As far as we're concerned, sticky tape is mostly just for out-there modding projects, but scientists have confirmed another use for it: X-rays. After hearing word of research in that direction by Soviet scientists in the 1950s, researchers at UCLA peeled scotch tape at 1.18 inches per second in a vacuum chamber and found that X-ray pulses were emitted by the process. A human thumb has already been successfully X-rayed by this technique, and if future investigation proceeds swimmingly, paramedics and aid workers operating off the grid might be able to do X-rays without bulky and dangerous nuclear technologies. We'll admit it -- we never saw scotch tape X-rays coming, but then, neither did you, right?

[Via Switched]

It's a shame that the amazing always becomes ordinary given enough time and popular exposure. Case in point: the x-ray. Childhood longings to possess such visual power are ultimately replaced by painful memories of leaden-concealed trips to the emergency room. Until this, the X-Ray Light from designer Wonsuk Cho. A whimsical look through the lampshade for eyes eager to see. Unfortunately, these lampshade / lights aren't yet available to purchase -- another dream dashed by cruel reality.

[Via Technabob]

According to a report in USA Today, starting on Saturday the TSA will be relaxing its policies on laptop removal from bags, and will be letting specific bags types ride through the X-ray machines with their cargo intact. The agency will allow travelers using bags which provide an unobstructed view of the computer inside to keep their laptops tucked away during the screening process, though they'll still require "accordion" or "backpack" style bag-users to grab a bin. The TSA isn't naming names or attaching labels to specific bags, but has provided guidelines to fliers suggesting what style would be most conducive to not getting shaken down every time you go to the airport. Of course, the TSA could have been doing this since the start of their time-wasting (and false-security-inducing) process, thus saving us innumerable headaches... but that would have made too much sense.

You know those elephant-sized medical scanners? Totally amazing machines, sure, but things like that aren't apt to be shipped into obscure jungles throughout Africa. Thankfully, a team of researchers have developed something that could bring medical scanning to an even larger chunk of the world: a real live Tricorder. Of course, it's not really going by that moniker, but the diminutive scanner is able to interface with a cellphone via USB and utilize its 3G / WiFi access to send raw scan data to servers and receive images back. Granted, you won't get any high-resolution viewing from your average mobile, but it's certainly a step in the right direction.

Believe it or not, devices used to see through walls are far from revolutionary, but hey, we'll take every one we can get. Reportedly, Physical Optics Corporation has concocted a prototype gun that utilizes the same method of viewing that a lobster does to see what's ahead in murky waters. The LEXID (Lobster Eye X-ray Imaging Device) functions by "radiating objects with tiny amounts of X-ray energy," subsequently allowing its user to see behind steel, wood or concrete. According to David Throckmorton, a project manager in Homeland Security's Science and Technology division, the resulting images aren't exactly drool-worthy, but they do allow you to make out a stash of weapons or a crouching enemy. Unfortunately, completion is too far out to estimate a price, but its creators are hoping to one day make it cheap enough for exterminators and contractors to purchase and use. 'Course, we could imagine middle schoolers getting into all sorts of trouble if one of these floated into the locker room.

[Via The Raw Feed, image courtesy of POC]

Philips' Brilliance iCT sure had a nice run, but no sooner than it hit the spotlight, Toshiba has arrived fashionably late to steal a little thunder. The outfit's $2.5 million AquilionONE outdoes Philips' iteration by doing 320-slices instead of "just" 256, enabling doctors to see the entire heart while making patients hold their breath for merely "a second or two." Put simply, the machine should allow for heart disease to be spotted in its earliest stages without putting individuals through a lengthy tribulation, and the ultra high resolution 3D images it produces will allow medical personnel to quickly determine if there are any problems that need to be dealt with. Currently, the system is being tested at Toronto General's Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, but word on the street has the unit being readily available next summer.

[Via Diagnostic Imaging, thanks lmwong]

Being the 800-pound gorilla that it is in the TFT-LCD biz, we're not too shocked to hear that Samsung is quite pleased with its newfangled flat-panel digital X-ray detector. Reportedly, the creation is the "world's first" (ahem) to use thin-film transistor technology, which translates into sharper images and cost savings for the end user. Sammy claims that its new FPXD setup can produce "ultra-high definition images" to the tune of 3,072 x 3,072 pixels, and executive vice president Yun Jin-Hyuk even insinuated that this development would "help the X-ray detector market become completely digitized within a few years." Of course, we're sure that folks in this segment will indeed be thrilled to hear that "no film or development process is needed" in the new system, and better still, it should be ready to rock in Q1 of next year.

[Via Yahoo / AFP]

Philips unveiled a new ultra-high-res 256-slice CT scanner called the Brilliance iCT at the Radiological Society of North America yesterday, a unit the company says not only produces higher quality 3D images using less radiation than previous scanners, but does it far more quickly -- a full body scan takes only a minute. The speedup is achieved because the rotating X-ray element spins some 22 percent faster than other models, hitting four revolutions a second at top speed. Getting in and out of the machine that much faster also cuts radiation exposure some 80 percent from a traditional X-ray machine, and Philips says the machine is accurate enough to capture a complete image of the heart in less than two beats. Metro Health in Cleveland is the first off the line with the new gear -- check the read link for a video of it in action.

