On your way home from work tonight, pick up a packet of corn starch for a little non-computer related fun this weekend...

They're known as Ooblecks, Dilatants, Shear Thickening or Non-Newtonian Fluids, and sound about as much fun as... well, a packet of corn starch. But look what you can do with them!

According to Wikipedia, "The application of force -- for example by stabbing the surface with a finger, or rapidly inverting the container holding it -- leads to the fluid behaving like a solid rather than a liquid. More gentle treatment, such as slowly inserting a spoon, will leave it in its liquid state. Trying to jerk the spoon back out again, however, will trigger the return of the temporary solid state. A person moving quickly and/or applying sufficient force with his feet can literally walk across such a liquid."

Yes, that last link is not a misprint. Check out that clip!

Now all I've got to figure out is how much I'll need to fill the bathtub...