of charges in insulators. The student will place an aluminum metal can on top of a foam cup and touch the side of the foam cup with a negatively charged rod. The set up for the investigation is shown in the diagram.

What will most likely happen to the electrons when the rod touches the foam cup?

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All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
Because foam is an insulator, the extra electrons from the negatively charged rod will be deposited and remain localized near the contact point on the foam — they cannot flow through the cup. Those negative charges will, however, repel electrons in the nearby aluminum can, inducing a separation of charge in the metal (electrons move to the far side, leaving the near side more positive).