experiment
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Scientists bend gamma rays, could neuter radioactive waste (update: more credit)
Bending most light is easy; bending it in gamma ray form, however, has often been deemed impossible given how hard it is for electrons to react to the extreme frequencies. LMU Munich scientist Dietrich Habs and his Institut Laue-Langevin teammate Michael Jentschel have proven that assumption wrong: an experiment in blasting a silicon prism has shown that gamma rays will refract just slightly through the right material. If a lens is made out of a large-atom substance like gold to bend the rays further, the researchers envision focused beams of energy that could either detect radioactive material or even make it inert by wiping off neutrons and protons. In theory, it could turn a nuclear power plant's waste harmless. A practical use of the technology is still some distance off -- but that it's even within sight at all just feels like a breakthrough. Update: The research also involved the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics' Marc Günther. Thank you, Dr. Günther.
ISS ready for new zero-g experiments, students asked to float ideas
Those secret space experiments you've been scheming? They may never happen if you try to go it alone. Fortunately, the space science group NCESSE can get you a ride, having started the countdown for its fifth wave of microgravity experiments aboard the International Space Station. US and international students from grade 5 up to university level can submit ideas until September 12th, 2012, with final culling by December 7. The mini-labs -- which can include experiments in seed germination or crystal growth, for example -- are set to be ferried aboard a SpaceX flight in April 2013. Three similar missions have flown nearly 60 student experiments already, with a fourth set as soon as the Falcon 9 craft deigns to go. If you've got a flat-out good idea being prevented by big G, hit the source to see how you could get it fired off to the ISS.
Cornell students steer Pong using brain waves, can't quite play during naps (video)
We here at Engadget are always fans of brain wave experiments, and so we were delighted when two Cornell University electrical engineering students, Chuck Moyes and Mengxiang Jiang, wrapped up a final project using brain waves in the best way possible: playing Pong. Their experiment links a baseball cap full of EEG-scanning electrodes to a computer, letting the cap wearer control a paddle using Alpha or Mu waves. Depending on the waves you use, you can move the paddle either by changing your concentration level or by thinking about moving your feet. You won't rack up a high score while napping (or with a teammate narrating over your shoulder), but with a budget under $75, it's hard to find fault. You can grab the source code below, and check out a video of Jiang and Moyes' handiwork after the break. [Thanks, Chuck and Mengxiang]
MIT's laser-powered camera can detect objects hidden around corners (video)
One of the most thrilling things about human existence is that you never know what's lurking around the corner. It could be a newborn baby, a sweet job, a delicious churro -- doesn't really matter, because it's a surprise, and surprises are fun and surprising. Just don't tell that to the doldrum dwellers over at MIT, because apparently, they don't agree. The same team that created a camera with light-speed shutter rates has now expanded upon their project, with a camera capable of seeing around corners. Literally. To do this, the system uses a so-called femtosecond laser to send out extremely short light pulses -- so short, in fact, that their entire lifespan is measured in quadrillionths of a second. To capture an object lurking around a corner, the device aims its laser at a nearby wall, thereby allowing the light to bounce around the room before eventually landing on the concealed object. Once it hits the jackpot, the light will reflect back onto the wall, and eventually return to a detector, which can gauge the exact location of the object based on the distance the laser traveled. This happens over and over again at different angles, meaning that the system will ultimately be able to get a general idea of the hidden room's layout. Researchers hope that their system will eventually be used in emergency rescue situations, or to help drivers see what's around the bend, though there's no telling when any of that could actually happen. For a diagrammatic rundown, check out the video after the break.
Neutrinos can transmit messages through walls, mountains, planets
Neutrinos may not travel as fast as we first hoped, but then they have other special abilities to make up for it. Being almost massless, they can penetrate the thickest barriers, which ought to make them ideal message carriers. To illustrate the point, scientists sent the word "Neutrino" on a beam of particles through 240 meters (800 feet) of solid stone and received it loud and clear on the other side. The same approach could potentially be used to send a message right through the center of a planet, making it possible, according to one of the researchers, to "communicate between any two points on Earth without using satellites or cables." The experiment required the latest particle accelerators at Chicago's Fermilab, which flung the neutrinos over a 2.5 mile track before firing them off at an underground receiver, but it proved the principle: Shrink the accelerator down to the size of a smartphone and neutrino messaging could be huge. Or it could die in a format war with quantum teleportation.
