Why does something heavy dropping into a container sometimes make the container jump upwards?

Question

I saw a TikTok of the contents of a huge can of refried beans all entering into a pot below the can at once, which caused the pot to jump upwards about half an inch. Why is that?

In: 1

Answer 1

When the beans hit the pot they apply a downward force against it. This causes the pot to apply a downward force against the hard surface on which it’s resting. According to Newton’s laws, this causes the hard surface to apply an equal but opposite upward force on the pot. This is what causes the pot to jump.