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Magic Sand

Posted by Hemos on 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."

20 of 37 comments (clear)

  1. I had some of this as a kid... by NetRanger · · Score: 3, Funny

    Did you know that it effectively kills goldfish too?

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  2. kid's toy by foobar104 · · Score: 2

    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?

    1. Re:kid's toy by yzquxnet · · Score: 2

      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.

    2. Re:kid's toy by Monkelectric · · Score: 2

      Nickelodean used to sell it as a toy under the name "Squand". I think they even had flourescent squand :)

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  3. Coming up next on Slashdot... by presearch · · Score: 4, Funny

    An in-depth investigation of corn starch!

  4. make your own!!!! by Unknown+Poltroon · · Score: 3, Interesting

    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.

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    1. Re:make your own!!!! by HughsOnFirst · · Score: 3, Insightful

      That seems way too hot, more that 400 degrees , the flash point
      of paraffin is 450, the same as for paper.

      Wham-o made theirs with silicone. Here
      is a nice page that goes into the details

  5. Here's a better link to the same material by hackwrench · · Score: 2, Informative

    Link
    Google Search
    It wouldn't have taken much to make that article much better.

  6. My kid has some of this stuff. by clintp · · Score: 2, Informative

    My kid got some of this stuff for Christmas a few years ago. It's sold under the name "Squand."

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  7. For the brave... by JasonMaggini · · Score: 4, Informative

    There is a link for directions here, which basically says to ScotchGuard some baked beach sand... YMMV

    1. Re:For the brave... by ealar+dlanvuli · · Score: 2, Insightful
      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
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      I live in a giant bucket.
  8. Snow Crash by 0x0d0a · · Score: 2

    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.

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    May we never see th
  9. Windshield? by chris_mahan · · Score: 2, Interesting

    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.

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    "Piter, too, is dead."

    1. Re:Windshield? by Time_Ngler · · Score: 2, Informative

      They already have it. http://rainx.com/frame_auto_glass.htm

    2. Re:Windshield? by Rick+the+Red · · Score: 2
      YMMV. My dad used RainX and loved it. I tried it, but all it did was coat my wiper blades and make them streak; it never did seem to make the water bead up and blow off the windshield without using the wipers at all (the RainX claim). Perhaps it's because my dad was in Florida and I was in Michigan...

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      If all this should have a reason, we would be the last to know.
    3. Re:Windshield? by flewp · · Score: 2

      I use RainX here in WI and it works fine. It's also worked perfectly fine on every other car I've seen it on.

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      WWJD.... for a Klondike bar?
    4. Re:Windshield? by Rick+the+Red · · Score: 2
      Wisconsin isn't Michigan. I've lived in both states, and believe me, Wisconsin isn't Michigan! Hell, Michigan isn't Michigan -- it's two, two, two states in one! Southern Michigan weather sucks -- Lansing has as many cloudy days as Seattle, for God's sake. They're surrounded by Great Lakes, and it makes their weather suck. I've seen it rain while the sun is shinging in Flint, MI. But then, Flint has dirt roads and a paved river, so what do you expect?

      Maybe RainX works fine elsewhere, but it didn't work for me. I'm not stuck in Michigan anymore, so maybe I'll try RainX again, but it made my wipers streak so badly that it scared me away.

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      If all this should have a reason, we would be the last to know.
  10. I have had some of this stuff for years.... by phoenix_orb · · Score: 2

    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)

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  11. OMG, you whippersnappers... by SmokeSerpent · · Score: 2, Funny

    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 with them.

    Don't get me started on the "Magic Rocks"...

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    1. Re:OMG, you whippersnappers... by alnapp · · Score: 2

      Yup, if they're impressed by this, what would they think about silly putty, or slime or space dust?

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