Quantum speed limits within reach, present moves ever closer to future
Got your wire-rimmed spectacles on? Had a full night's rest? Eager to get those synapses firing? Here's hoping, because Marc Cheneau and co. are doing everything they can to stretch the sheer meaning of quantum understanding. The aforesaid scientists recently published an article that details a method for measuring quantum particle interaction in a way that has previously been considered impossible. Put simply (or, as simply as possible), the famed Lieb-Robinson bound was "quantified experimentally for the first time, using a real quantum gas." The technobabble rolls on quite severely from there, but the key here is realize just how much of an impact this has on the study of quantum entanglement, and in turn, quantum computing. For those interested in seeing what lives in a world beyond silicon, dig into the links below. You may never escape, though -- just sayin'.
World's longest lab experiment still going strong, via webcam
In 1927, a physics professor named Thomas Parnell launched an experiment on viscous liquids. 85 years later, we're still waiting for his results. It all began with a funnel, a beaker, and some melted tar pitch. Parnell, a professor at the University of Queensland in Australia, was hoping to demonstrate that brittle tar pitch actually behaves as a liquid when kept at room temperature. To prove this, he melted some tar pitch, let it cool for three years, and placed it within the funnel, held over the beaker. The first drop rolled down the funnel eight years later. The second came nine years after that. By the time the third rolled around, Parnell had already passed away. Following his death, the experiment was shelved, quite literally, in a closet, before Professor John Mainstone revived it shortly after joining the University of Queensland in 1961. In 1975, Mainstone successfully lobbied the university to put the experiment on display, but he likely could've never imagined how large an audience it would ultimately have. Today, in fact, the experiment is on display 24 hours a day, via a dedicated webcam. It's been hailed as the world's longest running lab experiment, and it's available for gazing at the source link below. Mainstone expects the next drop to come down the pipeline sometime next year, but you probably shouldn't hold your breath. The last drop ran down the funnel in 2000. Unfortunately, it was never recorded on video, due to a very untimely camera malfunction.
Researchers develop 'wireless optical brain router' to manipulate brain cells
Optogenetics might be a relatively unknown area of neuroscience, but it's one that, thanks to some new research, could soon find itself (and its rodental subjects) in the spotlight. For the uninitiated, it's the practice of manipulating animal cells using light (with a little help from gene therapy). Until now, optogenetic equipment has been large and unwieldy, making testing on subjects (read: rats) painstaking. Startup, Kendall Research, has changed all this, creating wireless prototypes that weigh just three grams (0.11 ounces). By eschewing bulky Lasers for LEDs and Laser diodes, the equipment is small enough that it can be attached to the rodents. At that point, their brain function can be manipulated with the touch of a button, and different parts can be stimulated without breeding mutant variants -- a controversial practice that doesn't even yield results in real time. The "router" is powered wirelessly by super capacitors below test area, and researchers can conduct experiments remotely, even automatically. Human applications for this are still some way off, but we're sure our future overlords will make good use of it.
The Daily Grind: Were older MMOs better by virtue of experimentation?
If you haven't sensed it by now, the Massively staff is made up of a very wide range of preferences, experiences, and gaming types. Sometimes quite heated discussions -- OK, rabid rubber chicken-throwing screamfests -- erupt due to disagreements over what makes MMOs great, what the industry should be doing, and what it did right in the past. Recently we got into a two-fatality "discussion" over whether or not MMOs prior to World of Warcraft were better simply because they weren't trying to copy WoW and were more willing to experiment. It certainly seemed like there was more variety from each new title back then, although some of those experiments certainly did not prove to be palatable to the gaming masses. Then again, this might be a case of rose-colored glasses looking upon the past with faulty nostalgia instead of accurate realism, and it discredits the actual innovation and evolution of the industry since then. There certainly are more people playing today than back then, and MMOs have become more widespread and accepted by even mainstream media. So what do you think? Were older MMOs better because they experimented more than ones today or do titles today deserve more credit for what they have become than glasses-wearing old-timers give? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Faster-than-light neutrinos are back in the game
Back in September, CERN dropped the improbable news about its faster-than-light neutrinos, causing eggheads worldwide to cry foul. Understandable really, as if true, a lot of what we think we know about the universe essentially falls apart. So, expect severe bouts of head-scratching once more, as a second round of experiments from the same OPERA collaborative has reported similar results. The initial experiments used a long chain of neutrinos, fired from point A to B. Skeptics claimed that this might have introduced an element of uncertainty to the results -- the new tests used much shorter blasts, meaning that if they arrived just as quickly, then this potential cause for error is scratched out. The new data still needs to undergo the usual peer review, and other possible causes for error remain. For now though, it looks like one of the main arguments against has been addressed, making the Einstein-challenging neutrinos one step closer (or is that ahead?) to re-writing the rule book.
