Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer
- Materials Science
Analyze This: A new fabric mimics polar bears’ pelts for warmth
With layers that work like polar bears’ skin and fur, a material absorbs light and keeps it from escaping.
- Planets
In a first, telescopes have caught a star eating a planet
A burst of light and a cloud of dust are signs that a distant star swallowed a giant planet.
- Physics
Explainer: Reflection, refraction and the power of lenses
The inner workings of microscopes, telescopes, eyeglasses and other lens-based devices rely on two important laws of optics.
- Tech
Nanocrystal ‘painted’ films may someday help relieve summer heat
The rainbow palette and cooling powers of new plant-based films comes from their microscopic surface patterns of tiny crystals.
- Tech
A device spots and counts honeybees hosting a dangerous parasite
At Regeneron ISEF, three teens debuted an infrared system to detect honeybees carrying mites. It can show beekeepers when a colony needs to be treated.
- Physics
A powerful laser can control the paths that lightning takes
In a mountaintop experiment, a laser beamed at the sky created a virtual lightning rod that snagged several bolts.
- Health & Medicine
New brain scans may show if a concussion has not yet healed
Concussions change certain brain waves, and delta waves may be the best signs of when teens can return to competitive sports.
- Tech
Think of this new tech as sunglasses for our windows
Keeping buildings cool can use a lot of energy. Thanks to quantum computing, engineers designed a coating to cut the warming light that enters windows.
- Materials Science
Let’s learn about piezoelectric materials
Piezoelectric materials turn mechanical energy into electrical energy — and vice versa.
- Computing
A single chip like this could transmit a world’s worth of data
The internet has a big environmental footprint. But this new type of tech could help reduce the climate impact of computing.
- Materials Science
Analyze This: Algae behind blue-glowing waves light up a new device
Some algae glow blue when they experience forces. Held in transparent plastic, they now make devices light up in response to gentle pushes and tugs.
- Physics
In a breakthrough experiment, fusion gave off more energy than it used
The sun creates energy through nuclear fusion. Now scientists have too. This achievement raises hopes for developing a new type of clean energy.
