Science Projects And Inventions

"Tape is wonderful at preserving evidence... especially on the sticky side." Michael Baden, forensic pathologist The earliest reference to a sticking tape goes right back to 1676, when lute makers used small pieces of paper with glue on to hold pieces in place while they built instruments. By the early twentieth century, much progress had been made in the area of surgical tape for bandages and plasters, but it was not until the 1930s that what we know as sticky tape appeared. Bakers, grocers, and meat packers in the 1920s had started using cellophane to wrap their products. Unfortunately there was no way to seal it and prevent moisture getting in and spoiling the food. To solve this problem they turned to 3M, and 3M turned to engineer Richard Drew (1899-1980), the man behind the invention of masking tape. In 1930, after more than a year of work, Drew and more...

"The Internet is an opportunity for the best products to win. Java is great technically and people want it." Bill Joy, cofounder, Sun Microsystems In 1991 Sun Microsystems formed "the Green project" to create a new computer programming tool for the next generation. Trying to anticipate what would happen next in the computing world, the team led by James Gosling agreed that a likely future trend would see the convergence of digital consumer products with computer technology. Perplexed by the number of different types of computer platforms that existed, they decided to create a "write once, run anywhere" programming language that would work on any device. In order to interest the digital cable television industry, they mocked up an interactive home entertainment controller. However, the technology—featuring animations, a touch screen, and a networking ability similar to the Internet—was so advanced that the companies could not see a use for it. more...

"This is a strategic weapon that really reshaped how the Air Force looked at strategic warfare." Lt. Col. Chris Knehans, 7th Fighter Squadron After years of development, the Lockheed Martin Corporation's first viable stealth fighter aircraft, the F-117 Nighthawk, finally came into operation in 1983. The technology it contained made it practically invisible to conventional radar at the time, giving it a major military advantage over conventional aircraft. The rounded shape of conventional aircraft improves their aerodynamics but also makes them highly visible to enemy, radar. The F-117's designers found that an aircraft of sharp angles and triangles reflected back less radar. The surface of the plane is also coated in paint that absorbs radar signals, making the plane even more invisible. Other adaptations include an unconventional tailfin and reduced turbulence on the engine outlets. However, the aircraft is inherently unstable and would be impossible to fly without its extensive more...

Louis Renault (1877-1944) is a well-known name in motoring, and in 1902 the French engineer invented the drum brake for cars. Drum brakes work in a similar way to bicycle brakes, using friction to slow and eventually stop a fast moving wheel. In cars, the friction is caused by pads that press against the inside surface of the rotating drum that is connected to the car wheel. The pads provide a wedging action that stops the wheel spinning and thereby stops the car moving. To function correctly, the brake pads need to linger close to the drum without scraping it during normal driving. If the pads are too far away—for example, when the pads wear down from use—then the brake pedal has to be pressed deeper to get a braking action. To avoid this, most drum brakes have an automatic adjuster that regulates the distance between the pads and drum. more...

"If we're serious about our environment, we've got to-get serious about the Segway." Lembit Opik, British politician When the Segway PT (Personal Transporter), produced by Dean Kamen [b. 1951), was finally unveiled in December 2001, there was a sense of disappointment. Rumors had circulated that the Segway was an antigravity device, and influential figures had described it as "maybe bigger than the Internet." In fact, the PT—developed over a decade at a cost of $100 million—is a 5,000-dollar gyroscopic scooter. Standing on a platform between two wheels and holding onto a T-shaped handlebar, its users can reach speeds of up to twelve miles per hour (20 kph). With a range of fifteen miles on a single battery, the PT's originality lies in its array of microprocessors and sensors that register the slightest movements. The eco-friendly electric motors in the wheels instantly act upon these deviations from the norm to attain more...

"Brattain decided to try dunking the entire apparatus into a tub of water. It worked ...a little bit." Ira Flatow, Transistorized! The development of the transistor was one of the true landmark inventions of the twentieth century. Before their existence, almost all electronic circuits made use of cumbersome and unreliable valves. The transistor was developed in the United States at the Bell Telephone Laboratories in New Jersey. Scientists John Bardeen (1908-1991), William Shockley (1910-1989), and Walter Brattain (1902-1987) were researching the behavior and suitability of germanium crystals for use as semiconductors that could replace valve diodes. When this was successfully achieved, the same group turned their attention to the considerably more demanding task of creating a solid-state germanium triode—one that could replace the ubiguitous valve equivalents. Since its development and evolution during the early years of the twentieth century, the valve triode had been at the very heart of every more...

"Healing is a matter of time, but sometimes also a matter of opportunity." Hippocrates, the "Father of Medicine" Our bodies have the capacity to heal themselves, being covered in a remarkable self-healing material—skin. Man-made materials, though, did not have this benefit until American Scott White and his University of Illinois team created self-healing polymers in 2001. Self-healing materials are composites consisting of microcapsules that contain a healing agent and small amounts of a catalyst, which allows the healing agent to repair damage to the material. Usually a material deteriorates over time due to damage from microcracking—faults that ''allow larger cracks to develop. With self-healing materials, microcracks rupture the microcapsules, the healing agent comes into contact with the catalyst, and the fault is filled in, These materials boast a long lifespan and are expected to prove invaluable, particularly for artificial organs and use in the space industry. Self-healing materials have a more...

"Emerson developed a respirator selling for less than $1000 and solved... breathing-rate changes." Charles C. Smith, Jr., Special Air Mission: Polio After working to improve the iron lung in 1931, American biomedical device inventor John Emerson (1906-1997) went on to develop a mechanical ventilator. A ventilator is a machine that automatically moves air into and out of the lungs of a patient who is unable to breathe. Emerson worked on his mechanical assistor with colleagues in the department of anesthesia at Harvard University in 1949. Polio epidemics of the 1940s had increased the demand for such machines, as had an increased use of muscle relaxant drugs during surgery; these would paralyze the patients' respiratory muscles so that they could not breathe. Other models followed Emerson's through the 1950s, such as the Bird ventilator, driven only by gas. In Britain the East Radcliffe and Beaver models were used; the Beaver ventilator more...

There is a good chance you have never heard of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), but there is every likelihood that you have used it on more than one occasion. Whether it is through a name tag that allows a person to enter a secure part of a building, or a device that monitors library books, RFID has become very much a part of modern society. The concept was first employed in military aircraft and had a single purpose—to broadcast a signal indicating if it was a friendly aircraft or an enemy. A similar rudimentary device was also in use in the security industry, to determine if an object being protected was indeed where it was supposed to be. Mario Cardullo was aware of both systems in 1969, when a chance meeting with an engineer lamenting the difficulties of using bar codes to track railroads caused him to advance RFID dramatically. more...

“I was always afraid of dying. It was my fear that... kept me...always alert in the cockpit." Chuck Yeager Supersonic airplanes fly faster than the velocity of sound, this being about 770 miles per hour (1,230 kph) at ground level. During World War II certain fighter planes, such as the Mitsubishi Zero and the Supermarine Spitfire could approach this speed in a dive but the near supersonic air passing over the plane produced disruptive shockwaves and turbulence. The propellers became much less efficient and chaotic effects amplified pressure, perturbations, producing an increase in drag and a loss of lift and control. These effects became known as the "sound barrier," which was "broken" by introducing the much more powerful jet engine and by strengthening the airframes and wings. Fortunately, flight became smooth again when the aircraft moved faster than the speed of sound. There is still a slight controversy over who more...