Remember those faster-than-light neutrinos? Great, now forget 'em
A week ago the world went wild over CERN's tentative claim that it could make neutrinos travel faster than light. Suddenly, intergalactic tourism and day trips to the real Jurassic Park were back on the menu, despite everything Einstein said. Now, however, a team of scientists at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands reckons it's come up with a more plausible (and disappointing) explanation of what happened: the GPS satellites used to measure the departure and arrival times of the racing neutrinos were themselves subject to Einsteinian effects, because they were in motion relative to the experiment. This relative motion wasn't properly taken into account, but it would have decreased the neutrinos' apparent journey time. The Dutch scientists calculated the error and came up with the 64 nanoseconds. Sound familiar? That's because it's almost exactly the margin by which CERN's neutrinos were supposed to have beaten light. So, it's Monday morning, Alpha Centauri and medieval jousting tournaments remain as out of reach as ever, and we just thought we'd let you know.
CERN scientists discover particle traveling faster than the speed of light, Einstein theory threatened
It ain't over till the LHC says so, which is why researchers at CERN are opening up their most recent OPERA experiment to the scientific community before officially releasing its findings. Why, you ask? Because the experiment could shatter one of the fundamentals of physics -- Einstein's theory of special relativity, which says nothing with mass can accelerate faster than the speed of light. While studying neutrino oscillations -- where particles shift from one type of subatomic particle (muon-neutrinos) to another (tau-neutrinos) -- scientists clocked a beam of muon-neutrinos outpacing the aforesaid ray of light by 60 nanoseconds. Calling the result "crazy," lead scientist Antonio Ereditato published the findings online, hoping to attract the attention of others who might shed some light on what it all means. We're not expecting a conclusive answer any time soon, but budding whiz-kids can get educated in the links below.
The Tattered Notebook: Looking beyond the price points in EQ2X
Last week, I began a little experiment in the world of EverQuest II Extended. I wanted to see whether a longtime, loyal veteran could find enjoyment on the other side of the wall that separates my live server from the free-to-play server. Almost every assessment about free-to-play servers is dominated by talk of price points, fairness, and bang for your buck. But it's not a used car; it's a virtual world, and there is a lot more to look at beyond dollars and plat. EverQuest II and EverQuest II Extended actually offer a unique look into the similarities and differences between subscription based servers and free-to-play servers because they're completely separate entities, yet they're basically the same game. Read on for highlights of my second week in EQ2X!
Big box earbuds put to a blind 'taste' test in the Engadget Labs
Hello, and welcome to yet another installment of Engadget Laboratories. This time around we're taking a pseudo scientific look at sub-$100 earbuds. We've all been caught out, headphoneless, and desperate to put some tunes in our ears. So, the question is, what exactly do you get for your money when you stumble into a Best Buy and pick up whatever happens to be hanging on the shelves? Clearly you're trading convenience for selection when you shuffle into a big box shop for your audio needs, but that doesn't necessarily mean you should just grab the cheapest thing hanging by the register, or the most expensive for that matter. We randomly selected four sets of phones, at four different price points, and put it to a group of average Joes and Janes to see if they could actually tell the difference between a $100 pair of buds and a $10 pair (while blindfolded and trapped inside a booth).
Chromium's experimental touch UI demoed on video, made for meaty fingers
Google was pretty adamant at I/O that Chrome OS would not be coming tablets, but that hasn't stopped its open-source cousin from adding some touch friendly features. Chromium (the browser, not the OS) got its first tablet tweaks back in June, but this is the first time we're seeing them on video. While the larger icons, widgets, and virtual keyboard, may eventually make their way onto the rumored Seaboard, there's no guarantee these (obviously still early) experiments will ever debut as part of Chrome OS or even the browser. Check out the video after the break for a brief glimpse of this work in progress and, if you're feeling adventurous, hit up the more coverage link to download the latest source code -- just make sure to compile with 'export GYP_DEFINES="touchui=1"' to unlock the finger-friendly face of Chromium.
