http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (Phys.org)—Researchers at MIT have created several new types of ceramics that all demonstrate a high degree of liquid repellency. All are based, they write in their paper published in the journal Nature Materials, on the oxides of the lanthanides, and unlike most ceramics are extremely hydrophobic. http://phys.org/news277971782.html Physics Mon, 21 Jan 2013 06:23:49 EST news277971782 Tiny sensors—made of a potentially trailblazing material just one atom thick and heralded as the "next best thing" since the invention of silicon—are now being developed to detect trace elements in Earth's upper atmosphere and structural flaws in spacecraft. http://phys.org/news273948884.html Nanotechnology Wed, 05 Dec 2012 16:54:56 EST news273948884 A new type of paint made with carbon nanotubes at Rice University can help detect strain in buildings, bridges and airplanes. http://phys.org/news259504637.html Nanotechnology Thu, 21 Jun 2012 13:37:29 EST news259504637 (PhysOrg.com) -- In the super-small world of nanostructures, a team of polymer scientists and engineers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have discovered how to make nano-scale repairs to a damaged surface equivalent to spot-filling a scratched car fender rather than re-surfacing the entire part. The work builds on a theoretical prediction by chemical engineer and co-author Anna Balazs at the University of Pittsburgh. http://phys.org/news245568709.html Nanotechnology Thu, 12 Jan 2012 05:32:16 EST news245568709 The buildup of ice on surfaces can cause problems in many situations: On airplane wings or on their engine turbine blades, ice can both add weight and interfere with a wing’s lift, which can make it impossible to take off; on high-voltage electrical lines, the weight of ice can cause lines to snap, causing blackouts and endangering people nearby; and on structures such as oil-drilling rigs, it can make even basic operations treacherous for people trying to work on slippery surfaces. Preventing these icy buildups usually means using deicing materials (salt or glycol), sprinkled or sprayed on a surface, or activating heating coils embedded in the surface material. http://phys.org/news212231829.html Physics Wed, 22 Dec 2010 09:17:48 EST news212231829