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Thermodynamics & Heat

If air is heated and its starts to go towards the space, what is the reason for this? Do you think the air molecules will get accelerated and because of this they will resist Earth’s gravitational force?
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My 9 year old wants to know if a single atom exists in a certain state of matter — or must it be associated with other atoms in order to define a state?
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Under acceleration, a helium-filled balloon inside of a car will jump forward in the direction of acceleration. I have been searching for the reason why with no definitive results. This is the dilemma: An acquaintance of mine, who has a degree from Johns Hopkins is attempting to argue for some magical force that drives the balloon forward, also that it has something to do with gravity.
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A friend of mine claims to notice that when he takes a hot frying pan (with a warm, insulating handle), and pours cold water into it, the handle seems to get hotter. He thinks it is because the handle is less insulating than the air, thus the path of least resistance is through the handle.
This would make sense to me when you take the pan off of the heat, but he claims that it isn't until the water hits it that the handle gets significantly hotter. If this is true, what does the water have to do with it? If anything, wouldn't the water become the path of least resistance, and heat would move from the metal to the water, and from the handle to the air?
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Does an ice cube have heat energy (kinetic energy)? If so, does a glass of water with ice have more heat energy than a glass of water without ice?
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