ANN ARBOR — A nanoscale coating that’s at least 95 percent air repels the broadest range of liquids of any material in its class, causing them to bounce off the treated surface, according to the University of Michigan engineering researchers who developed it.
In addition to super stain-resistant clothes, the coating could lead to breathable garments to protect soldiers and scientists from chemicals, and advanced waterproof paints that dramatically reduce drag on ships. (more…)
Through a new Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) awarded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Brown will lead an effort to study new optical materials and their interactions with light at the quantum scale. The initiative, which includes six other top universities, will receive $4.5 million over three years, with a possible two-year extension.
Harnessing the power of light at the quantum scale could clear the way for superfast optical microprocessors, high-capacity optical memory, securely encrypted communication, and untold other technologies. But before any of these potential applications sees the light of day, substantial obstacles must be overcome — not the least of which is the fact that the wavelength of light is larger than quantum-scale objects, limiting the range of possible light-matter interactions. (more…)
Having twice served in Afghanistan, where his platoon faced some of the most intense fighting of any American soldiers, U.S. Army sergeant Misha Pemble-Belkin felt a bit of a “culture shock” earlier this month when he first took a seat in a Yale classroom.
His combat team’s firefights with Taliban insurgents in eastern Afghanistan in 2007 — and the deaths of two members of his small unit — were captured in the Academy Award-nominated documentary “Restrepo” by Sebastian Junger and the late Tim Hetherington, as well as in Junger’s bestselling book “War.” Described by one film reviewer as “the conscience” of the documentary, Pemble-Belkin received major media attention for his part in the film.
During his stay on the Yale campus, however, Pemble-Belkin had to leap out of the role of soldier and into that of student as he participated in the newly inaugurated Warrior-Scholar Project, which helps war veterans and non-commissioned officers who are leaving the service make the transition to college life. (more…)
