This bizarre density toy just got an upgrade

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I've been trying to make this 3 immiscible liquids thing work for years. Finding three liquids that don't mix with each other and beads that have the right density to make it a science puzzle object.
The original video from 7 years ago: • Mystery blue & white b...
Why white things are white: • Why white things are w...
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[@SteveMould]

PLA in acetone makes a really odd smell. The sponsor is KiwiCo: get 50% of your first crate of a monthly subscription here: www.kiwico.com/stevemould

[@justjones5430]

If it doesn't mix. It's NOT an Emulsion! C'mon Steve, you're better than this! 😊

[@quakerninja]

is this anything to do with how an under water river works?

[@joshuaadamstithakayoutubel2490]

Why do ceiling fans turn the other way after turning off and slowing to a stop?

[@valeforedark]

With the printed beads. Try baking them. There is a way you put them on a tray on salt. Then cover with salt so it's packed .then bake .seals the layers

[@flwilbers]

Nice video, I was a little disappointed to see kiwico does not deliver in the Netherlands. My son would love these boxes.

[@matteobecchi1210]

I don't think I have ever heard this many names of plastics and oils in 13 minutes in my life

[@SafetyLucas]

It's like he was talking about processed food ingredients 😂

[@CarpeUniversum]

Never read an ingredients label? 😅

[@youforgotthelinkinthedescr6798]

Then you my friend have not gotten into 3D printing

[@binarycat1237]

i sure hope you aren't finding polystyrene in your food

[@user-fi6ns8qq9z]

also ipa

[@AlanKey86]

So glad you found a SOLUTION!

[@hellterminator]

Too bad he needed an emulsion.

[@Cheetah-gang]

😂

[@NotQuiteFirst]

After a while, it became clear.

[@EdgarWoodroof-mr6jc]

@@NotQuiteFirst LoL

[@jackv360]

ugh

[@D4no00]

kids: doing an interesting kiwico project and having fun father: mixing liquids and beads in a bottle while slowly losing his sanity

[@moothemoo4896]

The difference between canned projects and unguided projects. You never see the multitudes of problems that come with the real world until you actually do your own custom project. Not a knock on canned projects though. Canned projects are more about learning the methods and mechanics, which is much, much more difficult when you have to deal with all the messy experimentation.

[@pw.70]

Yeeaaah... My daughter did something similar, by herself. She was making some perfume and mixed random petals with water, put it in a bottle with a stopper, etc. Anyway, the petals fermented in the direct sunlight she left the mixture in, and it basically exploded all over the kitchen, one day! NICE!

[@DanKaschel]

@@moothemoo4896Agreed. Canned projects are solved problems chosen because there is, for the most point, one obvious and successful path forward. It’s like an unguided project but with unlimited luck.

[@DanKaschel]

@@pw.70not sure that’s the same unless that’s what she was going for…

[@colaxxi]

definitely lost his salinity.

[@Rubrickety]

Never thought I’d hear Steve Mould lamenting not getting “the good stuff from Brazil”.

[@U014B]

Steve to the rosewood: "Come from Brasil."

[@TCA17]

@@U014B Stevinhooo

[@woody442]

The rosewood soaks up the liquids, mostly moisture (water) and becomes almost 50% more dense. Brazilian Rosewood (dried) has a density of 0.95g/cm^3 so it barely floats even dry.

[@Wolfboy607]

Holy crap I was shaking my screen at that. Wood is porous, it becomes saturated over time and sinks. Come ON steve! The 3d prints, too! Also porous, also becoming waterlogged!

[@MorzakEV]

That was my initial thought. On my guitars I regularly condition the rosewood fretboard using lemon oil, and it is definitely quite porous.

[@mynameisben123]

It floats on water dry, why wouldn’t it float on water wet? The water soaking in cannot bring the density from 0.95 to over 1

[@kingdweeb5065]

​@@mynameisben123 If it has some percentage of air, and that air is replaced with water when submerged, it's very likely to be significantly heavier after soaking. Boats function on the principle of trapping air, which is lighter than water, to help float much denser materials like metal on top of water. If you replaced the air in a boat with water, it would sink.

[@Wolfboy607]

@@mynameisben123 Idk man, go outside, grab a stick, and throw it in the sink. It will float. If you leave it there for a few hours it will waterlog and sink. Most aquarists use wood in their aquariums for the benefit of their fish, so this is a common practice. Lots of wood varieties that float only float for so long. Boats need to be sealed, etc etc etc.

[@spore124]

Consider just putting a single bead of each type in the toy. The fun is seeing the types of beads settle at different points as if by magic and just having a single bead of each type will do that while avoiding the particles getting stuck on each other. It would look a little less impressive in some respects, but I think there would still be a nice wonder to single particles floating in the middle points of a tube of liquid.

[@kornel3634]

or you can just have 3 bigger beads at each layer

[@tenderlovellcare]

I second this.

[@glittery_fairy]

A bit more complex but figurines could be nice. Maybe two pairs of dancers that come together

[@billberg1264]

@@glittery_fairy If you make the center of gravity different from the center of buoyancy, the figurines could self-orient.

[@MolecularMachine]

If you really want to get fancy with it, you can try to make a scene with the figurines, like a cow under an alien under a flying saucer under the moon

[@mytube001]

If you could make glass "beads", you'd be sorted! I imagine that you could start with a glass tube, melt the ends together, and vary the density by varying the length, which in turn varies the enclosed volume of air. The glass would be unaffected by any of the liquids, and they would also look very similar, enhancing the mystery for the uninitiated viewer.

[@markg161]

Essentially a Galileo thermometer?

[@Soken50]

Or tinting the glass to keep the color separation would work too.

[@recurvestickerdragon]

I want a glass 3D printer

[@cooling9953]

Nice

[@TristanMorrow]

Miniature Japanese glass globe fishing floats 🔮🔮🔮🔮🔮🔮 ← (whatever that emoji is) Other than colour, if there were sufficient variation in manufacturing the little glass globes, they would be _self-sorting by density_ !??

[@neilnewton7762]

It won't be Brazilian Rosewood, which is illegal to buy and sell, unless you can find it reclaimed, which is both expensive and rare, or you buy it on the black market. It will be East Indian Rosewood, most likely, which is still legally available. The two do have different densities (and sound qualities).

[@spxza]

Trade in Brazilian Rosewood is restricted, but it is perfectly legal to buy. All current sources are from reclaimed wood or existing timber and about 10x the price of French Oak.

[@jerff]

I’ve only played a couple guitars with Brazilian Rosewood fingerboards. Stunningly beautiful, outrageously expensive.

[@danielernandes4989]

@@spxza In the United Kingdom, trade in Brazilian Rosewood is heavily restricted and you need an import certificate. The only way to get Brazilian Rosewood is through one of these certified importers and due to its rarity it is insanely expensive, or from someone who already had it before the ban from the international CITES treaty, which is probably just as rare and expensive. I doubt he got the real thing and was likely lied to.

[@BresciGaetano]

also maybe wood soak up moisture and change in density not like plastic? 🤦‍♂

[@neilnewton7762]

@@BresciGaetano But the moisture it soaks up will be in equilibrium with the surrounding moisture, so it wouldn't make the wood sink, unless the density of the wood itself is greater than the water.

[@protocol6]

Wood is porous. Its density is dependent on what you saturate it with. wax or epoxy coat it?

[@ledocteur7701]

Same problem with 3D printing, FDM (filament) prints are slightly porous, however SLA (resin) prints are almost perfectly water tight, at high pressure they do absorb a bit of liquid, but that wouldn't be a problem unless you're making a submarine. There are coating to make FDM prints water tight, but I would suggest investing in a resin printer, the precision is very beneficial for experiments like these.

[@Joe-sg9ll]

it might also have been coated already with something that skewed it

[@gernottiefenbrunner172]

@@ledocteur7701 can they print hollow stuff though? afaik they apply each layer as a whole, on the bottom of the container, via a uv screen; that might trap at least some liquid resin in the cavity.

[@ledocteur7701]

@@gernottiefenbrunner172 Indeed, for this application it wouldn't work, but resin printing is just very handy overall, I'm sure he could find other use case.

[@technologist4270]

@@gernottiefenbrunner172 That's exactly right. If there is no hole for uncured resin to escape, resin prints will be filled with liquid. May still be worth trying with 100% solid shapes of different resins.

[@whynotdean8966]

8:52 That actually looks really cool just on it's own. Now I'm thinking about those ships in bottles. You could turn the bottle sideways and have a little plastic ship that floated on the bottom layer.

[@lgasc]

Two surfaces: two ships!

[@frogsplorer]

Submarine and ship

[@frogsplorer]

Or maybe ship and plane

[@frogsplorer]

Or seagulls and whales

[@dsp4392]

Ship definitely needs to be a Benchy.

