Latest science news in Physics & Chemistry
Everyday Tech from Space: Out of NASA Tragedy, Better Fireproof Clothes
NASA's advanced research on thermal barriers and insulation for spacesuits, space shuttles and other vehicles have found earthly applications in firefighting, the military, motor sports and other industries.
How to tame hammering water droplets
A water hammer can occur when a valve is suddenly opened or closed in a pipe carrying water or steam, causing a pressure wave to travel down the pipe with...
Green: A Carbon Storage Leak? Not So Fast, Experts Caution
Experts dispute a contention by property owners that elevated levels of carbon dioxide on their property can be attributed to gas from a carbon-capture reservoir.
High-Powered Laser Pointers Pose Risk to Pilots
The Federal Aviation Administration has reported a drastic increase in instances of lasers aimed at aircraft.
Review of Alone Together by Sherry Turkle
Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other by Sherry Turkle (Basic Books, $28.95, 378 pages, January, 2011) Reviewed by Dr. Fred Bortz This review...
Single photon management for quantum computers
The quantum computers of tomorrow might use photons, or particles of light, to move around the data they need to make calculations, but photons are tricky to work with. Two...
Nanoworld in colour
Lights off - projector on. Lecture theatres, conference halls and seminar rooms currently have to be darkened if the speaker wants to project a presentation on screen. Unfortunately, the attention...
Sensors to detect explosives, monitor food being developed at UH
Monitoring everything from explosives to tainted milk, materials for use in creating sensors for detection devices have been developed by a University of Houston (UH) chemist and his team. The...
Green: In New N.Y.U. Plant, a Collaterial Carbon Benefit
By opening a new energy-efficient power plant that generates fewer conventional pollutants, New York University's system will also emit 23 percent less carbon dioxide.
Plasmonic metamaterials: From microscopes to invisibility cloaks
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new class of artificial materials called metamaterials -- which derive their properties from carefully engineered, nanostructured building blocks rather than from their chemical composition -- may one...
Tunisian work goes on, energy company says
LONDON, Jan. 21 (UPI) -- There are no problems with oil and gas exploration in Tunisia despite the Jasmine Revolution that brought down the government, an oil company said.
Fool's gold catches eye of solar energy researchers
Iron pyrite - also known as fool's gold - may be worthless to treasure hunters, but it could become a bonanza to the solar industry. The mineral, among the most...
A new material to cut weight of ships by 30 percent and save on fuel consumption, CO2 emissions
A new material is tested to cut the weight of ships by 30 percent. For an average sized freight vessel with a capacity of 7000 m? this corresponds to a...
Laser Propulsion Could Beam Rockets into Space
The new concept, called beamed thermal propulsion, involves propelling a rocket by shining laser light or microwaves at it from the ground.
Making light work of artificial muscles
A new form of self-assembling polymer film that bends and stretches when hit by light is pointing the way to a new family of functional materials. This flexing film is...
Radical predictions in polymer chemistry
Free radicals may have a bad reputation for causing ozone depletion and premature aging, but they are in fact extremely useful for making novel materials, particularly polymers. Skilled chemists can...
Black TiO2 absorbs light across the spectrum
Hydrogenation used to introduce disorder into titanium dioxide nanocrystals, increasing the amount of solar light they absorb
Microtechnology: An alignment assignment
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), which consist of tiny moving parts driven by electrical signals, have found ready applications in optical communication systems. They are attractive in part because they can be...
Bayer Accused Of Skirting Safety
Investigation: Rush to production caused plant explosion in West Virginia, safety board concludes.
Belarus looks to Russia for nuclear help
MOSCOW, Jan. 21 (UPI) -- Russia and Belarus could agree to the terms for construction of a nuclear plant in Belarus during the first quarter of 2011, the Belarusian...
Which-way detector unlocks some mystery of the double-slit experiment
(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the greatest puzzles of the double-slit experiment and quantum physics in general is why electrons seem to act differently when being observed. While electrons...
Nanoworld in color: Tiny lens arrays can record or project sharp images
Researchers in Germany have developed microscopically small nanostructured arrays of lenses that can record or project amazingly sharp images in brilliant colors.
Entangled En Masse: Physicists Crank Out Billions of Entangled Nucleus-Electron Pairs on Demand
Entanglement, that most counterintuitive quantum phenomenon by which particles share an unseen link that aligns their properties, is looking more mundane all the time. Just last week two groups of...
The Texas Tribune: Lack of Transmission Lines Is Restricting Wind Power
The lack of transmission lines has helped to thwart the ambitions of wind-power advocates in Texas, but that may be changing.
Highly ordered artificial spin ice created using nanotechnology
Scientists have created artificial spin ice in a state of thermal equilibrium for the first time, allowing them to examine the precise configuration of this important nanomaterial.
U.S. atom smasher to be shut down
WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- The planned shutdown the Fermilab Tevatron ends hopes it might win the race to find the most sought-after particle in high-energy physics, U.S. scientists...
F.D.A. Sees Promise in Alzheimer’s Imaging Drug
A first-of-a-kind imaging chemical designed to help screen for Alzheimer’s could be useful, a federal panel said.
Green: An Affordable Way to Buy Fuel-Cell Power
Bloom Energy says its service will allow customers to buy the electricity generated by its fuel cells without buying its six-figure 100-kilowatt solid oxide model.