Latest science news in Physics & Chemistry
Physicists Determine Density Limit For Randomly Packed Spherical Materials
The problem of how many identical-sized spheres can be randomly packed into a container has challenged mathematicians for centuries. A team of physicists has come up with a solution that...
Measuring a pulsar's smoothness
The team operating the Laser Interferometer Gravity-wave Observatory, including a group from MIT, is reporting this week that the pulsar at the center of the Crab Nebula must have an...
New fingerprint method works on metals
LEICESTER, England, June 4 (UPI) -- British scientists say they've created a new technique for identifying fingerprints on metal in a breakthrough that could solve many cold criminal...
Obituary: Lorenzo Odone
Obituary: Spirited as a child, he developed ALD and became the inspiration behind Lorenzo's oil
New Metamaterial a 'Perfect' Absorber of Light
A team of scientists from Boston College and Duke University has developed a highly-engineered metamaterial capable of absorbing all of the light that strikes it - to a scientific...
Better Way To Make A Wafer Of Polyethylene
Layers of plastic, much thinner than a strand of hair—this type of ultrathin polymer film is of great interest to scientists and engineers. A new method to produce wafer-thin layers...
Plant waste biofuels benefit from food debate
TORONTO (Reuters) - In the search for renewable energy, turning low-value materials like switchgrass and corn husks into ethanol to fuel cars is something of a Holy Grail.
New 'Quasiparticles' Discovered
Scientists have demonstrated, for the first time, the existence of "quasiparticles" with the one quarter the charge of an electron. While charges with odd denominators have been seen, the new,...
Micro-robots Dance On Something Smaller Than A Pin's Head
Microscopic robots crafted to maneuver separately without any obvious guidance are now assembling into self-organized structures after years of continuing research led by a Duke University computer scientist.
Quantum Systems Could Flout Physics Law
Scientists have shown how quantum systems might disobey a hard and fast rule of physics: While an ensemble of small systems in a larger heat bath should eventually reach thermal...
2007 Chemistry Graduates Find Job Market Healthy
The percentage of 2007 chemistry graduates with full-time jobs as of early last October was relatively high, extending an upturn in employment rates of the past several years, according to...
Interactive Web sites can shape perception
STATE COLLEGE, Pa., June 2 (UPI) -- A U.S. scientist says he's found the interactive look and feel of a corporate Web site can help shape positive perceptions...
Nanotech process produces plastics that are 10 times more stretchable
Move over, Rumplestiltskin. Researchers in China report the first successful “electrospinning” of a type of plastic widely used in automobiles and electronics. The high-tech process, which uses an electric charge...
Microgeneration could rival nuclear, report shows
Buildings equipped with solar, wind and other micro power equipment could generate as much electricity in a year as five nuclear power stations, a UK government-backed industry report has shown
Synergy Between Biology And Physics Drives Cell-imaging Technology
Developing techniques to image the complex biological systems found at the sub-cellular level has traditionally been hampered by divisions between the academic fields of biology and physics. However, a new...
Ultra-thin Image Sensor Based On Insect Eye Being Developed
Insects are a source of inspiration for technological development work. For example, researchers around the world are working on ultra-thin imaging systems based on the insect eye. The principle of...
Economic cost drives Senate climate debate
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The possible economic cost of confronting global warming - from higher electricity bills to more expensive gasoline - is driving the debate as climate change takes center...
Potential Tool For Selectively Manipulating Electron Spins In New Technologies Arises Unexpectedly
Researchers trying to flip the spin of electrons with laser bursts lasting picoseconds (a trillionth of a second) instead found a way to manipulate and control the spin -- knowledge...
Laser Light Produces Complex Nanostructures
A single laser pulse can create complex, ordered nanostructure systems. "We have discovered a method for controlling the pattern into which the nanoparticles organize themselves", says one of the physicists....
Micro-mechanical Gyroscopes May Provide Navigation For Planes And Cars Of The Future
Airplanes, submarines and even automobiles of tomorrow may be equipped with arrays of inexpensive high-performance micro-mechanical gyroscopes for navigation and other purposes. The proprietary system of MEMS gyroscope arrays under...
Nanowire-mesh 'Paper Towel' For Oil Spills Absorbs 20 Times Its Weight In Oil
A mat of nanowires with the touch and feel of paper could be an important new tool in the cleanup of oil and other organic pollutants, researchers report in Nature...
Story Tips from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, June 2008
ENERGY -- Cheaper, efficient power . . . ELECTRONICS -- Zinc oxide LEDs . . . BIOLOGY -- Soil sleuths . . . NAVIGATION -- Micro gyro . . .
Delaware's Cloutier Wins DARPA Award for Work in Optics, Materials
Sylvain G. Cloutier, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, has been named the University of Delaware's first recipient of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Young Faculty Award.
Evidence of a Bose glass state?
"In nano-sized systems many physical properties are greatly altered from those of macroscopic-sized systems. Therefore, study of nano-sized systems, in general, is very important in developing fundamental physics," Keiya Shirahama...
Researchers to Upgrade Safety and Performance of Rocket Fuel
Researchers have received a $1 million grant from the U. S. Department of Defense to boost the safety and performance of fuel used in thousands of satellites, rockets, missiles and...
Climate Enters Debate Over Nuclear Power
Environmental groups want to shut down Vermont’s only nuclear power plant, but closing it might mean the state would probably have to derive extra power from suppliers that use fossil...
The Energy Challenge: Mounting Costs Slow the Push for Clean Coal
Despite support, plans to take the carbon dioxide that spews from coal-burning power plants and pump it back into the ground have hit roadblocks.
Carbon footprint growing in United States
WASHINGTON, May 29 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say the nation's carbon footprint is expanding as people drive more, build more and consume more energy.