Materials Science
- Chemistry
Color-changing polymer maps fingerprints
Tiny beads of sweat may offer new way to identify people’s fingerprints.
- Materials Science
How fractals jam glassy materials
Understanding the intricate energy landscape of glasses could help to explain what happens when glassy materials are deformed or when coffee beans in a container jam.
- Materials Science
Blender whips up graphene
Easy recipe makes large quantities of graphene using kitchen blender.
- Materials Science
Oyster shells could inspire improved armor
Making tiny indentations in windowpane oyster shells has revealed some processes that could inspire better armor.
- Materials Science
Light filter lets rays through from only one direction
Angle-sensitive light filter could improve photography, telescopes and solar energy harvesting.
- Materials Science
Pearl coating inspires tougher ceramics
A material called mother of pearl, or nacre, has inspired the design of more durable, less brittle ceramics.
- Materials Science
World’s thinnest material stretches, bends, twists
Graphene, the thinnest known material at one carbon atom thick, can be manipulated under the microscope using tricks from a variety of paper-cutting origami called kirigami.
- Chemistry
Milk protein a potential flame retardant
Protein found in milk offers a nontoxic way to extinguish fabric fires.
- Materials Science
Phosphorene introduced as graphene alternative
Sheets of ultrathin phosphorus could lead to faster semiconductor electronics.
- Materials Science
Silk bone screws may mend better than metal ones
The silk-made screw and plates are less stiff than metal ones and dissolve in the body, making them a safer, less invasive alternative for setting broken bones.
- Materials Science
Making artificial muscles with a spin
Scientists have given ordinary fishing line and sewing thread a new twist. When coiled into tight corkscrews, the fibers can lift loads more than 100 times as heavy as those hefted by human muscles.
- Math
Goldberg variations: New shapes for molecular cages
Scientists have figured a way to iron out the wrinkles in a large class of molecular cages.
