What happens when you drop a slinky (in slow motion?)

(CBS) - What happens when you drop a slinky? Seems like a simple question, but the magic of slow-motion shows us the surprising answer in this educational video. Skip to 00:40 for the slo-mo goodness, but stick around for the eye-opening explanation.

Who knew there was so much mystery to the humble slinky? Those of us who never could quite get them to roll down a flight of stairs are very impressed. Credit goes to Australian science blog Veritasium is responsible for this very cool video.