[@jasonpatterson8091]

Paraffin is a messy term whose meaning has changed with time and geography. Historically it was synonymous with the word "alkane" in general (an alkane is any saturated hydrocarbon, that is, it's entirely made of carbon and hydrogen and it has no double or triple bonds). In the US it mostly means paraffin wax today - saturated, straight chained alkanes with ~20-30 carbons that are solid at room temperature and make nice candles. The paraffin oil you've got is essentially a purified version of kerosene that (should) only contain the straight chain alkanes with carbon counts in the teens. And there's surely some crusty old materials scientist somewhere who calls all alkanes paraffins still, because there's always someone like that...

[@TreesPlease42]

There's Lamplight Ultra Pure Lamp Oil which is a reliable brand of 'paraffin' oil in the US. You can use this brand to look for your local offerings

[@SanchoPanza-wg5xf]

It's proper to write "the meaning of which" over "whose meaning" when you are referring to inanimate objects.

[@Bob5mith]

Haynes Manuals always talked about cleaning parts in paraffin. It was confusing until I found out they meant kerosene.

[@charlieevergreen3514]

Thanks for clarifying paraffins and alkanes. I was unaware of the old usage, and was curious what bizarre “new” paraffin this could be, having only heard it used for the soft white wax. Now I’m confused about kerosene, though. I thought purifying kerosene produced gasoline, which would be a mistake for lamp oil (boom). Perhaps it’s a matter of degree. If you care to reply, I’d welcome it. I’m simply curious. (I can look it up, of course, if I actually need to know.) Have a good one.

[@andygardiner6526]

@@Bob5mith no, they meant paraffin as written because they used paraffin which was, and still is, used as a cleaner in lots of UK parts washers, can be purchased by the gallon from many UK ironmongers and if you ask for kerosene they'll look at you blankly. Countries separated by a common language ... try to buy "gas" in the UK and you'll be opening a whole can of worms ...

[@bobblebardsley]

1:48 Remind me never to order a pint of IPA if the barman is a chemist...

[@magnetomage]

Pla is hygroscopic, which may account for the shifting bead density over time.

[@itayvolk]

it also might be the fact that pla prints aren't water tight so it's possible the cavities fill with the liquids and release air slowly

[@RFC3514]

@@itayvolk - Exactly that. Not just the main cavities, but also the small gaps between layers.

[@collectionofatoms1876]

@@itayvolk I think we can see this in action in the shake up at 10:38. You can see one white bead sink, presumably because it is full of the heavier fluid, but once it sinks and diffuses its internal liquids into the solution at the interface, the space inside the bead is replaced by the next fluid up in the strata, which causes it to float again. I bet that the beads that remain on top are doing so because they are filled with a fluid that is lighter density than the plastic of the bead. Most likely trapped air that can't diffuse out of the bead.

[@IOffspringI]

@@itayvolk Also, IPA dissolves PLA. Not very fast, but eventually it gets dissolved, enlarging the gaps between layers.

[@91JLovesDisney]

He said he was using PETG.

[@jeffnatiuk]

Hey Steve! Wonderful demonstration. Couple of things: 1) 3D Prints are notoriously porous. It looked like your prints only had 2 perimeters, which would probably cause liquid to seep into the hollow cavity, affecting the density. Increasing perimeters to 4 or 5 should help, but in my experience I've had to coat my prints in epoxy to get true water-tightness (though that would throw off your density calculations and epoxy probably won't play well with your chemical cocktail). 2) I'm sure you considered this, but the squareness of the beads is probably causing them to lock up together instead of floating past each other. Maybe chamfering at least one side of the cube's corners would help them slide by each other?

[@wobblysauce]

And most people use Asatone misting to smooth prints.

[@robertellis6853]

​@@wobblysauce I think the plastics you can acetone smooth are the very ones you wont ve able to use because they would melt in the acetone he is using in the toy.

[@NemrahG]

These are both definitely good ideas to try! Maybe different shapes as well to see if that helps them slide past each other

[@bosstowndynamics5488]

​@@robertellis6853True, but there are plastics that can be solvent smoothed that aren't acetone soluble (although by the time you're getting into more exotic FDM materials you could probably find a mix with the right density off the shelf and good layer adhesion, there's tons of blends of plastics with mixes of different base polymers and different fill materials. It would not surprise me if there's a fairly easily available polypropene available with the right density and PP prints are famously good at being watertight once you get them dialled in enough to print)

[@trif55]

I think a lot less smaller beads would work a lot better but yes, density and melting is always going to be a challenge!

[@RandiRain]

Density... beads... uh huh... What was that thing you were drawing and erasing on?

[@althejazzman]

Yeah! I too was fascinated by that. I suppose it's a blackboard for liquid pens.

