A sheet made from nanotubes, tiny carbon tubes only a few times bigger than atoms with remarkable strength and electronic properties. In today’s edition of the journal Science, however, scientists from the University of Texas and Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization report the creation of industry-ready sheets of materials made from nanotubes. Nanotubes are tiny carbon tubes with remarkable strength that are only a few times wider than atoms. They can also act as the semiconductors found in modern electronics.
Science
The same sheet, emitting polarized light after the voltage is applied through incandescent heating.“This is fundamentally a new material,” says team leader Ray Baughman of the University of Texas at Dallas in Richardson.
• Self-supporting, transparent and stronger than steel or high-strength plastics, the sheets are flexible and can be heated to emit light.
• A square mile of the thinnest sheets, about 2-millionths-of-an-inch thick, would weigh only about 170 pounds.
• In lab tests, the sheets demonstrated solar cell capabilities, using sunlight to produce electricity.
August, 2005
A Tiny Huge Step for Nanotech
2020 : A Nigerian Space Odyssey
Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo said that Nigeria would have astronauts in space within the next 15 years.
Hmm. Okay.
More…
He said the feat was achievable if the momentum of current development drive was sustained. “In 15 to 25 years, we will put Nigeria into space. We will get there. It is not as unattainable as it looks. And we have to do it. For if we are going to make progress, we are going to make it on the basis of commitment, service and sacrifice. And we are not going to be found wanting. We must not be found wanting. We are making efforts not to lag behind. We are not where we would want to be. But we must consistently and cumulatively industrialise. And to do this, infrastructure is a must. We just cannot do without it. Whether it is in terms of road, rail, energy or water. These are non-negotiable. Because of money, we may not be able to do everything at same speed and same time,” Obasanjo said.
Great. Within 25 years it’s not going to be just the US and Chinese with Space Peace Platforms of Death, it’ll also be the freaking Nigerians!
Have a happy Monday!
