STRANGE FLUIDS Get some corn starch. It's a white powder, used for baking. You probably have some in a cupboard somewhere. Now add some water and green food colouring, and stir. Keep stirring until the mixture is smooth. Pour it into a bowl. Now you're ready. Pick the bowl up and tilt it. Notice that the green fluid you've created is indeed a fluid. It pours slowly, but it's definitely a fluid. Now put the bowl down. Poke the surface of the fluid hard with your finger. Notice anything? No, the fluid hasn't quickly solidified ... convince yourself that it will still pour. Now poke it again. What's going on here? This fluid has an amazing property; it behaves like a liquid when it's poured slowly, but if it is struck quickly, it acts like a solid! So, is it a solid? What do you think? Experiment some more. What other 'fluids' behave this way? What uses could a fluid like this be put to? Dr. Deadly's Science Lab Question "Liquids can be used as hydraulic fluids, but ordinary gases can't. How come?" Scroll way down to check your answer. Gases compress. If you push on a gas, it will just shrink. But liquids won't ... they'll pass on the push to something else. Science Lab | Resources