Publication of the Society for Science & the Public

Explore:

Tag Archives: physics

Light dancing on glass

By Stephen Ornes / May 15, 2013

This image, taken with a powerful microscope, shows tiny, individual crystals of bismuth telluride. A new structure made from this material lets light travel easily and without interruption along its surface. Credit: A13ean/Wikipedia

New type of material lets light travel across its surface without interruption

Posted in Light & Radiation, Physics, Technology & Engineering | Tagged conductor, Cornell University, crystal, electrons, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany, getinvolved, Haifa, insulator, Ithaca, Jacob Taylor, Joint Quantum Institute, light, materials science, Michal Lipson, Mordechai Segev, New York, photons, physics, superconductor, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, topological insulator, topology, University of Maryland

Science for all

By Nancy McGuire / January 9, 2013

John Holdren shares his insights into science with President Barack Obama as his science advisor. Credit: Pete Souza

STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — makes careers blossom

Posted in STEM Careers, Young Scientists | Tagged Academy Awards, Adam Duran, Big Bang Theory, Braille, camouflage paint, Chemical Pioneer Award, chemistry, computer modeling, computer models, computer science, education, engineer, feature, fluids, Harry Potter, high performance computing, John Holdren, materials science, molecules, movies, Office of Science & Technology Policy, Oscar, OSTP, Pat Teller, physics, Pirates of the Caribbean, polymers, President Obama, Robert Lochhead, Ron Fedkiw, science advisor, science technology engineering and mathematics, silicones, simulation, Stanford University, Star Wars, STEM, stereotypes, tablet, topstories, University of Michigan, University of Southern Mississippi, University of Texas at El Paso, White House

Four-winged dinosaur

By Stephen Ornes / November 12, 2012

Hind wings helped a small dino make tight turns in midair

Posted in Dinosaurs & Fossils | Tagged Adaptation, aerodynamics, biology, dinosaurs, drag, evolution, fossils, getinvolved, Justin Hall, Luis Chiappe, Michael Habib, Microraptor gui, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, physics, topstories, University of Southern California, wings

Helium: Not so super after all

By Stephen Ornes / November 2, 2012

As a gas, helium glows yellow-pink when an electric current is added. Scientists recently reported that they’d made a mistake in a 2004 study that found the element was a supersolid. Turns out helium as a solid isn’t so super. Caption: Pslawinski

An exciting discovery in physics turns out to be merely a case of mistaken identity

Posted in Physics | Tagged atoms, École Normal Supérieure, energy, Eunseong Kim, friction, getinvolved, helium, materials science, matter, Moses Chan, Penn State University, physics, Sébastien Balibar, superfluids, supersolids, topstories

Earth’s big breakup

By Stephen Ornes / October 16, 2012

Powerful motions beneath the Indian Ocean unleashed a series of earthquakes near Sumatra

Posted in Earth | Tagged aftershocks, Australia, crust, Earth Observatory of Singapore, Earth's crust, earthquakes, École Normale Supérieure in Paris, getinvolved, Himalayas, India, Indo-Australian plate, Indonesia, Kerry Sieh, Matthias Delescluse, physics, plate tectonics, seismology, Sumatra, tectonic plates

Color-changing robot

By Stephen Ornes / October 14, 2012

Tiny tubes filled with colored dyes let these soft robots blend in with their environments. Credit: S. Morin, Harvard University

Tiny tunnels within the “skin” of a robot allow it to blend in with or stand out from its surroundings

Posted in Technology & Engineering | Tagged chameleons, color-changing, colors, DARPA, engineering, getinvolved, Harvard University, infrared, materials science, octopus, physics, robots, soft robots, topstories, University of Cincinnati

Super star-maker

By Stephen Ornes / September 4, 2012

This artist’s drawing shows what the central galaxy of the Phoenix cluster might look like. The small blue dots represent new stars forming. Credit: NASA.gov

A distant galaxy cluster churns out stars at a whopping rate

Posted in Space | Tagged astronomy, astrophysics, black hole, energy, galaxy, galaxy cluster, gas, getinvolved, matter, Milky Way, MIT, Phoenix cluster, physics, South Pole Telescope, space, star formation, stars, telescope, University of Cambridge

Crime-solving camera

By Stephen Ornes / August 31, 2012

A digital camera fitted with the right filters, like the one shown here, can detect only infrared light. The crime-fighting trick can reveal bloodstains hidden behind layers of paint. Credit: bmcent1/iStockphoto

Quick-change trick allows a digital camera to photograph blood concealed by paint

Posted in Light & Radiation | Tagged blood, blood detection, camera, crime, detectives, filter, filters, forensic science, forensics, getinvolved, Glenn Porter, infrared, lens, Lenses, lenses/mirrors/filters, light, paint, photography, physics, radiation, University of Western Sydney, wavelength

Elephant songs

By Stephen Ornes / August 20, 2012

Elephants sometimes communicate with sounds below the range of human ears. Researchers recently found that air rushing through the larynx can create the superlow sounds. Credit: Angela S. Stoeger

Scientists figure out how elephants make their low, low rumble

Posted in Physics | Tagged getinvolved, infrasonic, infrasound, physics, sound, Sound waves; infrasound; infrasonic; elephant; larynx; Christian Herbst; University of Vienna; Peter Wrege; evolution; adaptation

No more bubble trouble

By Stephen Ornes / August 6, 2012

Bottlenose dolphins can tell the difference between noisy echoes bounced off of bubbles and other echoes, including those bounced off of prey. Now scientists have figured out a way to tell apart the noises, too. Credit: Emma Jugovich, NOAA

Dolphin’s clicks help scientists sort through confusing underwater noises

Posted in Physics | Tagged acoustics, animals, birds, bubbles, communications, dolphins, echoes, echolocation, engineering, getinvolved, Grant Deane, mammals, mathematics, nonlinear, physics, reptiles, reptiles/birds/mammals, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, sonar, sound, Timothy Leighton, University of Southampton

SSP Network

Utilities