Podcasts and Vodcasts by Topic
Atomic
Cleaner, Greener Metals - June 10, 2010
Metallurgists created a cleaner and safer alternative to chrome that is equally durable, providing a solution to the environmentally harmful processes of both making chrome and disposing of it.
The new coating is made by dipping metal into a mix of nickel and tungsten atoms. An electrical pulse is sent through the mix, causing the atoms to adhere to the metal, or "plate" the surface. The electrical current is pulsed according to the pattern chosen by the researchers.
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Creating Science Masterpieces - May 31, 2010
Materials science and engineering students coincidentally created microscopic art out of particles of pollen they are studying.
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Lasers: Transforming Life - May 16, 2010
In this wonderful video produced by the Optical Society of America, NPR Science Friday's host, Ira Flatow describes how lasers are used in optical fiber communication, surgery and more.
For more great laser innovations, visit:
www.laserfest.org and http://www.osa.org/
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A Brush with the Laws of Electromagnetism - August 21, 2009
Watch physicists Becky Thompson-Flagg and Ted Hodapp trade quips as they show how to take apart a small DC motor and find out how it works. They get the armature of the motor spinning with just a battery, a few wires, and a permanent magnet.
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Dr. Chris Monroe on Quantum Entanglement - June 16, 2009
Dr. Chris Monroe from the University of Maryland describes his experiments with the curious properties of quantum entanglement.
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Reducing Your Lead Footprint - May 15, 2009
Materials scientists created a lead-free piezoelectric material to replace the current one used in electronics that contains up to 40 percent lead. To make the material, tiny samples of bismuth ferrite and samarium ferrite are formed into puck shape pieces. A laser then fragments the pucks into different molecules and chemicals, creating a mist that is coated onto a chip.
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Walk-In MRI - May 01, 2009
Physicists are Right Up Front with Upright, Walk-In MRI
Physicists created a low magnetic field walk-in MRI that enables them to obtain images of the patient in many positions--standing, sitting or laying down.
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Laura Greene - August 14, 2008
Dr. Greene is a professor of physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As a woman interested in science in the 70s she overcame many barriers to become a physicist. Learn about her life long passion for science.
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Sniffing Out Bombs - July 01, 2008
A tiny sensor that monitors electrical conductivity allows scientists to detect the presence of explosives. The sensor measures the conductivity of two different thin films, one made of a cobalt compound and another made of a copper compound. When reacting to most fumes, the two films respond in similar ways, but when exposed to hydrogen peroxide the films show a difference in electrical conductivity. When the sensor indicates this difference, that means that trace amounts of hydrogen peroxide are present, a common ingredient of explosives.
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Odorless Paint - December 01, 2007
Chemists have added polymers to a new paint that dries faster and requires no second coat or primer. The paint uses long polymer chains to surround pigments, which makes it easier for latex spheres to bond to it. That advance makes the color cover the wall more completely. Additionally, this technique means that the paint requires almost zero volatile organic compounds, which contribute to odor and also smog.
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Creating 21st Century Video Games - November 01, 2007
A computer science student created an updated form of the classic video game Pong. The ball appears to move unpredictably, but is actually governed by algorithms that analyze the fluid dynamics of actual plasmas. Careful programming that considers the plasmaýs mathematical properties allows players to activate a vacuum effect or plasma jet that moves the ball in physically realistic ways as well.
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Recycling Revolution - August 01, 2007
Chemical Engineers developed a way to break down plastic bottles made from polyethylene terephthalate -- or PET, and recycle it back into high value uses like more soda bottles, water bottles, beer bottles. Inside the recycling plant's extruder, water is removed from ground up plastic. Then, the plastic is melted and chemically broken down -- in a process called depolymerization. The breakthrough in this process is to be able to go from chips of this plastic to the recycled material in about five minutes.
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Mystery Diamonds - June 01, 2007
Carbonados, black carbon formations that resemble diamonds, have been show to have a chemical spectrum that indicates they originated before the formation of the Earth; their high hydrogen content suggests they are from a star-like environment. Since this carbon is only found in two locations on our planet, it may have arrived via an asteroid.
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Man-Made Diamonds - March 01, 2007
New and improved technology has now made growing diamonds cost-competitive with mining them. Diamond-making machines subject a graphite-carbon core and a diamond seed at a pressure of 850,000 PSI for four days, recreating conditions similar to those 100 miles below the earth's surface. The lab-grown diamonds that come out are optically, chemically and physically identical to those that occur in nature.
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Crime Alert! Molding Fingerprints - January 01, 2007
Photonic crystals -- materials with precise patterns of gaps that make them reflect only selected wavelengths of light -- could soon replace the traditional ink-based fingerprinting. In a new silica-based, photonic-crystal material, the spacing of the gaps changes in response to pressure applied. Corresponding changes in its color reveal fingerprints with high precision -- not only the ridges in the skin, but also the depth of the ridges, the shape of the finger, and the mechanical properties of the skin.
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Liquid Body Armor - August 01, 2006
Rheologists have created a new way of bullet-proofing clothes using shear-thickening fluids. Fabric treated with shear-thickening granular suspensions can turn soft material into solid protective gear when struck by a projectile. The treatment can strengthen Kevlar to produce lighter, more comfortable bullet-proof vests, or it can be used to turn extend the bullet-proof protection to ordinary fabric.
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Lights of the Future - February 01, 2006
Thanks to advances in physics, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) will soon move from traffic lights and electronics panels to home lighting, bringing dramatic energy savings, adjustable colors for ambiance, and light-shining furnishings.
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Fog-Free Glass - January 01, 2006
When moisture condenses on a cool surface, droplets can form that are the right size to scatter light, fogging up glass. A new polymer coating draws droplets into nanopores and transforms them into a transparent sheet, improving vision.
