Cohesive forces cause a liquid's surface to contract to the smallest possible:
AInternal pressure
BSurface area
CTotal volume
DMolecular mass
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. Surface area
1. Surface tension follows from cohesion among like molecules.
2. Cohesive forces act between molecules of the same type.
3. They cause the surface of a liquid to contract to the smallest possible surface area.
4. That contraction is what surface tension describes.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics for AP Courses 2e (CC BY 4.0), Ch 11 'Fluid Statics', sections 11.1-11.9_
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