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Science

Magic Sand 37

Posted by Hemos from the flowing-nicely dept.
fist_187 writes "Here's a link to an interesting chemistry video about "magic sand", a hydrophobic solid. I've seen something like this done before with a certain type of pollen. But, this is the first demonstration I've seen that uses a material actually more dense than water."
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Magic Sand More

Magic Sand

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  • I had some of this as a kid... (Score:3, Funny)

    by NetRanger ( 5584 ) on Monday September 16, 2002 @11:17AM (#4265949) Homepage
    Did you know that it effectively kills goldfish too?
  • I remember spending hours playing with this stuff when I was about 6 years old or so. It came in different colors, and I remember building tiny underwater sandcastles with it.

    I wonder whatever happened to that stuff? Probably turned out to be toxic. Was it Snow Crash that talked about kid's toys and pajamas being either flameproof or non-carcinogenic but not both at the same time?
    • I had stuff just like that, but I think I played with it sooo much that it lost it properties. It was neat. I think most of it worked its way out to the sand box in the back yard.
    • yes, it was...I read the first few pages thru amazon a few days ago...great book, I have to buy it :) I borrowed a friend's before, and now I have nothing! as I don't live with that person any more =D
    • Was it Snow Crash that talked about kid's toys and pajamas being either flameproof or non-carcinogenic but not both at the same time?

      Yup. Li'l Crips pajamas. Snow Crash is great.
    • Nickelodean used to sell it as a toy under the name "Squand". I think they even had flourescent squand :)

  • Coming up next on Slashdot... (Score:4, Funny)

    by presearch ( 214913 ) on Monday September 16, 2002 @11:25AM (#4266009)
    An in-depth investigation of corn starch!

  • make your own!!!! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Unknown Poltroon ( 31628 ) <unknown_poltroon1sp@myahoo.com> on Monday September 16, 2002 @11:31AM (#4266051)
    get some clean dry sand
    get old frying pan
    heat sand till it will scorch paper put on top of it
    get some wax/parrifin
    melt wax sparingly into sand, just enough to coat it
    let cool
    break up and repowder
    sand now stays dry!!!!

    THis might be redundant as i havent read the page yet.
  • Link [wisc.edu]
    Google Search [google.com]
    It wouldn't have taken much to make that article much better.
  • My kid got some of this stuff for Christmas a few years ago. It's sold under the name "Squand."

  • For the brave... (Score:4, Informative)

    by JasonMaggini ( 190142 ) on Monday September 16, 2002 @12:18PM (#4266361)
    There is a link for directions here [nmlsta.org], which basically says to ScotchGuard some baked beach sand... YMMV
    • From the page

      Melting Money and Melting Memos, marketed by So Much Fun, are paper items that dissolve when placed in water. The paper is composed of carboxymethylcellulose (starch) with 20% or less cellulose. This material has been used by organizations such as the CIA for secret or sensitive documents that can easily be destroyed by wetting with water. A number of toys using this are Trash Bag Bunch, the wrapper of Hot Wheels Revealers, and
      Bye-Bye Diapers.


      Diapers that disolve in water.. interesting

  • Windshield? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by chris_mahan ( 256577 )
    Would a windshield coated with the stuff not need wipers?

    on an aside, it would look just like real sand if it wasn't so darn blue.
    • Yes, but would you be able to see through it? :-)

    • Re:Windshield? (Score:2, Informative)

      by Time_Ngler ( 564671 )
      They already have it. http://rainx.com/frame_auto_glass.htm
  • I have a plastic dispenser of this stuff sitting at home that I remember my dad showing me when I was a kid. It is red, instead of blue. It is called "Magic Sand"

    It is trademarked 1981.

    Played with it just last week. Works well in water, not well in alcoholic drinks.

    The grains of sand are smaller than beach sand, but of course, it may not be silicon at all, though I haven't done a chemical analysis on it. ( It was sold as a children's toy at a place called Pamida a loooong time ago)

  • the last word echoed in my ears "the sand remains dry" as i stared at the just-ended mpg showing the magic sand. however, if you look at the container that had just held the magic sand/water (the very last frame of the movie, the one you see when the movie is done) there appears to be magic sand stuck to the edges of the container. if "the sand remains dry" would it stick to the sides of the container? methinks not, but i'm not a scientist.
  • If you've never seen Magic Sand, you'll be amazed at this other amazing thing we used to have. It's like a flattened sphere divided in two around its equator. The two halves are connected by a metal spindle, to which a string is connected. You wind the string around the spindle and by flicking your wrist just so, you can inject momentum into the system, allowing the device to unwind and rewind on the string continuosly.

    You can even do tricks [yotopia.com] with them.

    Don't get me started on the "Magic Rocks"...
  • I remember playing with magic sand 20+ years ago - what's so new about this? Go to a toy-shop and get some for yourself!

    Sheesh! Next thing we know, someone will be submit a story about amazing new pets [sea-monkeys.com]!

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