All Stories by Peter Weiss
- Materials Science
Next High-Tech Polishing Fluid: Tea—A new brew for the computer industry
A concoction based on green tea may speed up manufacturing of precision components for computer hard-disk drives while reducing toxic wastes.
- Physics
Fundamental constant didn’t vary after all
In disagreement with prior findings, an analysis of new quasar observations indicates that alpha, the universal constant that defines the strength of the electromagnetic force, has not varied since the early days of the cosmos.
- Physics
The Electron’s Other Charge: Workhorse of electricity shows its weak side
Although electrons are nonnuclear particles, they exert a feeble nuclear force on each other when they snuggle up close, a new experiment shows.
- Physics
Signs of mass-giving particle get stronger
The promising search at a collider in Switzerland for the Higgs boson—the crucial and last undetected fundamental particle predicted by the central theory of particle physics—became even more of a cliff-hanger as a new, strong hint of the particle appeared on the eve of the machine's second scheduled demise.
- Physics
Photon Double Whammy: Careening electrons may rev up solar cells
A newfound cue ball effect in nanometer-scale crystals of a semiconductor compound may lead to highly efficient solar cells made from such nanocrystals.
- Physics
Signs of new five-quark particle
Physicists at a German particle collider unveiled evidence of a new five-quark particle.
- Tech
Super-repellent surface switches on and off
Nanotechnologists have created a remarkably effective liquid-repelling surface that can also become, at the flick of a switch, liquid-attracting.
- Physics
Particle breakdowns beat expectations
A fresh analysis of 2002 accelerator data finds a third instance of a type of breakdown of subatomic kaons that's not supposed to happen so often, suggesting that shadowy, hypothetical particles predicted by a theory called supersymmetry may be influencing kaon behavior.
- Tech
Aircraft trick may give big rigs a gentle lift
Using sheet-like jets of air to control aerodynamic drag and lift—a technology first developed for aircraft—may boost gas mileage and improve braking and handling of tractor-trailer trucks.
- Tech
Reinventing the Yo-Yo
No longer simple toys, today's pricey yo-yos sport high-tech features—such as ball bearing transaxles and precision string-snagging mechanisms—that permit dazzling new styles and complex tricks.
- Physics
A New Form of Water: Melting ice turns oddly dense
The density of a recently made film of water far exceeds that of ordinary water, suggesting that the film may be the first isolated sample of a proposed form of water thought to contribute to ordinary water's odd properties.
- Tech
Fluid lens flows into focus
By controlling a boundary between oil and water, researchers have created a liquid lens that can quickly alter its shape in response to electric signals.
