All Stories by Davide Castelvecchi
- Planetary Science
Music to alien ears
Saturn's moon Titan may be the best rock concert venue in the solar system, according to computer simulations of sound propagation on other worlds.
- Physics
Stradivari’s secrets
Three-dimensional imaging of a classic violin's vibrations explains the instrument's superior ability to direct sound to the audience.
- Chemistry
Beyond Ethanol: Synthetic fuel offers promising alternative
A faster, simpler manufacturing technique could make a synthetic biofuel into an even stronger competitor to ethanol.
- Tech
Improbability Drive: Focus on rare actions speeds chemical simulations
A new algorithm speeds simulations of chemical reactions by focusing on rare but crucial molecular motions.
- Tech
Nanotech bubbles
Creating large-scale, regular arrays of nanoscale components is now almost as easy as blowing bubbles.
- Physics
Magnetic Logic: Electron spins could do cool calculations
Novel circuits use electrons as tiny bar magnets to process information.
- Physics
Carbon’s mysterious magnetism
An X-ray experiment has yielded the most conclusive evidence to date that carbon can be magnetic.
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Dark Power: Pigment seems to put radiation to good use
The pigment melanin may enable certain fungi to convert dangerous radiation into usable energy.
- Physics
The dance of the electron spins
Physicists have used a novel measuring technique to track the motions of electron spins in a tiny magnet as its polarity flips, with north and south poles changing places.
- Chemistry
Cleaning Treasures: Safer solvents for restoring frescoes
Solvents in nanoscale droplets can be used to clean centuries-old frescoes, saving them from the unintended consequences of previous restorations.
- Physics
Broadband vision
Cells that act like optical fibers could explain why vertebrate retinas have sharp vision despite being mounted backwards.
- Physics
Spinning into Control
High-speed flywheels could replace batteries in hybrid vehicles and help make the electrical grid more reliable.