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Unbreakable Glass - September 01, 2005
Sponges are the homes of colonies of tiny marine animals, and wonders of miniaturized engineering. They employ complex structural arrangements, the strongest glasses known to man, and even microscopic fiber optics that glow in the dark. Scientists are trying to figure how to reproduce some of their tricks, such as producing glass at low temperatures.
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Killing Germs - September 01, 2005
Preventing hospital infections -- from such stubborn bugs as Staphylococcus aureus -- could get a little easier with a new non-toxic, silver-based material. Used in coating, it helps keep hospital air ducts bacterium- and fungus-free. The material is also used in a number of products including athletic footwear, door hardware, pens and business supplies.
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Flying and Radiation Risk - September 01, 2005
At the high altitudes and latitudes commercial airlines fly, crews are subjected to higher-than-normal radiation levels from the sun and cosmic rays. Physicist Robert Barish believes airline crew members are exposing themselves to more radiation than almost any other occupation and is calling for the airline industry to better educate workers about radiation.
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Portrait of America - July 01, 2005
One lone physicist hopes to create an ultra-high-resolution portrait of America by taking a series of gigapixel images with his own custom camera, created from parts of old spy planes and nuclear reactors. Each image fills an entire DVD with data.
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Screens of the Future - July 01, 2005
Organic Light-Emitting Diodes (OLEDs) are plastic-based materials that are able to emit light. Engineers are beginning to make displays out of OLEDs by spraying the materials on a surface, the way an ink-jet printer works. The new OLED displays promise to provide a cheaper, brighter, less power-hungry alternative to liquid-crystal displays -- the ones commonly used in laptop computers and cell phones.
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Back Pain Relief - July 01, 2005
Up to 40 million American suffer from sciatica pains, but the condition is often not diagnosed correctly. A new imaging technique uses a specially tuned MRI scan to image nerves and highlight them deep inside tissues. Called Magnetic Resonance Neurography, the new technique promises to diagnose conditions such as sciatica -- in which a compressed nerve in the buttock causes persistent lower-back and leg pain -- in up to 95 percent of cases that were previously undiagnosed.
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Inside the Brain - July 01, 2005
Children who have speech-impairing strokes often learn to talk again, while adult stroke victims can lose their verbal abilities for good. By giving reading and verbal tests inside the MRI, researchers are comparing the inner workings of both children's and adults' brains that suffered from strokes, as well as of healthy subjects'. The researchers hope to develop therapies to help the adult patients talk again.
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Weather System Protects Homeland Security - May 01, 2005
Homeland security officials are tapping researchers' capability to predict the paths of toxic waste spills and hazardous airborne particles. Using computer science and mathematics, along with information on the wind and other climate, they can make estimates of how the toxin will disperse and where the plume will go.
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Surviving Hard Hits - January 01, 2005
Engineers have developed more protective padding for football players. Unlike traditional padding, the new putty-like material can be molded into protective gear to fit a player's body and better guard against injury. The squashy material redistributes the force from a hit evenly through the material to lessen the impact on a player's body.
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Protective Paint - October 01, 2004
A new paint fights corrosion by releasing a cerium-based "inhibitor." It interacts with oxidizing agents that would otherwise attack the metal and cause corrosion.
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Nanoparticles - August 01, 2004
Scientists have developed a new brain imaging technique by using nanoparticles -- extremely tiny crystals which cross the blood-brain barrier when injected into the blood stream. Twenty-four hours after being injected, the patient undergoes an MRI. The resulting images show the nanoparticles, which outline tumors in the brain and other lesions that might otherwise go unnoticed.
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Spotting Sunspots - July 01, 2004
Sunspots, large dark spots that dot the Sun's surface, reach a peak every 11 years, unleashing magnetic storms and solar flares that can disrupt communications. A new model focuses on electrified gas -- or plasma -- that flows around the sun because the plasma holds onto magnetic information from past sunspots.
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Cool Oven Rack - April 01, 2004
A snap-on shield for oven racks consists of fibers that thicken as they heat up, becoming a heat barrier. The shield uses novel materials that are sensitive to heat.
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Protecting Your Privacy - February 01, 2004
The physics of quantum cryptography is the basis for Quantum Privacy Network (QPN). This network can send a message that is hacker proof. Photons are attached to each message. If a hacker intercepts the message the photon is removed and the sender and receiver are alerted that the message has been intercepted.
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Smart Fluids - February 01, 2004
Physicists have created a smart fluid for car suspension systems. When a magnetic field is applied to the fluid it becomes semi-solid and when the field is removed, the fluid returns to a free-flowing liquid. This aspect makes the fluid perfect for suspension systems that need to adapt to changing levels of shock. The fluid also means less mechanical parts are needed.
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Meddling Microwaves - February 01, 2004
Physicists discovered that magnets stop the static caused by interference between your cordless telephone and microwave. Microwaves produce a number of unwanted frequencies, which can interfere with your calls. By placing magnets along the microwave's magnetron, the extra frequencies are reduced keeping calls static free.
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Samples From The Sun - January 01, 2004
A new NASA program called the Genesis Mission is launching a spacecraft to collect particles from the sunýs solar wind to obtain information on the origin of earth and other bodies in the solar system.
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Space-Age Windows - March 01, 2003
Aerogel, a new material first developed in space experiments and made of 97 percent air, could soon become an energy-saving solution for replacing glass in windows. It insulates from sound better and it is five times better than any other material at insulating heat. Aerogel is composed of a tight network of tiny pores and glass folded over and over.
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Gadget Power - January 01, 2003
Physicists are developing a new technology that could soon result in cell phones or laptop computers that have a much longer life before they need recharging. Micro fuel cells use common wood alcohol as fuel and a special membrane that produces electricity by chemically separating electrons from the alcohol.
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