A rheological perspective on Felis catus

Synopsis

Panta rhei ("everything flows") — the famous words of Heraclitus which describe the world as constantly changing, are also attributed to a branch of Physics: Rheology.  Rheology takes a sufficiently general definition of "flow" to characterize the deformation of classically defined liquids, solids and gases. It is particularly useful in describing materials with both solid and fluid characteristics, such as... cats? Though most physicists may classify a cat as solid, many home-empiricists claim that cats are liquid based on their bulk material properties, providing evidence of cats readily adapting to the shape of their container. In this talk we will explore some of the rich range of phenomena from the field of rheology, and ultimately in their unlikely application to Felis catus. Can rheology provide an answer of sorts to the question: Are cats liquid?