This week's science topic comes from an area I know next to nothing about: fluid dynamics. The Kaye Effect is a strange property of organic liquids that exhibit a kind of pseudo-plasticity called shear thinning. I don't fully understand what that means, but it is a property of fluids like shampoo, non-drip paint, nail polish, ketchup, and even blood.
All shear-thinning fluids can exhibit the Kaye Effect - a beautiful and bizarre quirk of fluid dynamics where when the fluid is poured thinly from a height, it will collect in a mound until suddenly a fine streamer of fluid will eject upwards. Usually this occurs too quickly to be noticed, but when filmed at high speeds, the effect is stunning. Just watch the video; it does a much more eloquent and effective job of explaining it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment