Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Materials Science
Shocking Sheets: Power paper packs a punch
Ultrathin sheets made from cellulose and carbon nanotubes could serve as flexible, versatile batteries.
- Physics
Newton’s Dusty Mirror: Old experiment inspires ultrafast imaging
An experiment devised by Isaac Newton inspires a modern successor, in which X rays capture the image of a microscopic explosion.
- Materials Science
Pliable carbon
The layers of carbon atoms that form graphite can be assembled into strong but flexible "graphene paper."
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- Materials Science
Gecko adhesive gets added mussel
A new adhesive that borrows tricks from the gecko and the mussel can stick and detach repeatedly and works even when wet.
- Physics
Slick serpent
Oil poured into a pan of the same liquid drags along a surrounding air layer, which can make it skip in and out of the surface before it mixes in.
- Materials Science
Sop Story: New porous gel soaks up heavy metal
A new porous gel efficiently removes mercury from contaminated water and may also have the ability to catalyze chemical reactions such as those that generate hydrogen for fuel.
- Materials Science
Crystal matchmaker
Nonperiodic structures called quasicrystals can act as interfaces between different crystal structures that would ordinarily not stick to each other.
- Physics
The Power of Induction
A new technology based on classical electromagnetic theory uses oscillating magnetic fields to transfer electric power wirelessly across a room.
- Physics
Pulling Strings: Stretching proteins can reveal how they fold
Unfolding a single protein by pulling on its ends reveals the molecular forces that make it fold up.
- Physics
Dropping the Ball: Air pressure helps objects sink into sand
A ball plunges deeper into sand under atmospheric pressure than under a vacuum, because the presence of air allows sand to flow like a liquid.
- Materials Science
Allergy Nanomedicine: Buckyballs dampen response of cells that trigger allergic reactions
Drugs based on soccer ball–shaped carbon molecules could one day help fight allergies.
