MESSAGE
| DATE | 2006-05-30 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
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| SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] Cool Tech coming
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Posted on Mon, May. 29, 2006
Scientists work on a cloaking device, À la Harry Potter or 'Star
Trek.' Now you see it, now you don't
Millions have been captivated by the fiction of Harry Potter in his
cloak of invisibility, sneaking about Hogwarts undetected.
Now, two teams of scientists say they can turn that fiction into reality,
at least in theory.
In last week's issue of the journal Science, both described how a cloaking
device might be made from a new class of engineered composite substances
called metamaterials.
The solution would involve refracting light waves around the object to
be concealed.
It would be almost as if the object were a stone in a river, and the
light waves were water flowing around the stone and resuming its course
on the other side.
One of the teams, made up of scientists at Imperial College London
and Duke University, hopes to build a rudimentary demonstration device
within a year. But it would work only with microwaves, not visible light,
Duke physicist David Schurig says.
The cloaking device would be made of copper-coated circuit boards that
could be tuned to refract the microwaves in the right direction. Up
close, the material might look somewhat like a honeycomb, with millions
of miniature, interlocking panels.
Refraction also occurs in everyday settings, such as when you partially
submerge a pencil in a glass of water, and it appears to be bent.
The concept has attracted the interest of the defense industry, and the
Duke-Imperial College research has received funding from the Defense
Department.
If it ever works with visible light, it would be even better than Harry's
cloak. To the chagrin of the young wizard, his magic garment does not
keep him from being seen by Mrs. Norris, the watchful cat at Hogwarts.
Tom Avril
-- __________________________ Brooklyn Linux Solutions
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