# What do you call these items? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 21, 2011, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252 "2011-04-21T17:17:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/1 "2011-04-21T17:17:58Z")
I have one of these on my desk. It’s a little plastic container filled with mostly water, a blue colored liquid that’s a lot like oil (maybe it’s oil), and some air. You turn it upside down and the air goes up and the blue oil falls down like a Rube Goldberg device, turning a little wheel. The air goes up a little inclined path that looks like the first level of Donkey Kong. You turn it back around and the same thing happens, only the air goes up and turns the wheel and the blue oil falls down the incline. Is there a general name for these kinds of toys? Actually I just realized that since oil is lighter than water, it wouldn’t fall down. Let’s just say it’s a blue liquid then ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/2 "2011-04-21T17:47:12Z")
Sounds kind of like a lava lamp without a lamp. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/3 "2011-04-21T17:54:23Z")
It turns out you get some pretty remarkable results if you Google **toy oil tube**. ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/4 "2011-04-21T18:37:18Z")
You may get even more interesting results if yo Google toy oil **LUBE** 😛 ---
**Author:** ![caveman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caveman/32/7242_2.png) [@caveman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caveman)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/5 "2011-04-21T18:39:32Z")
“Liquid Motion Toy” seems to be an effective term to search for on Google. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/6 "2011-04-21T18:49:55Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > I have one of these on my desk. It’s a little plastic container filled with mostly water, a blue colored liquid that’s a lot like oil (maybe it’s oil), and some air. You turn it upside down and the air goes up and the blue oil falls down like a Rube Goldberg device, turning a little wheel… If you could just discover how it got there, you might be able to unravel the mystery of its name. Did it arrive in the night? Or during your lunch hour? The people who have offered it to you: Have they made themselves known at all? They very well could have the answer. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/7 "2011-04-21T19:01:50Z")
[Is this it?](http://www.amazon.com/Single-Wheel-Drop-Liquid-Motion/dp/B0009EP45I) ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-these-items/579252/8 "2011-04-21T21:31:55Z")
Liquid motion toy, that’s it! Thanks **guizot** , a coworker gave it to me, but neither he nor I know what it’s called. We’ve been referring to it as “that water thing” for the last month Yes Boyo, looks like that’s it. I need to get another one of those