[@naruto_sasuke807]

You can make cubical beads rounder so that they do not stick together and also reducing amounts of beads will help

[@SteveMould]

Definitely. I thought about both. You need a decent number of beads or you can't see them while the emulsions are cloudy. And printing things with a round bottom is hard!

[@Elektromanism]

​@@SteveMould how about printing them by a resin printer, and coating them in PU, for example? It'd be a lot more precise, and you can even paint them before the coating (transparent resin is preferable as the UV penetrates it and cures the inside)

[@boam2943]

@@SteveMould Print two halves with screw holes inside and print a headless screw to join them? Do not know if your printer could do that.

[@wiebewagemans8993]

​@@SteveMould a dodecahedron should be printable.

[@radeklew1]

​@@SteveMouldRock tumbler?

[@MannyDer]

The red zigzag at 6:40 was interesting, it's totally jumbled before he turned it. from random to a pattern

[@recurvestickerdragon]

keep in mind, the zig-zag was there the whole time, falling into place as the cubes settled slightly more efficiently against one another. he merely turned it to show us that cool section

[@TheZooloo10]

That notebook and pen set is soooo legible, great choice

[@avicenna581]

Agreed! I want to know the maker of both because I suddenly need both.

[@imperator9343]

Yeah I was watching for a brand name on it, but no luck. If anyone knows I'd appreciate it

[@TheBloodyScreen]

@@imperator9343 I am going to second this and preemptively apologize for causing a notification to you that will make you believe someone had the answer.

[@itsmemarkee6591]

@@imperator9343 The mechanical pencils are the Uni Kuru Toga ruoulette in both silver and black, they have a SUPER cool lead rotating mechanisms which auto sharpens it self. The other pencil used was the Rotring 600 which is my personal favorite mechanical pencil, I unfortunately don't know the notebook though :( however if you are looking for one similar to it, you can google "Black paper dot grid notepad" to find similar stuff!

[@leonardodk2065]

The pen/pencil is soke king of rOtring brand !

[@polybius2282]

Colored mechanical pencil lead just blew my mind

[@qwertyface]

I know, right?

[@hotmessmonster4240]

Literally pulled up the video on my phone while it's playing on my TV for the singular purpose of figuring out where I buy the magic pencils. Please tell me that someone knows where I can buy them. I love them more than Dobby loves socks

[@Linkzcap]

​@@hotmessmonster4240you can buy colored lead anywhere that sells pencil lead online, I like jetpens

[@calvin5374]

@@hotmessmonster4240There's a bunch of different colored leads on Amazon

[@itsmemarkee6591]

@@hotmessmonster4240 He used quite a few mechanical pencils! none of them however come with the great colored lead. The pencils used were the Uni Kuru toga ruoulette in both silver and black, and the Rotring 600. All of these are great pencils! I personally really like the Rotring, but it doesn't have the cool lead rotating mechinism. as for the lead, I think they are just standard colored lead sold by Pilot, they have IMO the best quality lead, however I haven't actually tried their colored variants. However Uni also makes a colored lead which he could be using

[@salvaje1]

I need that notepad and pen 2:36

[@Wadlo151]

Yeah what is that

[@colintroy7739]

+ seeking answer

[@izanagi5932]

it's a mechanical pencil from rotring

[@reseth]

One of the pens is Rotring 600 0,5mm mechanical pencil.

[@Not.Your.Business]

@@izanagi5932 what about that nice board?

[@MauritsWilke]

Whats the notebook you're using in the video?

[@qwertyface]

I don't know for sure, but it looks like it might be a Rhodia one. I'd love to know which, and also what coloured pencil leads he's using.

[@scorinth]

2:36 Seriously, that stationery flex though. I *think* I see a Rotring, a Mars, and a Kuru Toga, plus that lovely eraser and straightedge. 😳

[@qopw]

the rotring caught my eye too

[@anoopramakrishna]

Great video, but what I want to know is where can I get that mechanical chalk pencil and the tiny blackboard :)

[@nuneke0]

I'm honestly more impressed by version 1.0. The fact that the liquids stay clear all the time makes for a stunning effect, whereas you know right away what is going on with the 2.0 one.

[@lady_draguliana784]

5:00 if you ref the density of rosewood it's "raw" whereas a fret board is _treated_ with one or more of various substances, not least being dye/stain and esp. a High Density polymer, likely polyurethane (HDPU). it may also have been Steam Pressed, a process that squishes it down like a sponge, by first softening it with steam. this process may also be combined with a pressure chamber and the aforementioned HDPU etc. in order to impregnate and densify the material into something much stronger and heavier per volume than before: perfect for the abuse of a fret board which needs to also be a thin plate. EDIT: and it COULD have just absorbed the salt water, for a combined density greater than the constituents.

