We made two different types of goo on my garage creative blog. What exactly is goo and why is it so fun!? The first type we made has many different names for it. I like to call it oobleck because I love Dr. Seuss and there is a great story that can go along with making it.
It is called a non Newtonian fluid because it has properties of both a solid and a liquid. It has the liquid properties of taking the shape of whatever container it is in and is pourable. It behaves as a solid when pressure is applied to it.
Scientists also call it a colloid because the cornstarch is very small solid particles that are suspended in the water. It acts like a solid because when we touch it, we are applying a sideways shearing force to the water. Not familiar with that? Me either. What that means is when we touch it, the water moves away but the small particles of cornstarch do not. Think about trying to push sand out of the way on the beach.
While we made this non Newtonian fluid, there are plenty that we can purchase in the store. A couple of examples are jello, ketchup, barbecue sauce; what others can you think of?
The second goo we made acts a lot like flubber or silly putty. Unlike the oobleck, we can stretch it, bounce it, and tear it apart. This type of goo is called a polymer, which is a long chain of molecules.
Glue is made up of very long molecules. When we add the borax, it causes our molecules to stick together thus making a polymer!
Polymers are everywhere and have been used for a very long time.
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