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Related: physicsGravitational lens A light source passes behind a gravitational lens (point mass placed in the center of the image). The aqua circle is the light source as it would be seen if there was no lens, white spots are the multiple images (or Einstein ring) of the source. A gravitational lens is a distribution of matter (such as a cluster of galaxies) between a distant light source and an observer, that is capable of bending the light from the source as the light travels towards the observer. This effect is known as gravitational lensing, and the amount of bending is one of the predictions of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity.[1][2] (Classical physics also predicts the bending of light, but only half that predicted by general relativity.[3])
Accelerators The Large Hadron Collider is latest member of CERN's collection of extraordinary high-energy facilities and is the world's largest and highest-energy accelerator. It occupies a 27 kilometer circumference circular tunnel near Geneva which overlaps the Swiss-French border, the same tunnel that contains the LEP. Successful particle beams were produced in the LHC in 2008 and in 2010 the two beams reached 3.5 TeV, half the target maximum for the accelerator. Currently the work at the LHC is divided into six experiments denoted by the names ATLAS, CMS, ALICE, LHCb, TOTEM and LHCf. A major current objective for the LHC is the search for the Higgs boson. Announcements as of November 2011 suggest that the energy range for the Higgs boson has been narrowed to between 114 and 141 GeV.
Gravitational microlensing Gravitational microlensing is an astronomical phenomenon due to the gravitational lens effect. It can be used to detect objects ranging from the mass of a planet to the mass of a star, regardless of the light they emit. Typically, astronomers can only detect bright objects that emit lots of light (stars) or large objects that block background light (clouds of gas and dust). These objects make up only a tiny fraction of the mass of a galaxy.
News in Brief: Particle caught flip-flopping A particle with an identity crisis could provide the next big discovery at the world's largest particle accelerator. The D meson has been caught in the act of flipping between matter and antimatter, researchers report online March 5 in Physical Review Letters. D mesons, like other mesons, are short-lived particles that emerge from the shrapnel of proton collisions at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider outside Geneva. All of these particles decay within tiny fractions of a second. But four mesons, including the D, occasionally do something strange first: They become antiparticles. In the same vein, anti-D mesons can switch and become mesons before they decay.
Physics World reveals its top 10 breakthroughs for 2011 The two physics stories that dominated the news in 2011 were questions rather than solid scientific results, namely "Do neutrinos travel faster than light?" and "Has the Higgs boson been found?". However, there have also been some fantastic bona fide research discoveries over the last 12 months, which made it difficult to decide on the Physics World 2011 Breakthrough of the Year. But after much debate among the Physics World editorial team, this year's honour goes to Aephraim Steinberg and colleagues from the University of Toronto in Canada for their experimental work on the fundamentals of quantum mechanics.
What is 3D Printing? An Overview. You’ve heard of 3D printing from newscasters and journalists, astonished at what they’ve witnessed. A machine reminiscent of the Star Trek Replicator, something magical that can create objects out of thin air. It can “print” in plastic, metal, nylon, and over a hundred other materials. 10 Strange Things About The Universe Space The universe can be a very strange place. While groundbreaking ideas such as quantum theory, relativity and even the Earth going around the Sun might be commonly accepted now, science still continues to show that the universe contains things you might find it difficult to believe, and even more difficult to get your head around. Theoretically, the lowest temperature that can be achieved is absolute zero, exactly ?273.15°C, where the motion of all particles stops completely.
The 3D Printer Experience Opens In Chicago The evolution of technology has already changed life as we know it. One retail destination in River North plans to make the Windy City known for its support of a growing tech industry that is revolutionizing manufacturing. Beginning Monday, April 22, Chicagoans will have the opportunity to explore this technological innovation firsthand at The 3D Printer Experience (316 N. Clark Street), a 3D printing destination with a focus on experiential education, creation and innovation.
General relativity General relativity, or the general theory of relativity, is the geometric theory of gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1916[1] and the current description of gravitation in modern physics. General relativity generalizes special relativity and Newton's law of universal gravitation, providing a unified description of gravity as a geometric property of space and time, or spacetime. In particular, the curvature of spacetime is directly related to the energy and momentum of whatever matter and radiation are present. The relation is specified by the Einstein field equations, a system of partial differential equations.
An expedition into the programmable city Software, in its various manifestations, is now essential to the functioning of cities. A new EU-funded project is preparing to undertake a sustained programme of research on how software makes a difference in the urban world. Today, computer software is deeply and pervasively embedded into the systems and infrastructure of the built environment, and in the management and governance of urban societies. The SOFTCITY project ('The Programmable City'), led by Professor Robert Michael Kitchin of the National University of Ireland, will look at the nature and diverse forms of software, as well as its impact on daily life. Scientists now know that software-enabled technologies and services augment and facilitate how we understand and plan cities. As well as how we manage urban services and utilities, and how we live urban lives.
Usenet Physics FAQ Version Date: March 2013 This list of answers to frequently asked questions in physics was created by Scott Chase in 1992. Its purpose was to provide good answers to questions that had been discussed often in the sci.physics and related Internet news groups.
Single-pixel power: Scientists make 3-D images without a camera Their system uses simple, cheap detectors which have just a single pixel to sense light instead of the millions of pixels used in the imaging sensors of digital cameras. The technology could be used to create much more affordable forms of 3D imaging in the future, By using detectors capable of sensing frequencies beyond visible light, it could even open new possibilities in other fields including medicine and geography. Researchers from the University of Glasgow's School of Physics and Astronomy outline the technique in a report published today in the journal Science . Professor Miles Padgett, Kelvin Chair of Natural Philosophy at the University, leads the team of researchers which developed the technique. Professor Padgett said: "Single-pixel detectors in four different locations are used to detect light from a data projector, which illuminates objects with a rapidly-shifting sequence of black-and-white patterns similar to crossword puzzles.