california institute of technology
Tip sheet: Caltech researchers presenting at AAAS
At this year’s American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting in Washington, D.C., February 17 to 21, Caltech researchers will present topics ranging from solar and renewable energy solutions to the latest advancements in bioengi…
Neurobiologists find that weak electrical fields in the brain help neurons fire together
Pasadena, Calif. — The brain — awake and sleeping — is awash in electrical activity, and not just from the individual pings of single neurons communicating with each other. In fact, the brain is enveloped in countless overlapping electric f…
New materials may bring advanced optical technologies, cloaking
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Researchers are developing a new class of “plasmonic metamaterials” as potential building blocks for advanced optical technologies, including ultrapowerful microscopes and computers, improved solar cells, and a possible in…
New reactor paves the way for efficiently producing fuel from sunlight
PASADENA, Calif. — Using a common metal most famously found in self-cleaning ovens, Sossina Haile hopes to change our energy future. The metal is cerium oxide — or ceria — and it is the centerpiece of a promising new technology developed by Hai…
Caltech-led team creates damage-tolerant metallic glass
PASADENA, Calif. — Glass is inherently strong, but when it cracks or otherwise fails, it proves brittle, shattering almost immediately. Steel and other metal alloys tend to be tough — they resist shattering — but are also relatively weak; they …
New glass tops steel in strength and toughness
Glass stronger and tougher than steel? A new type of damage-tolerant metallic glass, demonstrating a strength and toughness beyond that of any known material, has been developed and tested by a collaboration of researchers with the U.S. Departme…
Venus holds warning for Earth
A mysterious high-altitude layer of sulphur dioxide discovered by ESA’s Venus Express has been explained. As well as telling us more about Venus, it could be a warning against injecting our atmosphere with sulphur droplets to mitigate climate ch…
Lyfish-inspired pumps
WASHINGTON, D.C., November 23, 2010 — To the causal aquarium visitor, the jellyfish doesn’t seem to be a particularly powerful swimmer; compared to a fish, it glides slowly and peacefully.
But for Janna Nawroth, a graduate student at the Californ…
Jump rope aerodynamics
WASHINGTON, D.C., November 21, 2010 — Jump ropes are used by kids for fun and by athletes for training. But what about the underlying physics? How do jump ropes work? Can important engineering principles be studied?
Jeff Aristoff and Howard Stone…
Circuitry of fear identified
Fear arises in the almond-shaped brain structure known as the amygdala. It is the amygdala which processes the strange noise, shadowy figure or scary face and not only triggers palpitations or nausea but can also cause us to flee or freeze. That muc…