Volume 16 - January-March 2012
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Story 1 - 4/1/2012
QSI: Quantum Scene Investigation
What do police detectives and quantum physicists have in common? They both often need to interpret evidence, and distinguish between false and real clues. After all, evidence pointing to a quantum phenomenon can be rigged, just like evidence pointing to a crime suspect can.
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Story 2 - 11/1/2012
Hide and Seek
Every morning, on the seabed, a cuttlefish wakes up. It knows it must camouflage itself to fool its predators. Every morning, on the seabed, a predator fish wakes up. It knows it must keep its eyes peeled, if it wants to eat. The game for survival is on. Who will win?
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Story 3 - 18/1/2012
Sailing through the Waves of Light
The difference in the interaction between an atom and light can be as wide as that between a pleasant, relaxing canoe ride, and a whitewater rafting experience. It is now possible to switch back and forth between the two, ultraquickly, at the touch of a laser pulse.
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Story 4 - 25/1/2012
Traffic Lights for Chemotherapy
Many cancer patients do not respond to chemotherapy and have to endure harmful side effects even when the treatment itself does not prove effective. A new technique could, as of the very first day, give the green or red light to continuing with the treatment.
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Story 5 - 1/2/2012
Restless Cells in the Human Eye
The cone cells in the human eye make it possible for us to enjoy a world full of color. A new technique helps us understand these cells better by measuring their growth in the eyes of a living person.
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Story 6 - 8/2/2012
Spying on Living Cells
Undercover agents have been using tiny spy cameras for decades. Now, thanks to nanotechnology, researchers can also go undercover and spy on living cells from the inside.
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Story 7 - 22/2/2012
Pipes Unclogged The Quantum Physics Way!
Quantum effects are often portrayed as far more fragile than classical physics effects. However, classical physics sometimes lets us down when it comes to errorless transfer of data; when this is the case, quantum physics could come to the rescue!
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Story 8 - 29/2/2012
Glowing, Enchanted Materials
Never underestimate the magic of a glowing object. From the flare of a fire deep in the darkness of a cave, to the flashy neon illuminations in Times Square, luminescent materials have fascinated mankind for centuries. This enchantment continues with novel materials that can go on glowing for days without receiving continuous power from an energy source.
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Story 9 - 7/3/2012
Journey to the Center of the Earth
What happens when we put an electric insulator, such as iron oxide, under pressure and temperature conditions as extreme as those of the Earth’s interior? The insulator turns into a conductor: a notion that will help us to refine our current understanding of the Earth’s magnetism.
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Story 10 - 14/3/2012
Charge Goes Up, Charge Comes Down
What a wonderful world it is when looked at from the perspective of a microscopic particle! All at once, a whole lot of small things take on new importance – not least so, the behavior of the electric charges around the particle.
