ScienceDaily: Matter & Energy News

See here now: Telescopic contact lenses and wink-control glasses Posted: 13 Feb 2015 11:50 AM PST Optics specialist Eric Tremblay from EPFL in Switzerland unveils the latest prototype in the telescopic contact lens and debuts accessory wink-controlled glasses that switch between normal and 2.8x magnified vision.

Self-stretching material: No limit to number of times material can change shape Posted: 13 Feb 2015 11:42 AM PST Although most materials slightly expand when heated, there is a new class of rubber-like material that not only self-stretches upon cooling; it reverts back to its original shape when heated, all without physical manipulation.

Transforming silver into any color of the rainbow: Silver-glass sandwich structure acts as inexpensive color filter Posted: 13 Feb 2015 07:47 AM PST The engineering world just became even more colorful. Researchers have created a new technique that can transform silver into any color of the rainbow. Their simple method is a fast, low-cost alternative to color filters currently used in electronic displays and monitors.

Distortions glimpsed in atomic structure of materials Posted: 13 Feb 2015 07:47 AM PST Researchers are using a technique they developed to observe minute distortions in the atomic structure of complex materials, shedding light on what causes these distortions and opening the door to studies on how such atomic-scale variations can influence a material's properties.

Gold nanotubes launch a three-pronged attack on cancer cells Posted: 12 Feb 2015 06:19 PM PST Scientists have shown that gold nanotubes have many applications in fighting cancer: internal nanoprobes for high-resolution imaging; drug delivery vehicles; and agents for destroying cancer cells.

Getting molten wax in shape Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:15 AM PST New research looks at how to create various non-spherical particles by releasing droplets of molten wax into a cool liquid bath. The physics behind this research shows how a range of non-spherical shapes can be produced and replicated with many possible industrial applications.

Crystal pattern mapping can recover obliterated serial numbers in metals Posted: 12 Feb 2015 07:28 AM PST Researchers have demonstrated a technique for mapping deformation in metals that can recover destroyed serial numbers on metal objects such as firearms, a common challenge in forensics.

Potentially faster and more accurate mode of cancer treatment with new laser technology Posted: 12 Feb 2015 05:15 AM PST Surgeons rely on 200-year-old technology when removing cancer -- sight and touch -- to determine how much to remove and what to leave alone. Laser technology has the promise to help a surgeon better determine if an area is cancer or healthy tissue. Moreover, when combined with laser treatment for cancer, this work lays the groundwork for laser robotic treatment of cancer.

Weird 'strings' attached to future high temperature superconductivity Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:51 AM PST The behavior of strongly correlated electron systems, such as high temperature superconductors, defies explanation in the language of ordinary quantum theory. A seemingly unrelated area of physics, string theory, might give physicists a better understanding of the weird behavior of this kind of collective electron systems.