James was standing on a boat in deep ocean water. He wanted to see how long it would take a tennis ball to reach the shore if he threw one in from the boat. Why wouldn't this plan work?

only the wave energy of the water moves

Explanation:

The plan will not work due to the fact that only the wave energy of the water moves and not the water itself.

The wave motion of water does not displace the water. It is only able to transfer energy from one point to another within the medium. Hence, the ball will hardly be displaced because the water itself does not move. However, it can get to the shore with the assistance of the water current.

the old alchemists made significant contributions to science even though there starting premises were off a bit. their conclusions after failure would steer them into better directions for investigation. science is no more than close observation and the initial mistakes result in rethinking and retrying experiments.

there is none because earth is stationary and flat.