[@jacobfife7273]

Admittedly I'm not a guitar builder but from my understanding, a lot of those treatments happen after the guitar is built (well, when the neck is built).

[@lady_draguliana784]

@@jacobfife7273 that's true, but from what I understand, "Treating" and "Finishing" aren't quite the same. treatments like the ones above are more often "factory treated" rather than finishing, which is largely for appearance. but again it's only a guess, only he would be able to determine that by contacting the seller (or lab tests). It COULD also be that his fluids were tainted too, likely diluted to stretch profit margins, thus reducing their densities... or he could have been looking up "pure/lab-grade" versions rather than "commercial" concentrations. 🤔

[@mal2ksc]

The latest fad is torrefied (roasted) maple. It does seem to be superior to regular flamed maple in structural and durability aspects, but it does sound a little different. Jury is still out on whether it's better, worse, or just different. A lot of differences can be dialed away at the pedalboard or amp pretty easily. I don't know if they're doing the roasting process with anything but maple, but I wouldn't be surprised if they do. Surely it can't just work on one type of wood and no others.

[@lady_draguliana784]

@@mal2ksc oh GREAT! 😡 Now I'm craving PANCAKES! 😖🥞 Thanks! 🤣

[@CarpeUniversum]

Acetone and ipa are both often used to "smooth layer lines" in PLA prints. Because they slowly dissolve it.

[@Woodledude]

The moment you said the word "acetone", I had a chuckle at how much of a ride you'd probably be in for. Acetone vapor is often used to smooth 3D prints, because it dissolves certain plastics really well. ABS is one of them, PLA is another, I think.

[@gerryjamesedwards1227]

Yes, yes, but is that a MINI BLACKBOARD!!!???

[@NathanCaggiano]

black dot grid notebook and colored pencil leads.

[@billberg1264]

@@NathanCaggiano That surprises me, I haven't had good results trying to erase colored pencil.

[@doctordebunker9125]

@@billberg1264 it's a PVC foam eraser I believe. Sakura SumoGrip Block Eraser

[@eu4um]

I can't believe you spent 100 dollars at 1 dollar per bead. That's dedication.

[@euroamerican92]

Hey Steve, as someone who has worked in the instrument industry, I can say that pretty much worldwide, the sale and transfer of Brazilian rosewood is either outright illegal or VERY highly restricted. Brazilian rosewood only comes from the oldest regions of the Amazon, and the trees themselves provide an integral component of the biome. Most rosewood comes from India, where it is planted alongside tea plantations to provide partial shade, which is a highly sustainable and symbiotic industry.

[@wesleythomas6858]

Looks like you had fun with this! You’ve probably unintentionally made some Methamphetemine precursor too, Phenylacetone 😂

[@backwashjoe7864]

Let's not assume that it was unintentional... ;-)

[@1224chrisng]

In a mirror universe, it could just be nasal decongestant

[@Domedwho]

Damn he made a widely used organic chemical thats found in the medical industry and probably just about every single home in america. But yeah meth is worth mentioning when

[@tiffanysandmeier4753]

The 3d printed beads were probably not water tight. Over time, liquid fills the voids which changes the densities. If they are sealed first, they might stay where expected, but acetone and even IPA could strip that sealant.

[@bosstowndynamics5488]

True, but the other issue is that many 3D printing filaments are hygroscopic and absorb water, so inevitably a trial and error approach is still going to be required with the understanding that the resulting bead density is inevitably going to be different to the calculated density, probably a bit higher

[@mal2ksc]

@@bosstowndynamics5488 That's why he wanted to get as much difference in the liquid densities as he could. It would give him a lot more maneuvering room when it comes to the beads.

[@bosstowndynamics5488]

@@mal2ksc I'm not sure how that changes anything I said though, what I'm getting at is that fully sealing a hollow PLA print will not prevent the density from changing

[@dev_tea]

There are 3d printer filaments available that change density (foam up) based on how fast or what temperature you print them at. Might allow for some more control of custom beads.

[@yurisei6732]

I was getting myself all psyched up to make one of these myself, until I heard the cost of PMP...

[@Gwallacec2]

What was that board you were using to draw on?

[@HighKingTurgon]

INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW

[@colintroy7739]

+ seeking answer

[@snowe..]

haha I wanted to know the same thing. hope he replies.

