Surface tension effects of surface tension can be seen with ordinary water: Surface tension is visible in other common phenomena, especially when surfactants are used to decrease it: Surface tension, represented by the symbol "γ" (alternatively "σ" or "T"), is measured in force per unit length. Its SI unit is newton per meter but the cgs unit of dyne per centimeter is also used. For example, Surface tension can be defined in terms of force or energy. In terms of force: surface tension of a liquid is the force per unit length. In the illustration on the right, the rectangular frame, composed
Drop (liquid) the surface tension of a body of liquid makes possible to reduce or prevent noise due to droplets falling into it. This would involve adding soap, detergent or a similar substance to water. The reduced surface tension reduces the noise from dripping. The classic shape associated with a drop (with a pointy end in its upper side) comes from the observation of a droplet clinging to a surface. The shape of a drop falling through a gas is actually more or less spherical for drops less than 2 mm in diameter. Larger drops tend to be flatter on the bottom