Is it just me, or is "state of matter" less of set of discrete boxes and more of a continuum with several parameters to describe a "state"? This gel, anyway, pretty much seems like a solid with a peculiar set of values for brittleness and flexibility.

States are usually quite discontinuous, as in the transitions between solids, liquids, and gases. Usually a state has properties that apply throughout the material in bulk that derive specifically from how the particles interact with one another on a small scale. Usually, there are very distinct boundaries in therodynamic properties between phases. There are exceptions to this though, like in the case of pitch [1].

That being said, to me, this sounds more like a mixture [2] than a state of matter, unless there some sort of chemical interaction between the Laponite and water. But hey, the scientists probably know more than me about that.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitch_%28resin%29 [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mixture

How this "equilibrium gel" is a new state of matter exactly?

Unlike BEC where quantum wave functions form an amalgam at 2.E-7K, with drastically different properties (harmonic generation of atoms, some materials passing through each other), this stuff is sensationalism.

io9 sensationalism. It got you (and me) to open the link and read the article.

seems to be pretty old news from the original link: http://news.sciencemag.org/physics/2010/12/new-state-matter-...