According to the BBC, scientists at the University of Cardiff have developed a method of reading ancient, highly-sensitive texts (such as the Dead Sea Scrolls) by projecting beams of light ten-billion times brighter than the sun into the parchment. The new technique combines a powerful X-ray-like device called the Diamond Synchrotron (no, seriously), and a computer algorithm that pieces together layers of text to create a three dimensional, readable images of an iron-inked document. Professor Tim Wess, lead researcher on the projects says, "We've folded up a real piece of parchment and then done a process of X-ray tomography on it. We've been able to recover the structure where we can see the words that are written inside the document." The scientists now plan on using the process to explore ancient texts which have been heretofore unreadable due to fear of damage, including 18th century fire-damaged scrolls, and the previously mentioned Dead Sea Scrolls.

We don't envision very many people enjoying the idea of having TSA employees seeing every curve their body has to offer, but unfortunately for those who fail the primary metal detector test at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, you could be in for such a treat. While airport shoe scanners have already garnered sufficient criticism for holding up the show rather than helping things out, the "backscatter" X-ray machine is officially being trialed in Arizona as a means of snuffing out hidden "explosives and other weapons" that can't be detected by other means. While the technology allows the viewer to see just about every follicle on your body (and any stray .500 Magnums adorning your person), there is still currently a workaround if you're not entirely comfortable with going full-frontal before boarding your flight. A TSA spokesperson proclaimed that the process is completely voluntary, as folks who get dinged by the metal detector can opt for a standard pat-down in order to clear things up. Interestingly, the officials operating the machine have reportedly "adjusted the equipment to make the image look something like a line drawing" rather than detailing all your 2,000 parts, but critics suggest that altering the image also hampers the chance of discovering contraband in the first place. Still, unless this causes some serious uproar in the near future, it looks like it's there to stay, and folks traveling through LAX and New York's Kennedy Airport will likely face a similar beast (if they so choose) before the year's end.

Although improvements on the typical X-ray are being made quite frequently of late, a team of researchers at the University of Colorado at Boulder is hoping to make a huge leap forward in the way we're forced to handle these traditionally burdensome machines. In an effort to reduce the size required to install and utilize your average X-ray machine, the crew has purportedly developed a new technique to "generate laser-like X-ray beams" that avoid the existing need for such a "monstrous power source." The end goal is, of course, a tabletop device that can handle uber-high resolution imaging at a fraction of the cost and size of current units. It all starts by using "a powerful laser to pluck an electron from an atom of argon and then slam it back into the same atom," which then bypasses the typical problem of X-ray waves "not marching in step" by sending "weak pulses of visible laser light into the gas in the opposite direction of the laser beam generating the X-rays." The feeble beam reportedly "manipulates the electrons plucked from the argon atoms" in order to perfectly intensify the strength of the process by "over a hundred times." Essentially, the researchers have devised a more controlled way to perfect the timing of X-ray blasts, and are utilizing light to focus the process rather than using gobs of energy as it hopes enough undirected beams strike the intended area. Per usual, we've no idea just how close this idea is to becoming ready for the commercial world, but considering all the competition that's currently out there, we don't envision these Buffs wasting any precious time.

We're all about giving golf claps where they're due, and a healthy round is certainly in order for Mr. Brian Schulkin. The doctoral student in physics developed a breakthrough terahertz imaging device, dubbed a T-ray, that has already demonstrated its ability to "detect cracks in space shuttle foam, image tumors in breast tissue, and spot counterfeit watermarks on paper currency." The Mini-Z marks the first time such a powerful device has become portable in nature, weighing just five pounds and taking up about as much space as your average laptop. Taking home the first Lemelson-Rensselaer Student Prize ($30,000), Schulkin explained that this device didn't pose the same health risks as typical X-rays, and unlike ultrasound, terahertz waves can provide images and spectroscopic information without contacting an object. As expected, the patent-pending technology is already up for licensing, and has already received quite a bit of fanfare and commercial interest from larger companies. So while you may never personally encounter Brian's earth-shattering invention, we're fairly sure this young lad's working days are already drawing nigh if he so chooses.

[Via Physorg]

Here's one that's just begging for a profiling fit to be thrown over it. While the CounterBomber won't deem you guilty for creeping through a deserted street or texting your boy while waiting at a stop light, it just might inform everyone in an airport that you're the next suicide bomber waiting to blow. SET Corporation is unveiling a machine that best sport an accuracy level untouchable by mere human instincts, as it plans to sit at major public venues and sporting events to spot potential bomb-toting humans "from up to 50 yards away." The first iteration of the machine will utilize "radar-imaging technology" to somehow "analyze and reveal" concealed objects without actually peeking through folks' clothing, but future versions are slated to incorporate a "gait analysis" bit that could further substantiate if some awkward weight balance is going on underneath the hoodie. Still, we can just imagine the uproar from an innocent young lad with a stiff knee getting carted off due to this gizmo (incorrectly) deeming him suspicious, but considering the CounterBomber could be making its debut within 6 months or so, we'll be sure to find out just how inaccurate it is real soon.

[Via CNET]

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport looks to have the distinct honor of being the first airport in the United States to put the controversial "backscatter" x-ray technology to use, the very same excessively-intimate inspection technique that made its debut at London's Heathrow airport a couple of years back. The airport won't just be taking a peek at everyone that passes through the gate, however, instead using the scanner as a backup to existing screening measures -- and, even then, individuals will have the option of a pat-down search instead of the picture postcard seen here. What's more, unlike earlier implementations of the technology, the Transportation Security Administration has reportedly sanitized the end results somewhat, with certain areas being discreetly blurred out, and no images saved after the person steps away from the machine. While the Phoenix airport gets to be first it, not suprisingly, won't be the last, with the TSA saying that a "handful" of other airports will be installing some scanners of their own sometime early next year.

[Thanks, Ben B.]