Sponge

Sponge is a block that can be used to remove water around itself when placed, turning into a wet sponge in the process.

Obtaining
A sponge can be obtained by drying a wet sponge in a furnace. Sponges can be mined using any tool, or without a tool.

Drying
A wet sponge can be dried in a furnace, making the sponge reusable. If a bucket is in the fuel slot at the time the sponge completes its drying, either because the player places it there or because the fuel slot had contained a bucket of lava, the water will drain into the bucket, leaving a bucket of water in the fuel slot.

Usage
A sponge can be used to turn water into air (it "absorbs" the water). To place a sponge, a sponge item while pointing at a surface facing the space the sponge should occupy.

A sponge instantly absorbs nearby water when it is placed next to water or when water comes into contact with it (by being placed next to the sponge, or by flowing towards it). A sponge absorbs water around itself (water source blocks or flowing water) out to a [//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/taxicab_distance taxicab distance] of 7 in all directions (including up and down), but won't absorb more than 65 blocks of water (water closest to the sponge will be absorbed first). The absorption only propagates from water to water and won't "jump over" non-water blocks (including air).

When a sponge absorbs water, it turns into a wet sponge.

Data values
A sponge has the ID name  and is further defined by its block data. A sponge also has a block state which is expected to replace the functionality of block data in a future version.