5 Scientific Ways To Make Water Do Magic

By David Dietle April 21, 2009 669,727 views

#2.

Make Instant Snow From Boiling Water

This one requires it to be really, really freaking cold outside. Like way colder than it probably gets where you live. But get a day way below zero, boil a cup of water, and toss it into the air. The results are as cool as shit:

If it gets to be 30 degrees Fahrenheit or so below zero, the water vapor will freeze instantly. That's why the water has to be boiling, as the vapor has a much higher surface-to-mass ratio (the same reason you will freeze to death slower than say, a mouse).

All of those little heated particles of water cool very rapidly when exposed to super cold air, forming ice crystals in an instant. BUT ONLY IF IT IS COLD ENOUGH.

We do the all caps there because once again we fear somebody going out on what's considered a cold day in California (say, 60 degrees) and tossing a pot of boiling water toward their friends. And then suing us.

#1.

Instant Ice

Here is a trick that works on the same principle but doesn't require you to live in Minnesota. And the results are actually just as bizarre.

You may have even seen this principle in action before, if you have ever felt the gut-wrenching sadness associated with putting a beer in the freezer to cool it down quickly, only to forget it for three hours. It looks fine when you pull it out, but when you open it you find flat-beer flavored slush has instantly formed inside.

Now imagine how pissed we'd be if it wasn't just a shitty Heineken Light.

The deal is that super-cooled water works just like superheated; unless there is a "seed," no ice crystals will form, so the water stays liquid beyond the normal freezing point. With water, the "seed" can be introduced just by tapping the side of the container (or in the case of the beer, creating the delicious bubbles). Behold as the water freezes solid in seconds, like you're the damned Iceman from X-Men:

This actually works better with beer, especially Corona (because it comes in a clear bottle, so is easier to see). Put the bottle in the freezer either in the morning or overnight. Once it has been in there for hours, all you have to do is open it. As soon as the bubbles begin to form, the water in the beer will immediately crystallize. Break the bottle and you'll have a delicious beercicle that will last for hours!

You can find more from David at Associated Content.

For mores more information that will come in handy during Tuesday night trivia, check out 7 Species That Get High More Than We Do and 5 Ways Your Brain Is Messing With Your Head.

And visit Cracked.com's Top Picks before we show you a cool water trick that involves cement shoes.

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83 Comments

I AM SOOOOOOOO TRYING THAT WHISKEY TRICK WHEN I GET PAID! If it works, i'll use it for bar bets.......

8/25/2009 7:45:05 AM

Satrevi

Minnesota 4 life dude. 4 life....

6/24/2009 10:01:20 PM

manbeast3000

This is a good article. Indeed water is magical: it is useful and can also be damaging.

http://waterdocsonline.com/

6/11/2009 2:41:58 AM

solace

Water is useful but it can also be damaging.This is where water damage restoration comes in. It is good that we have arizona water damage restoration in our place.

6/11/2009 2:39:55 AM

solace

@jedimastergigi - I would've been s**t-scared I was turning into the Iceman if that happened to me!

Awesome sciencey article, by the way - you know I'm going to have to try the water-and-whiskey trick next time I'm out drinkin'.

6/10/2009 2:51:22 PM

captain_cranky

Man, I'm from Minnesota, and we've done the instant-snow thing a couple of times before. Like this winter. When we had a full week. Below -20 degrees.

6/8/2009 10:30:43 AM

screaminbean

Beware the Phantom Time Traveler! He goes back in time and changes the past. It's his hobby. Warn your friends and family about the Phantom Time Traveler! His actions are constantly changing your life and mine. History cannot be left in the hands of an individual! What has already been done is not meant to be undone. Petition the government! Let them know about the danger he poses. If we can convince the government of the problem, they may be able to build a machine that can detect ripples caused by time travel. Then, the next time he comes back from the past or future, we can catch him! BEWARE THE PHANTOM TIME TRAVELER! Your life could be completely ruined in the past, and you won't even know it! You might have been rich, but after the Phantom Time Traveler changed something, you're not, and don't remember it! You might lose your memories of today as well! A wise man once said "Do not squander time. That is the stuff life is made of." Surely, destroying the precious lives of others by changing their pasts of the worst thing someone could do. The Phantom Time Traveler is perpetrating an atrocity far worse than any that has come before. It is a crime against all humanity, against all life, everywhere!

COPY and PASTE this warning to AT LEAST SEVEN STORIES, or the Phantom Time Traveler will have sex with your mom in the past and become your dad!

5/23/2009 11:52:18 PM

TwistedSaw

I am really surprised that this never turned into a flame war. Keep your fingers crossed that my next scientific article gets accepted:
"6 Scientific ways to make grape jelly and dildos do magic"

5/20/2009 8:15:05 PM

Vodstok

As a life long resident of canada, i can say without any bullshit that i've gotten bored at work at two in the morning at a gas station and walked outside in jeans and a t shirt and mad einstant snow with boiling water from the coffee machine. soooo cool. espescially when you put it in an open water bottle and throw it so it twirls, it make sliek sky writing with snow.

5/15/2009 10:33:36 PM

erich111

That last one was totally true. One time, my aunt uncle and cousins were visiting for christmas and my aunt and i went got into the car to pick them up. It was pretty damn cold outside and i noticed a practically full water bottle next to my feet. I was relatively thirsty so i grabbed it and screwed of the cap, and suddenly BOOM! it's frozen! I was amazed, and know i'm so glad i know how that happened.

5/2/2009 9:08:34 PM

jedimastergigi

I love the fact that they really DO teach the whiskey and water trick in Bartender School. That's where I learned it. Super boiling and Super cooled water we did in Physics class my senior year of high school. This is my favorite article ever. :D

5/1/2009 4:01:59 AM

Gemoxcore

Good old Cracked stuff. Here are more fun videos, "Best of Jake and Amir" http://tv1.com/playlists/188

4/25/2009 11:02:39 AM

sky_slasher

I love the whiskey water switch! We'll try it with 'The McCallan' scotch.

4/23/2009 4:10:40 PM

davidw.osedach

Damn, and I actually like Heineken light.

4/23/2009 8:14:18 AM

dnik24

Mr. Roberts, it's Ringwraiths that can't cross running water. Unless of course their target bears the one ring, in which case they will brave it; but this triggers an Elvish defensive mechanism that will call the river down on them.

Unlike what that damned RPG for the Xbox tries to teach us, these waters CANNOT be summoned out of thin air, so if encountered by a Ringwraith, do not attempt this.

4/22/2009 11:30:09 PM