optics

4 Stories

Scientists Sneak Up on Invisibility Cloak

Material shields object from view in all directions

(Newser) - German scientists say they have successfully used a new material to render an object invisible in three dimensions for the first time. Previous efforts at so-called invisibility cloaks could only hide objects from light coming in one direction. The material changes the behavior of light rays to "transform space,...

GOP Takes Heat for Hawaii Meeting


 GOP Takes Heat 
 for Hawaii Meeting 
PARADISE LOST

GOP Takes Heat for Hawaii Meeting

Choice for retreat draws fire; 'We're working hard,' says Steele

(Newser) - As we speak, the Republican National Committee is holding its winter meeting amid the “lush tropical gardens” of a resort in Honolulu, Hawaii, a fact that appears to embarrass all involved and Republicans everywhere. “We’re working hard out here,” RNC Chairman Michael Steele reasons, but many...

Scientists Cure Red-Green Color Blindness in Monkeys

Adult brain can re-wire to use new vision input: study

(Newser) - Scientists have cured red-green color blindness in monkeys, the Times of London reports. Researchers injected a virus containing L opsin, a gene that regulates the production of the red-sensitive light receptor—known as a “cone”—into the retina of red-green colorblind adult monkeys, according to a study published...

Breakthrough Speeds Up, Shrinks Chips

Huge supercomputers may be reduced to the size of laptops

(Newser) - IBM scientists have reached a “significant milestone” in chip technology, using optical signals to speed up and shrink the largest multicore processors. The breakthrough controls light pulses with a device called a wave-guide, a wire-like structure on the chip that communicates among processors; hybrid electronic-optic chips could reduce refrigerator-sized...

4 Stories