Quicksand Science Experiment
Have fun playing with homemade quicksand and learn about the science behind it along the way.
WARNING! Do not put quicksand down the drain. It will block your drains.
While many people will be grateful that they never find themselves in real quicksand, we can make cornflower quicksand (otherwise known as Oobleck), which has a lot of similar properties to real quicksand… and is a lot safer to play with!
Like real quicksand Oobleck is a non-Newtonian fluid, which means that its viscosity (thickness and flow rate) changes based on how much and how quickly force is applied to it. Depending on the stress it is under quicksand can act like a liquid or a solid.
How to escape real life quicksand…
People can die in quicksand, although it’s often because they panic and try to escape with as much force and speed as they can. This just makes the sand harder and harder to escape and may cause people who are stuck to die from exhaustion. Instead, if you are ever unlucky enough to find yourself in quicksand, you should use slow movements and relax as you carefully and slowly pull yourself out.
What you need:
One box of Cornflour (found in the baking isle of most supermarkets)
Large mixing bowl or container
About a cup of water
Optional extras:
Newspapers or table cover (it gets very messy),
small plastic toy or figurine
and food colouring.
What to do:
Tip about 1/4 of the box of cornstarch into the bowl.
With a spoon or your hands slowly mix in around 1/2 cup of water
You want the cornstarch mix to be about the consistency of honey or syrup so if it’s too thin, add more cornstarch and if it is too thick, add water.
Have fun playing with it and experimenting! Try a few activities below!
Activities to try…
Punch the liquid with your fist
Let your hand slowly sink into it
Make a ball out of it and watch it melt on your hand
Bounce a bouncy ball on it
Drop a bouncy ball into it
Put a small figure on top of it and then try to rescue them
Mix in food colouring
Dry a piece of it with a paper towel and turn it back into powder
Fun Fact: Oobleck gets its name from Bartholomew and the Oobleckbook by Dr. Seuss. In this book Oobleck is a gooey green substance.
Happy Experimenting!
Did you give it a go?
Send us a photo of your Oobleck quicksand and you might find your creation featured in a future issue of Upstart magazine… AND win a prize!