Which world is this?

Some fascinating articles have been written about friction at the nano-scale recently.  I know this area has received intense coverage, almost to the point of overkill, but it represents one of the next realms of scientific experimentation. Its not that the laws of physics are different at this level, but the way that atoms respond to laws can appear to be very different, when friction and gravity no longer dominate in the way that they usually do.

News about friction

I am always interested to hear more about quantum physics and how new ideas may lead to better understandings of different interpretations.  I hardly even knew about these interpretations until confronting some of them at CERN last summer.  The Copenhagen interpretation is the most common, but by no means the only one.  The "Many Worlds' interpretation is the most popular among science fiction enthusiasts. (Think of the 90's TV show 'Sliders'). The 'Pilot Wave' interpretation claims that particles are influenced by invisible waves, and the 'Collapse' interpretation claims that the act of observing makes the quantum waves of probability collapse at a certain point, due to the observation itself. Cool stuff.

Quantum weirdness and what is actually real?

Nano friction

Here are some updates on new developments:

Putting friction to the test.

http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2015/jun/05/ultracold-ions-put-friction-to-the-test

New insight on the double slit experiment.

http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2015/may/26/do-atoms-going-through-a-double-slit-know-if-they-are-being-observed

Update

I just noticed that it has been over a month since my last post. I have cleared a huge hurdle and completed my latest graduate course (which was applied biomedical engineering). It was very likely the most difficult course I have ever taken. I finished strong and am happy that it is over.

I am working on a program of Materials Science Engineering. I have two courses left; a mathematical methods course and very likely a course in medical imaging. I already teach about medical imaging at some level and have developed a unit on MRIs and CAT scans.  So I already have an interest in that and some background knowledge.

So hopefully, in May of 2016 I will be graduating from the program. From there, we shall see...

Direct detection of an exoplanet atmosphere

This article describes the first visible light directly detected from an exoplanet. This is something like seeing what color the sky is in New York is from Los Angeles. 

Voyager at the edge of the solar system

I have followed the Voyager probes with interest since I was a kid. It made a great impression on me and taught me about the importance of all sorts of things (planetary science, rocketry, propulsion, communication, exploration,...)

After a period of debate, it now appears that Voyager 1 has left the solar system. Scientists have debated exactly where the edge of the solar system lies, until now it seems. Between the shift of magnetic fields (from solar to galactic) and the change in flux of particles (fewer from the sun and more from elsewhere) Voyager appears to now be in a region of space where nothing from Earth has ever gone.

What is weather like on exo-planets?

I find this topic particularly fascinating. Not only can we detect the presence of exo-planets (planets orbiting stars other than our own) we can search for evidence of their atmospheres. And this article is particularly well-written. 

http://asd.gsfc.nasa.gov/blueshift/index.php/2015/01/29/exoplanet-weather/

How smart are smart materials?

Materials that know how to bend and respond to conditions. How smart are they?