physics

Sep 9, 2013

Wide Left: Study Shows that Holders Play Key Role in Field Goal Accuracy

NFL and college football teams are back in action, and their success often hinges on the accuracy of their field goal kickers. When the field goals are made, kickers are heroes. When they miss, they’re goats. But a study by aerospace researchers shows that kickers aren’t always at fault – the way the ball is… 

May 8, 2013

Renaissance Woman

Army veteran, parachutist, beagle enthusiast: Khalida Hendricks has an eclectic group of past titles. As of Saturday, she can add "NC State graduate" to the list. 

Apr 24, 2013

Iron Man, Reverse Engineering and the Future of Materials Science

Iron Man 3 isn’t out yet, but the first two movies (and decades of Iron Man comics) raise some interesting questions about how scientists can create and utilize new materials – like the energy source for Iron Man’s suit. For those who have been shut off from pop culture, here’s a recap of the first… 

Mar 18, 2013

The Heat Is On to Understand Thermal Transport between Materials

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Mark Losego, a research assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State. Losego recently co-authored a News and Views article about nanoscale heat flow in Nature Materials with David Cahill of the University of Illinois. The basics of heat flow have long been overlooked, but now,… 

Mar 14, 2013

Researchers Create Nanoscale Spinning Magnetic Droplets

Researchers have successfully created a magnetic soliton – a nano-sized, spinning droplet that was first theorized 35 years ago. These solitons have implications for the creation of magnetic, spin-based computers. Solitons are waves, localized in space, that preserve their size and momentum. They were first observed in water. Solitons composed of light have proved useful… 

Mar 13, 2013

Foundations of Carbon-Based Life Leave Little Room for Error

  Life as we know it is based upon the elements of carbon and oxygen. Now a team of physicists, including one from North Carolina State University, is looking at the conditions necessary to the formation of those two elements in the universe. They’ve found that when it comes to supporting life, the universe leaves… 

Feb 21, 2013

Researchers ‘Nanoweld’ by Applying Light to Aligned Nanorods in Solid Materials

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a way to melt or “weld” specific portions of polymers by embedding aligned nanoparticles within the materials. Their technique, which melts fibers along a chosen direction within a material, may lead to stronger, more resilient nanofibers and materials. Physicists Jason Bochinski and Laura Clarke, with materials scientist… 

Feb 15, 2013

Force is the Key to Granular State-Shifting

Ever wonder why sand can both run through an hourglass like a liquid and be solid enough to support buildings? It’s because granular materials – like sand or dirt – can change their behavior, or state. Researchers from North Carolina State University have found that the forces individual grains exert on one another are what… 

Feb 15, 2013

Thor’s Hammer Is Not That Heavy (But It Is Scientifically Interesting)

In early February, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson said on Twitter that the superhero Thor’s Hammer (aka Mjolnir) “weighs as much as a herd of 300 billion elephants.” News outlets pounced on this, and the news was quickly circulating online. Sadly, Tyson was wrong. Tyson’s reasoning was based on the idea that Mjolnir was “made of… 

Dec 17, 2012

Engineers’ Neutrino Communications Named a Top 10 Physics Breakthrough

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post that first ran on the website of NC State’s College of Engineering. Research that produced the world’s first message sent using tiny neutrino particles — a project led in part by NC State engineers — has been named one of Physics World magazine’s top 10 breakthroughs for 2012. Earlier this… 

Aug 2, 2012

Olympic Physics: The Pole Vault

Editor’s Note: The summer Olympics draw viewers to sports that they otherwise ignore. We marvel as athletes ranging from divers to pole vaulters turn power and speed into athletic artistry. Speed (velocity) and power (force) are also key elements in physics. This is the fourth in a series of guest posts by Dr. Larry Silverberg,… 

Jul 31, 2012

Olympic Physics: The Discus

Editor’s Note: The summer Olympics draw viewers to sports that they otherwise ignore. We marvel as athletes ranging from divers to pole vaulters turn power and speed into athletic artistry. Speed (velocity) and power (force) are also key elements in physics. This is the third in a series of guest posts by Dr. Larry Silverberg,… 

Jul 27, 2012

Olympic Physics: Diving

Editor’s Note: The summer Olympics draw viewers to sports that they otherwise ignore. We marvel as athletes ranging from divers to pole vaulters turn power and speed into athletic artistry. Speed (velocity) and power (force) are also key elements in physics. This is the second in a series of guest posts by Dr. Larry Silverberg,… 

Jul 26, 2012

Olympic Physics: Tennis

Editor’s Note: The summer Olympics draw viewers to sports that they otherwise ignore. We marvel as athletes ranging from divers to pole vaulters turn power and speed into athletic artistry. Speed (velocity) and power (force) are also key elements in physics. This is the first in a series of guest posts by Dr. Larry Silverberg,… 

May 28, 2012

Ahead of Schedule

It's rare for an undergraduate to build a strong research record. 2012 alumnus Adam Keith did that and then some, earning a co-author's credit on a paper published in the prestigious journal Nature.