[@SpydersByte]

I was wondering the same, it looks like a pad of those black sheets though, not a board. Also looks like he's using a chalk pencil or something (edit: just saw another comment that explained it: "Pilot Black Note, Rotring 600, uni-ball Kuru Toga. Uni and Pilot both make erasable coloured lead. Don't know what the other pencil he uses is")

[@snowe..]

@@SpydersByte I had no clue that there was erasable colored lead. Thank you very much for the info!

[@Jessicaj-jj3el]

I'm never this early, hopefully you see this. Thank you. For over a decade, your videos taught me how to spark curiosity, even in those with a vested interest in appearing disinterested in learning. (High school students)

[@brunonikodemski2420]

When we did this for a grade school science project, we used brake fluid, mineral oil, and silicone oil, along with water and isopropyl. Worked pretty well, got an award.

[@justinrcarothers]

Amazing, Steve! The full layer bead effect looks cool on the two-liquid version, but I think with a third liquid, you might get a stronger effect if you simplified. It looked cool when you added the "paraffin," and had just the one red ball floating. (8:52) Maybe try 1-3 larger objects of each density, maybe different shapes. You could have 6 different object groups if you had one that sank to the bottom, and one that floated at the top.

[@topherthe11th23]

1:05 - This same rule for liquids is also found to apply to bears, but not without a rare exception. In general, polar-bears mix almost exclusively with other polar-bears, and all non-polar-bears mix almost exclusively with other non-polar bears. But I think it hasn't been proven that there's never been a hybrid between a Kodiak Grizzly and a Polar-bear that has shown up in the ancient literature of pre-European America with some kind of special name or legend.

[@noyb7920]

I don't know whether to laugh or growl at this one...

[@javierhualde739]

I've got a suggestion for the beads. Make the beads from two materials joined together. One material must be less dense than the lightest liquid and the other material denser than the heavier material. Balsa wood and aluminium for instance. You can tune the density of each bead depending on the volume used of each material. At the same time the beads will orient themselves with the light portion up and the heavy one down. If a porous material is used (like balsa wood in my example), a coating like paint or varnish will be needed to avoid changes in the density of the wood as it will soak liquid in.

[@jacywilson]

Nice video,the only thing I can think to recommend is use slightly less beads so they only form a single layer like the original

[@kareemabdol-hamid9414]

Someone please tell me what that pen and paper/chalknotebook set he uses is. I'd really love to have it.

[@tsterndorff]

It's awesome seeing your process throughout this video. Often times it's only the results that's brought up, but seeing you work through the different materials really gives a perspective of the work that you went through finding the right solution. I really like that. This is often overlooked.

[@ifross]

I have a vague memory of a demonstration at university where they showed 7 immiscible liquids in the same column. You can for sure go bigger than 3

[@billberg1264]

Did they pour them in one at a time in a specific order? If so, they might not all have been mutually immiscible. Each one would only have to be immiscible with the ones directly above and below. So they might have just been alternating polar and non-polar liquids.

[@vitorhearteater]

They are density separated (polar, non-polar, polar, non-polar...), not immiscible as a group, so once you mix them together they don't separate anymore.

[@shadowgolem9158]

Similar to the way a liquid metal battery works. Very cool!

[@BeerontheBrain327]

I wonder if, rather than round or square beads, use narrow cylinders with pointy ends. But have the cylinders made of 2 different materials glued together, with different densities. For example, have a set of cylinders that are 25% heavy plastic and 75% light. Then another set 75% heavy and 25% light. Or any other combination. These would essentially be programmable. Their overall densities would be different, plus they would orient themselves. That way they would be able to pass each other and less likely to jam.

[@CaseyW491]

Steve, I love how you talk us through your whole process. Makes for a both entertaining and follow-along kind of experience. Excellent way to format a science video!

[@isaacthedestroyerofstuped7676]

One issue with using plastics in oils and other organics is that the plastic can swell and soften due to the organics seeping into the plastics due to their solubilities. That could be why the densities came out wrong and the beads stuck together.

[@Wolforce]

3d prints are not usually liquid-tight. if some liquid manages to find its way into the print it might throw off its density. I thought maybe coating them with something could help but then it changes the density. But then I thought that if you might WANT to change the density, coating with some clear product might be useful. Also if the blocks are a bit hydrophobic it might help them navigate the liquids and the other blocks more easily and might be a help getting them to the right places! Im not a material scientist or anything, but you if have the number of one of those i'd give them a call. Great video as always! Cheers from Portugal

[@dipayanpaul7569]

All i want to know is - WHAT KIND OF ERASABLE BLACK PAD IS THAT ???? Never seen such a thing in my life and I want one. Additionally what kind of pens are those ?

