Read article: The impact of physics on biology and medicine
There is a long tradition of physicists and physics-based techniques making important contributions to biology and medicine. Harold Varmus argues that this tradition must go on
The meeting gave the pioneers of “econophysics”, such as Jean-Phillippe Bouchard, János Kertész, Rosario Mantegna and Eugene Stanley, an official forum to present and debate their research on some of the most fascinating dynamical systems. The search for a scientific model that can accurately predict future movements in the financial markets is the investor’s equivalent […]
Atomic interferometers use lasers to place atoms into superpositions of different quantum states. These states acquire different phases as they move in a gravitational field, and this phase difference can be measured by using other lasers to return the atoms to the initial quantum state. The longer the atoms spend in the superposition state, the […]
Currently most ultrasound devices convert an electrical signal directly into mechanical vibrations through the piezoelectric effect. But these devices only operate over a narrow frequency range and have limited output. The idea of using heat to generate sound has been around for over 80 years, but until recently the thermal conduction of porous silicon was […]
The medium is made of nanocrystals of zinc sulphide doped with samarium. Although the nanocrystals are only 3 nanometres long, they clump together into larger particles to form a powder that can be used as the storage medium. In their experiments Kurita and co-workers used a laser to measure the energy excitation spectrum of the […]
Colloidal plasmas contain three different components – electrons, ions and charged microspheres. Although these unusual plasmas can be studied in the laboratory, researchers have only been able to study two-dimensional effects because gravity can overwhelm the electrostatic interactions between the particles. These interactions are responsible for the unusual properties of colloidal plasmas. By reducing the […]
Inside a pulsar the neutrons are thought to decay into protons and electrons, which are then accelerated by the pulsar’s powerful magnetic field. Since protons and electrons are charged particles, they release intense synchrotron radiation at radio wavelengths from the magnetic poles of the pulsar. Previously astronomers believed that once a pulsar slowed beyond a […]
Read article: A double-slit experiment in a single molecule
Photons from the laser can excite electrons in the water molecules into a so-called anti-bonding state. Molecules in this state can adopt one of two distorted shapes, both of which can dissociate into a hydroxide radical and a hydrogen atom. However the two different shapes can result in the hydroxide radical being created in different […]
An earlier report from the National Research Council has already expressed concern that the US may not retain its leadership in science and technology. The report speculated that the supply of foreign researchers moving to the US could dry up as the world’s economy improves. The report concluded that more US students had to be […]
Neptune’s ring arcs were first observed by the Voyager spacecraft in 1984. In the absence of some external source of stability the rings would have been expected to decay within a matter of months. But the three rings – called Liberté, Egalité and Fraternité – are still visible, and it has been assumed that their […]
