Researchers have discovered a "shape-recovering liquid" that appears to defy the laws of thermodynamics. The liquid, which is made up of oil, water and magnetized particles,consistently separates into a form resembling a Grecian urn.
This discovery began when Anthony Raykh, a polymer science and engineering graduate student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, was studying a mixture of oil, water and nickel particles in a vial. He shook the vial to create an emulsion — or a blend of liquids that don't mix. But instead of separating into a clear top and bottom, the mixture formed the shape of a Grecian urn. Even after shaking the vial over and over, it kept returning to this shape.
