Physics
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Materials Science
Material Scientists: Cast Your Vote
You can vote early, if not officially.
By Janet Raloff -
Physics
An attractive source for spintronics
Discovery may lead to battery that generates magnetic currents
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Physics
Nobel Prize in physics shared for work that unifies forces of nature
Understanding of broken symmetry has been crucial to the standard model of particle physics.
By Ron Cowen -
Physics
Charging up fuel injection
A new device uses an electric field to increase cars’ gas mileage.
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Chemistry
Oops! A Fluorescent Light Breaks
Toxic mercury will be released whenever a fluorescent lamp breaks.
By Janet Raloff -
Physics
Shaping up the sun
The most accurate measurements yet of the sun’s shape show that magnetic activity plays a role in making the sun appear more oval than it really is.
By Ron Cowen -
Chemistry
Fluorescent bulbs offer mercury advantage
Featured blog: Switching to light bulbs that contain mercury might, surprisingly, reduce overall mercury releases to the environment. Plus, what to do when you break your fluorescent bulb.
By Janet Raloff -
Physics
Diamonds engage at the nano scale
Manipulating the quantum properties of diamond impurities makes diamond into a kind of microscope that could, for example, reveal the inner working of cells.
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Chemistry
Obama’s brain trust
Featured blog: Sixty-one Nobel laureates sign a letter explaining why they support Barack Obama's run for the presidency.
By Janet Raloff -
Physics
Photons caught in the act
Physicists manipulated a microwave pulse and could essentially watch it transition from a quantum state into the realm of classical physics.
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Space
Large Hadron Collider shuts down early for the winter
CERN announces that needed repairs, plus high fuel costs, will delay the first planned collisions until next spring.
By Ron Cowen -
Climate
(Political) party animals
Featured blog: When it comes to attitudes about climate change, the chasm between Democrats and Republicans is wide. Political-polling analysts speculate that a McCain win in November might do more than an Obama victory to win over the minds of climate-change skeptics.
By Janet Raloff