[@stevejohnson2648]

When I was in college my professor had me write a paper on PMP, and I’ve never heard it referenced or used ever, since I wrote that paper about 5 years ago. I am so glad to finally see it used/referenced somewhere!

[@DanielGBenesScienceShows]

I’ve been showing this poly-density demo in my live Science Shows for a decade. It’s awesome to see you explore this beautiful demo!

[@Felix-nz7lq]

You should look into biomolecular condensates if you're interested in liquid-liquid phase separation. Really fascinating stuff that is essential for life.

[@OrcinusLaryngologist]

Thanks. 🙏

[@andrewdowell2663]

What are those pencils and pad youre writing on? Seems very clear and also erase very well

[@jasonelmore2900]

Pencils are a Rotring 600 or 800 and an Uni Kuru Toga Keep Sharp and was about to ask about the pencil lead. I've got color lead, but nothing that would show up on black.

[@philmarlowe6627]

It is so fun to listen to you talking about trial and erroring different types of plastics, what can go wrong and how you are trimming everything. Investing so much effort and time in a small physics gadget, exactly my type :))

[@InnocentCatfaces]

Great video, great job! So nicely presented

[@michaelmoore7975]

That is fascinating! You must tell me the brand of the pens. The experiment is pretty cool, too.

[@ryanqvincent144]

That is persistance at getting something to work, that you believe should work, but turns out to be rather more difficult to make work in the real world than it first appears. Well done. :) Appreciated.

[@JustinKoenigSilica]

That's essentially all of science.

[@ryanqvincent144]

@@JustinKoenigSilica It certainly applies to 'engineering'. imo, 'Science' is a whole other 'can of worms'.

[@anzaklaynimation]

This is how engineers innovative their products. They experiment with their new idea, find its flaws, do research and kept making better and better versions of that until they achieve the desired result. ❤

[@neil1629]

That shot of the single bead at 8:53 is really, really, cool. I like you can see the surface of the lower liquid deform under the pressure of bead - it's like one of those tabletop GR models. Super cool.

[@LunarcomplexMain]

wth were you writing on? that looks amazing to sketch stuff

[@0neIntangible]

I'm too dense to fully understand this.

[@Hill_Walker]

Hollow glass beads could be good. Would be difficult to source I imagine, but can be coloured easily and can vary the cavity, like the 3D printed cubes.

[@AnthonyWilliams-hp9fs]

This is a wonderful video full of stuff I don’t understand, but fascinating. Thanks so much Steve

[@xizar0rg]

What's the blackboard and pens he's using?

[@pastek957]

10:33 The "eating corn" pattern

[@dawidlaszuk]

I wish all my youtube feed was of the similar videos to this one. Thesis, design, experiment and conclusion! Awesome!

[@ExplodingDarth]

I love how much effort was put into this, the trial and error makes me giddy!

[@idkthetime]

Cool, v3.0 with 8 levels when?

[@evodinoboy3285]

Plz give him a break

[@lfcbpro]

Typical woman, never happy. :)))))) THIS IS A JOKE. I was thinking the same thing, how far could you take this? 8, 12, 16???

[@Dr_Rocks]

All the mentions of the alcohol abbreviation make me want a beer

[@joshbeaulieu7408]

That is quite a design process. Cool video, and I really enjoyed watching the project.

[@WestOfEarth]

I just wanted to say this was an excellent demonstration of determination, persistence, and dealing with frustration. Doubly important to teach such skills to children.

[@coerciasink]

3:10 What's the graph thingy that he used here?

[@caiocc12]

Looks like a black paper and colored pencil leads

[@ericherde1]

The acronym is a little disorienting. I kept thinking you were talking about India Pale Ale or the International Phonetic Alphabet.

[@internetuser8922]

What, next you're going to tell me that referring to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as CBT is potentially problematic?

[@whateverIwasthinkingatthetime]

😂😂

[@brohanime]

i hate when acronyms accurately abbreviate their associated words. he should have chosen different letters, you're right.

[@arikorah2497]

The more fun science channels out there, the better. I'm definitely subscribing.

[@saiteja5922]

I appriciate the effort you have put in for this video

[@IsmailAhmadKanabauwi]

I'll do 0 push-ups every time I get like

[@drakovangorder8160]

yeah you do that push up

[@apollo7557]

I’ll do 2 pushups for every pushup this guy has to do

[@TheSkyeguy]

You're wasting time posting here when you could just be doing push-ups 😅

[@woody442]

Like for honesty

[@wombat.6652]

Extreme respect for your persistence and knowledge.

