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Nobody would ever want to get stuck in quicksand, which is basically a wet mixture of sand, clay and water that will drag to its pit any object, or human being, that falls into it! Making your own quicksand is a fun way to both amaze your friends and find out how quicksand really works!

What is quicksand?

Quicksand has featured in many films as this gloomy pit which pushed you deeper and deeper into its core. The truth is quicksand is formed when sand, solid ground, becomes liquefied as it is so saturated with water. The water then reduces the friction between particles of sand which means that the mixture cannot support any weight. Portions of loose sand can become saturated and agitated, creating quicksand, through underground water or earthquakes, which can add pressure to shallow ground water. When we move in quicksand it causes us to sink deeper into the wet texture whereas if you stay still your body will remain less dense than the quicksand and you can stay afloat.  Usually quicksand is only a few foot deep so here’s how we can recreate the effect of quicksand in your very own home!

THE EXPERIMENT

What you’ll need:

-              Two cups of maize corn flour

-              A glass of water

-              A big plastic container

-              A tea spoon

What to do:

Step 1- Bring your container and all the ingredients outside not to make a mess indoors.

Step 2 - Pour the corn flour and the glass of water into the container and mix them together and eureka! You already have your own instant quicksand!

Step 3 –  When you demonstrate your quicksand to friends and family, stir slowly letting the quicksand drip so people see it is in a liquid state of form. 

Step 4 – Then you can see what happens to the quicksand once you stir it quickly, this will make the mixture hard and you’ll be able to poke the quicksand, which should be getting quite thick.

What has happened?    
The way in which the texture of your corn flour and water mixture changes depending on what you do to it is similar to what really happens with quick sand. During step 3, when you stirred slowly, there was more water between the grains of corn flour which ultimately allowed them to move over each other better. When you stirred the mixture at a faster pace you would have noticed that it became thicker, this is due to the lack of water between the grains of corn flour, which are all mixed up, and they cannot therefore slide over each other anymore. If you were to poke the mixture slowly it would be runny whereas poking it quickly makes the substance hard. Now that you know how easy quicksand can be created, and what quicksand really is, you can share the experiment with your friends. Enjoy! 

IMAGE 1: http://masterthenewnet.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/quick-sand.png 
IMAGE 2: http://img.wonderhowto.com/img/49/85/63522973658610/0/make-quicksand-home-using-cornstarch-water.1280x600.jpg