Clipmarks | kidora's 'physics' clips

Invisible Science

Sat, 14 Jul 2007 03:17:02 GMT

clipped by: kidora

ROME. July 12. KAZINFORM. The science fictional invisible man is a step closer to reality now that U.S. and European scientists have created a way to bend light around objects.

The researchers' breakthrough in invisibility research is the creation of acoustic plasmon. Mario Rocca of Genoa University in Italy said the plasmon, a supercharged variation of electrons, could be used to make new materials that light can be bent around, ANSA reported Wednesdsay.

Rocca said U.S. scientists have managed to do this with tiny objects using extremely small light wavelengths, not in the range of visible light, Kazinform cites UPI.

"But in principle it should be possible for visible light too, and we should be able to hide fairly big objects," Rocca said in the journal Nature. "We can see the prospect of the plasmon being used to refract light right around an object, making it perfectly invisible".

Tags: invisible, science, physics, light

Must See, Kid Rapping About Physics

Thu, 21 Jun 2007 19:40:49 GMT

clipped by: kidora
clipper's remarks: This is just great.
If more kids could get this interested in science and learning so much could change in this country.
Not to mention that this just freaken cool

Clip Source: blog.sciam.com

More Young M.C. than Sugar Hill Gang, this physicist's delight should provide a few chuckles:

Physics G (who is actually named Greg Courville) can be a little thin on the descriptions (aside from a shout out to Stephen Wolfram): plasma physics are pretty neat? But that's a quibble. You gotta admire his breadth and his willingness to move the crowd.

As much as I admire the work, I suspect the Department of Energy will be asking about his nuclear fusion project long before Kanye West will be busting down his door.

Tags: physics, rapping, science, entertainment, music, video

The God Particle Finally Found ?

Mon, 18 Jun 2007 16:42:05 GMT

clipped by: kidora
clipper's remarks: Read more about the God Particle on wired.com.
Exciting stuff.

Clip Source: www.wired.com

For weeks, the physics world has been buzzing with rumors juicier -- at least in context -- than any Washington scandal: Researchers at Fermilab's Tevatron particle collider may have made one of the biggest scientific discoveries in decades, just months before a new European facility supplanted their position at the top of the field.

According to the rumors, researchers may have experimental results compatible with the discovery of a long-sought particle called the Higgs boson, sometimes dubbed the "God particle," which is widely regarded as giving all other particles mass. Depending on the details, this could be a Nobel-level discovery, and could lead to a reexamination of much of today's physics.

Nevertheless, the blog-spread buzz is polarizing the physics community. The tension, and the ongoing silence from researchers in the know, says much about a field on the brink of changes that will shape research for decades to come.

Tags: god particle, physics, blogging, wired, science