Floating of a long square bar: Experiment vs theory

We carried out an experimental study of the floating of a square bar in water and found its equilibrium orientation (tilting angle) as a function of relative density ρ bar/ρ water. Though the theoretical solution of this problem was given in 1963 by Reid, we provided our solution that is more transparent and less cumbersome, enabling an introductory level physics student to follow it. Our experimental method is very simple and easily reproducible in a school-level physics laboratory, and obtained data fit the theoretical results quite reasonably.