The ray gun has finally become a reality.
At least that’s what the Economist reports. It says a “directed-energy weapon” named Zeus (presumably because of his fondness for hurling lightning bolts) has been deployed in the back of a Humvee in Iraq. It’s being tested by soldiers who are using its laser beam to detonate roadside bombs from a safe distance of 300 meters.
This is astonishing news, at least to those of us who have been following the ray gun’s history since it was popularized by H.G. Wells’ 1898 novel, “The War of the Worlds.” From the ray guns of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon to the phasers and blasters of “Star Trek” and “Star Wars,” the weaponry of the future was conspicuously bullet-free. Among futurists purporting to be writing non-fiction, ray-gun technology always seemed to be just around the corner without ever arriving.
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British team touts deafening ’sonic laser’ as pirate deterrent
Leave it to the British to take such an absurd non sequitur as “sonic laser” and turn it into an actual viable means of protecting ships from hijackings in the pirate-infested waters of Somalia’s Gulf of Aden.
And that is exactly British private security firm Anti-Piracy Maritime Security Solutions claims to have done with its long-range acoustic device (LRAD), a sort of satellite dish that uses a humble MP3 player to blast its target with a precise beam of sound that can be cranked up to “excruciatingly painful levels” should an attacker get too close.
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Laser shot through gold sample creates 100 billion anti-matter particles
Take a gold sample the size of the head of a push pin, shoot a laser through it, and suddenly more than 100 billion particles of anti-matter appear.
The anti-matter, also known as positrons, shoots out of the target in a cone-shaped plasma “jet.”
This new ability to create a large number of positrons in a small laboratory opens the door to several fresh avenues of anti-matter research, including an understanding of the physics underlying various astrophysical phenomena such as black holes and gamma ray bursts.
Anti-matter research also could reveal why more matter than anti-matter survived the Big Bang at the start of the universe.
“We’ve detected far more anti-matter than anyone else has ever measured in a laser experiment,” said Hui Chen, a Livermore researcher who led the experiment. “We’ve demonstrated the creation of a significant number of positrons using a short-pulse laser.”
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‘Enlightened’ Atoms Stage Nano-riot Against Uniformity
When atoms in a crystal are struck by laser light, their electrons, excited by the light, typically begin moving back and forth together in a regular pattern, resembling nanoscale soldiers marching in a lockstep formation. But according to a new theory developed by Johns Hopkins researchers, under the right conditions these atoms will rebel against uniformity. Their electrons will begin moving apart and then joining together again repeatedly like lively swing partners on a dance floor.
Moreover, the researchers say, this atomic freestyle dancing can be controlled, paving the way for tiny computer components that emit less heat and new sensors to detect bio-hazards and medical conditions.
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Like many women, Jodi Jack has a love-hate relationship with her body.
“I hate that as you get older you have these little pouches and areas of fat that no matter what you do, they don’t go away,” Jack said.
Through friends, she heard about a new non-surgical solution to fighting fat. It’s called ‘Zerona.’
“This is the use of a low-level laser that affects the fat cells,” Dr. Alan Bauman said. “With the application of this laser, the fat cells leak. Then your body reclaims it and over a two-week period you get a reduction in fat.”
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This laser payload sends pulses of infrared laser light towards a strip of lunar surface and detects and analyzes the reflected portion of that light.
Now that the MIP is on the lunar surface, further mission objectives are being realized. Two days after the MIP landed on the Moon, the lunar laser ranging instrument (LLRI) on board India’s first unmanned spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 was switched on.
ISRO stated in a statement “The instrument was turned on when the spacecraft was orbiting over the western part of the moon’s visible atmosphere. Initial data indicated the instrument’s performance is normal.”
This laser payload sends pulses of infrared laser light towards a strip of lunar surface and detects and analyzes the reflected portion of that light. The wavelength of the light used in this case is 1,064 nm. This instrument also accurately measures the altitude of the spacecraft above the lunar surface and the Moon’s surface features.
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Israeli researchers pioneer laser treatment for sealing wounds
Suturing wounds and cuts has always been problematic. Even using today’s microsurgery techniques, the treated wounds are open to infection, and the patient is inevitably left with permanent and unsightly scars.
When carbon dioxide lasers were invented, many thought they would be the ideal remedy, sealing wounds more effectively and minimizing scarring. Attempts to use these lasers for bonding cuts in the operating room or in clinics failed dismally, however, because surgeons were unable to control the heat emitted by the laser. The lasers either “undercooked” or “overcooked” the patient’s delicate tissues, causing long-term thermal damage.
Now a team of Israeli researchers could have the solution. The scientists, from Tel Aviv University (TAU), have developed a new technique that maintains the heat of the laser at exactly the right temperature for optimal wound healing, allowing surgeons to seal cuts both on our skin and inside our bodies with less scarring, and less exposure to infection.
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After being fielded by the Air Force, Laser JDAM (LJDAM) enters the naval inventory. During flight tests at China Lake, the weapon demonstrated precision hits on moving targets, travelling at speeds up to 85 MPH.
The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has delivered the first production Laser Joint Direct Attack Munition (LJDAM) guidance kits to the U.S. Navy, addressing the service’s need to engage fast-moving land targets. LJDAM adds a Precision Laser Guidance Set to the standard JDAM guidance tail kit to acquire and track laser-targeted signals.
The U.S. Air Force fielded LJDAM in May and has used it successfully in combat.
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New applications of laser technology are being developed constantly. Laser technology was long the stuff of science fiction, but today it is used in CD players, dental drills, laser saws, high-speed metal cutting machines, measuring systems and a host of other products.The word laser stands for Light Amplification by the Stimulation Emission of Radiation. In 1916, Albert Einstein developed the theory of Stimulated Emission. Simply put, it is a process where a photon is emitted from an atom and crashed into other atoms, causing them to also emit photons. In a vacuum chamber, more and more photons bounce around, raising the energy level within the chamber. When the energy has built up sufficiently, it exits the chamber as a narrow beam of light. Although Einstein’s work was explored during the 1920s, it was largely forgotten until, in 1954, Charles Townes, an American physicist, started investigating microwave light.
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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who often played futuristic heroes in his movie career, came face-to-face with the world’s largest laser system. The governor went to the Lawrence Livermore nuclear weapons lab in Northern California on Monday and examined its $3.5 billion super laser, known as the National Ignition Facility.
Work on the stadium-sized project is expected to be completed next year, and scientists said Monday they believe the laser could hold the key to a new source of energy. It is designed to focus 192 lasers at a single target the size of a pencil eraser to create a huge release of energy known as fusion ignition.
“This laser has many exciting applications,” an enthusiastic Schwarzenegger said after reviewing the facility. “What’s most exciting about it is the potential to revolutionize our energy future.”
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