[@ThaAwsomness]

great video and I also love the graph paper and colored lead, its like night mode irl

[@mickjimi]

Great to see the perseverance is still there Steve. 👍

[@popcornb4024]

I love the little sparks you create in my brain!

[@michaelzumpano7318]

Bravo, Steve! Love the dedication. I’ve been working on a physical chemistry problem for 4 years, and it all finally came clear 4 weeks ago. I heard that a key quality for success in life is “grit”. Well, you have it my friend.🎉

[@mikoajp.5890]

Very cool to see macro scale random motion in the 10:05 timelapse (it's not Brownian motion of course, it's caused by emulsion beads popping). You took on yourself a task that every chemist that ever did similar liquid densities extraction would just refuse to even try - and succeeded! You may be a bit unhappy with how visible the emulsion is, but seriously getting to the point you did is already a big success.

[@ledocteur7701]

FDM (filament) prints are slightly porous, however SLA (resin) prints are almost perfectly water tight, at high pressure they do absorb a bit of liquid, but that wouldn't be a problem unless you're making a submarine. There are coating to make FDM prints water tight, but I would suggest investing in a resin printer, the precision is very beneficial for experiments like these.

[@geckoman1011]

A larger circumference might help the beads slip by each other in case there is any interaction with the wall going on.

[@TruthWielders]

I'm impressed with your axis reversal, I find it tickles !

[@brooksmiller5597]

4:05 - a dollar a beed! OUCH! I love youtube because of channels like this one. Thank you so much for the content. I _really_ enjoy it

[@JustaReadingguy]

I think i listened to someone engineer through a problem. The persistence, observations, trade offs, and just trying. Love it.

[@jackalovski1]

Between 2016 and last year I was self employed as a chemist making fragranced products like air fresheners where I had the opposite problem of getting fragrance compounds which are oil based to emulsify with the carrier liquids which could be water, auego (which is an oil) or alcohols like ethanol for perfumes. The best carrier liquid I found was an emulsification of auego, isopropyl alcohol, water and alcohol ethoxilate which is an emulsifier. Amazingly it produces a perfectly clear liquid that was able to absorb up to 30% by volume almost any fragrance oil. The reason you want a complex carrier liquid for a fragrance is because you need it to evaporate at a moderate rate taking the fragrance compounds with it, transport it through the air through diffusion and then transfer to the nose, the water really helps with that last bit.

[@xcheesinatorx]

For anyone wondering about the notebook and pencil lead. Colored lead is easy to order. Pentel and Uni NanoDia have multiple colors. Couldn't find his exact notebook but Pilot has a couple black page notebooks, including with the dots. Also Michael's sells a black page journal.

[@tciddados]

10:54 I like the one white cube that goes up from the blue layer, down again, and then back up again.

[@1a1u0g9t4s2u]

A variation of this can be done with SF6, helium and a third gas. Then simply place a small ballon filled with 50% mix of the gas (adjusted to account for the mass of the ballon) for the boundary layer. A nice trick is to fill a tall aquarium tank half full with SF6 gas, then simply place an air filled ballon into the aquarium. The ballon appears to be suspended in the tank. As a magic trick take a wire hoop and show there are no wires or strings holding the ballon. Learned lots from your video, thanks for sharing.

[@speakp4ngolin]

I think it would look a lot better with a smaller number of beads. Maybe even have a tiny plane, boat and submarine made out of the distinct materials; just one of each.

[@sgtommyc]

Acetone dissolves ABS plastic into a putty, that can be used to glue other plastic types together where crazy glue does not work. It's used a lot amongst MC enthusiasts to mend broken fairings, often named Lego glue.

[@gnothisauton2116]

Great video and great sponsor. My kid loves the Kiwi crates!

[@ghostfox3560]

at the 6:38 mark, that had me feeling like I was back in my 9th grade science class again. Pretty slick one Steve.

[@feelsgoodmanjpg7762]

I really love how the last liquids were looking when separated. Like water and air. You could try printing a ship and a submarine and let them float on the surface and in the water underneath. :D

[@JohnMcFee1]

While PLA is NOT soluble in most solvents including Acetone, it is rather easily broken down via Hydrolysis in water which would explain the apparent softening of the prints; I suspect that the reaction was accelerated by the presence of the salt, since salts can increase the natural activity of water via catalyzation of "spontaneous" Hydronium and Hydroxide ions which in turn attack the PLA.

[@ekhobbies1877]

You can use light beads and insert a steel ball or screw to tune it. You can mix different oils to tune oil density as well!