title: Storing a type in C++
body: <p>Is it possible to store a type name as a C++ variable? For example, like this:</p>
  
  <pre><code>type my_type = int; // or string, or Foo, or any other type
  void* data = ...;
  my_type* a = (my_type*) data;
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>I know that 99.9% of the time there's a better way to do what you want without resorting to casting void pointers, but I'm curious if C++ allows this sort of thing.</p>