Google launches Hotel Finder, finds a way to recycle Google Maps reviews
By now, it should be no secret that Google wants to get up in your online trip-planning business (if it wasn't somehow there already). First, there was the announcement that El Goog would buy ITA, the company serving up pretty much all of your online ticketing options -- a deal that still hasn't closed. Then came flight schedule searches and now, the outfit's rounding it all out by throwing hotels into the mix. The company just launched Hotel Finder, a service that lets you -- wait for it -- find a place to lay your weary head in these great fifty states. At first glance, it's little more than a specific use case for Google Maps -- just type in a city or US zip code to get a map with the usual spreads of pinpoints. Though Google won't be the middleman booking your hotel reservation, you can use the tool to fine-tune your search, drawing circles on the map to scour multiple neighborhoods. As you'd expect, you can also whittle the search by price and rating, and read reviews that people originally posted on Google Maps. One thing we're liking about the UI is that you don't have to open a new tab to read the full spill on a hotel -- you can just click the listing to see it expand right there, alongside pretty photo collages. Hit the source link to poke around, though if its bare-bones simplicity turns you off, don't say Google didn't warn you -- the tool is so new that Google isn't calling it a "beta" so much as an...experiment.
Google 'winding down' Labs, likely due to meddling older sister
Google Labs, that breeding ground for the wacky, sublime, and sometimes useful experiments that Mountain View's scooter-loving employees are so fond of, is getting ready to "wind down." The software giant announced today that the experimental forum for testing out potential features is being sidelined, in order for the company to focus on bigger picture ideas. Some of the more useful experimentation for properties like Calendar and Gmail will stick around, as will the Labs experiments that eventually made their way into the Android market. Google has promised to keep us all in the loop during the transition, so perhaps we can pick up a few secondhand test tubes for our own collections.
Space shuttle's final voyage will include recycling urine into sports drink, crafting hilarious brand name
Just because the space shuttle Atlantis is on its final mission, that doesn't mean NASA's run out of cool experiments. Its latest example? A shiny silver bag -- consciously inspired by the "stillsuits" from Frank Herbert's sci-fi classic, Dune -- that turns astronaut urine into potable drinking water. It's been done, you say? Sure, but the earlier tech relied on electricity: a precious commodity aboard the International Space Station. The Forward Osmosis Bag requires no outside power source, relying on, you guessed it, forward osmosis to produce clean, filtered water. Not only that, but the resulting water mixes with a sugary solution to make a electrolyte-rich sports drink. On Earth this process takes four to six hours, but Atlantis astronauts will test its viability in space near the end of their mission. For an extensive on-planet demonstration, see the video after the break.
Shocker! The internet is not egalitarian, popular forum posters have it easy
Researchers at the University of Georgia analyzed six years' worth of Usenet posts, and you know what they discovered? Life ain't fair. The most popular two percent of posters who started discussion threads hogged 50 percent of all replies, while everyone else struggled for attention. What made some thread-starters more attractive than others? Thankfully it wasn't rampant flaming. The distinguishing trait was actually how factual they were: only 12 percent of posts by popular posters contained personal opinions or comments. However, posting a bit of news isn't all it takes to win followers. In a related experiment, 200 volunteers were unleashed onto "simulated" discussion forums and their behavior revealed an even more important factor. The slightly flummoxed researchers called it a "preferential attachment", which pulled readers towards posters who already had an excess of followers. In other words, life still ain't fair. For a delightfully factual breakdown of the full results, check out the PR after the break.
iPhone rides Atlantis into space, where no one can hear its ringtone scream
Smartphones have been going to space for a while now -- well, technically near space in most cases -- but in decidedly DIY ways, including a "shuttle" made out of Styrofoam beer coolers. But the actual Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to complete its final voyage with a pair of space-ready iPhone 4's aboard. After docking with the International Space Station, astronauts use the phones, not to become Foursquare's Mayor of Space, it seems, but to run an app called SpaceLab for iOS. Designed by Houston's Odyssey Space Research, the app contains a number of navigation tools that will test the iPhone cameras and gyroscopes, alongside a self-monitoring experiment that will reveal the effects of radiation on the devices. The Space Shuttle launch is tentatively scheduled for July 8, but in the meantime even earth-bound astro-nots (aww) can pick up the app for $1 by following the source link.
