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Just a stone's throw forms a supersonic jet ScienceNews Share    
A stone hitting a pond can produce a tiny supersonic splash, a new study has found. Researchers studying the shape of an air cavity made when an object hits a liquid noticed a similarity to the shape of the nozzles that are in supersonic jet engines. Sure enough, air escaping from the cavity can reach supersonic speeds, the team reports in a paper published online January 11 in Physical Review Letters. Read the journal article here. More
Star keeps magnetic lock on its big brother Science Now Share
Taking advantage of an unusual pair of nearby stars, astronomers have for the first time captured images of a magnetic field generated by a star other than our sun. Studying that field should help researchers gain a much better understanding of the internal dynamics that produce stellar magnetic fields, which in our sun's case can influence everything from climate to satellite orbits to telecommunications. More Laser light proves to have many uses in business, health, communications The Washington Post Share
This year marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most portentous events in the history of science: the creation of the laser. Like many a transformative development, it was met initially with thunderous public indifference, although there were a few mutterings about "death rays." A number of techno-pundits regarded the upstart gizmo as basically a glorified parlor trick, a "solution looking for a problem," as Charles Townes, who won the Nobel Prize for pioneering the idea, later wrote. More Liquid light bender proposed ScienceNews Share
Tiny silver-coated rust particles suspended in water may give the fluid light-bending superpowers, physicists suggest in a paper to appear in Physical Review Letters. Simulations with the proposed fluid system find that it could disguise objects from many wavelengths of visible light, lead author Jiping Huang of Fudan University in Shanghai and colleagues report. What's more, the system would be tunable, giving researchers control over the light-contorting particles. More Plumped up carbon fatter than expected Ars Technica Share
Past experimental research has shown a pretty consistent trend that the size of an atom's nucleus correlates with its mass number (the total number of neutrons and protons in the nucleus). Generally, the size of the nucleus is proportional to the cube root of the mass number. Every now and then, however, we find an isotope where this relationship does not hold. Recently, it was discovered that Carbon-22 has a nucleus that is bigger than Lead, despite having a much smaller mass number! More
Neptune and Uranus may have oceans of liquid diamond Popular Science Share
Future humans won't have to wait to travel to Pandora for the chance to mine unobtanium, because Neptune and Uranus may have diamond icebergs floating atop liquid diamond seas closer to home. The surprise finding comes from the first detailed measurements of the melting point of diamond, Discovery News reports. More What's the real story with Newton and the apple? See for yourself Scientific American Share
Among the countless achievements of Isaac Newton, any number of which would have made him a household name on their own, his articulation of the force of gravity in the late 17th century surely ranks near the top. The legend of Newton's inspiration coming from a falling apple is often dismissed as apocryphal, but the great physicist's memoirs would seem to indicate otherwise. More Fear grips Iranian academics Physics World Share
"We are living in an atmosphere of fear," says Reza Mansouri, a cosmologist at Sharif University in Tehran, referring to academic life in the Iranian capital in the wake of the assassination of a fellow physicist. Masoud Alimohammadi, a 50-year-old physics professor at Tehran University, was killed by a remote-controlled bomb attached to the side of a motorcycle. The bomb was detonated as he left his house for work. More Going beyond Moore's Law by using the third dimension PhysOrg Share
Scientists have demonstrated a new microwire fabrication technique in which microwires self-assemble themselves in a three-dimensional template made of nematic liquid crystals. Amidst concerns about Moore's law eventually approaching a limit in two dimensions, the new fabrication method could enable researchers to continue to increase the density of transistors on integrated circuits by making use of the third dimension. Read the journal article here. More Caribbean at risk of more large earthquakes NewScientist Share
Earthquake experts are warning that the devastating quake that struck Haiti could be the first of several in the region. They say historical records suggest that not all the energy that has built up in the faults running through the Caribbean region was released in this tragedy. Their fear is that enough energy remains in the fault system to trigger another earthquake of the same scale. More Scientists push "Doomsday Clock" back a minute ABC News Share
Scientists pushed back the hands on the symbolic Doomsday Clock by one minute citing hopeful developments in nuclear weapons and climate change. The symbolic clock that shows how close mankind is to self-annihilation was moved back to six minutes before midnight from five minutes on Thursday. The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, which maintains the clock and puts an illustration of it on its cover, attributed the move to efforts by world leaders to reduce their countries' nuclear arsenals and collaborate on climate stabilization. More |
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