Materials like oobleck — a suspension of cornstarch particles in water — are tough to classify. In some circumstances, they behave like a fluid, but in others, they act like Keep reading
Tag: oobleck
CU Flow Vis 2019
I love when science and art come together, which is why I’ve long been a fan of the Flow Vis course at CU Boulder. Some of my earliest posts on FYFD date from previous editions of Keep reading
Avoiding Shear Thickening
Many substances – like the cornstarch and water mixture above – exhibit a property called shear-thickening. In these fluids, deforming them quickly causes the viscosity to increase dramatically. That shear-thickening occurs when particles Keep reading
Experimenting with Speakers
In her ongoing quest to explore natural resonance, Dianna has enlisted some very nice, very expensive speakers to find out just what happens when the bass drops. If you ever Keep reading
Viscoelasticity and Liquid Armor
One proposed method for improving bulletproof armor is adding a layer of non-Newtonian fluid that can help absorb and dissipate the kinetic energy of impact. Thus far researchers have focused Keep reading
Oobleck Under Impact
Fluids like air and water are Newtonian, which means that the way they deform does not depend on how the force on them gets applied. Many other fluids, however, are Keep reading
Wild Extrusions
In their continuing quest to squish all the things, the Hydraulic Press channel recently debuted a tool with a series of small holes they can extrude various substances through. The Keep reading
Crushing Oobleck
Oobleck is probably the Internet’s favorite non-Newtonian fluid. People vibrate it, run across it, shoot it, drop it, and even use it to fix potholes. But how does oobleck hold Keep reading
Striking Oobleck
Mixing cornstarch and water creates a fluid called oobleck that has some pretty bizarre properties. Oobleck is a shear-thickening, non-Newtonian fluid, which means its viscosity increases when you try to Keep reading
Cornstarch Physics
Oobleck, a non-Newtonian fluid made up of water and cornstarch, is a perennial Internet favorite for its ability to dance and the fact that one can run across a pool Keep reading