The Longest Lab Experiment Is Still On

OME experiments last minutes, others days, but one has quietly unfolded over nearly a century.

- HRITHIK KIRAN BAGADE

In a small glass funnel at the University of Queensland in Australia, a lump of black, seemingly solid material has been slowly revealing one of science's most fascinating truths: that not everything is as it appears. This is the Pitch Drop Experiment, officially the world's longest-running laboratory experiment. Designed to demonstrate that substances like pitch, though appearing solid, are actually extremely slow-flowing liquids, this experiment has challenged our understanding of material states and the passage of time itself. What began as a humble classroom demonstration in the 1920s has become a global symbol of patience, persistence, and scientific curiosity.