Professor Gert-Jan Gruter and Strong Durable Bio-Based Plastics

 

Gert-Jan Gruter is a professor at the University of Amsterdam and leads a team of researchers at the Industrial Sustainable Chemistry group. He is also the chief technology officer at Avantium, an organization which provides technologies for applications in energy chemicals and pharmaceuticals, which he worked at since 2003. He graduated with a Ph.D in chemistry from VU University Amsterdam. His current research is focused on producing fully bio-based rigid polyesters, but he has researched many other topics in the physical and organic chemistry fields.

Gruter's team recently developed a synthesis strategy to overcome the low reactivity of bio-based secondary diols and make polyesters that have very good mechanical and thermal properties. They also have high molecular weights making them ideal for durable bio-based plastics. In fact, the rigidity is the most crucial part to ensuring the success of these plastics. The plastics that were already available fell short at this point and their low reactivity made it very difficult to obtain long polymer chains. The team countered this by enhancing the ending steps on the process where the low reactivity inhibits the growth of the chains and allows for the higher weight materials to be produced. 

Winter Ground with Horses is the Worst

As the weather gets colder here in northeastern New York, the ground gets so muddy so quickly. While I was bringing horses in for practice for the equestrian team, I noticed when I stepped on the mud lightly I would slip but when I stepped on the mud with my full force I would sink in. Quickly, I realized this must be friction in action, though in the moment I was more annoyed than anything that I was slowly sinking into a muddy field.

When I stepped lightly and quickly on the ground, I applied less force to the ground and therefore the ground applied less normal force to me. As a result of this lack of normal force and the fact that mud is a very slippery and smooth surface, I would slip. However when I stepped harder in the mud, more normal force was applied and I was able to bypass the slippy mud and make contact with the stickier underlying mud. Of course this resulted in me getting pretty stuck and wondering if I would ever get out from this mess. Also wear rain boots when you go mud walking, mud is no joke.

Xiao Mi and the Time Crystal

 

Dr. Xiao Mi is a researcher working for Google who explores applications of intermediate-scale quantum processors based on superconducting qubits. He graduated from Cornell University with an Engineering Physics major and works as a professor at Princeton University. What this means is that he is looking into a type of computation that works with quantum mechanics, in this case a quantum computer, using superconducting quantum bits (that can reach high speeds and can also be in two places at once) who if harnessed correctly, can be used to create computers that work very fast.  In 2021, him and his team at Google with Stanford scientists collaborated to work on creating the Time Crystal for quantum computing.

The Time Crystal is a structure that can repeat in time infinitely without any input in energy. A physical crystal that we see, such as a diamond, consists of physical structures that repeat to create a pointed form, but a Time Crystal can flip between its different areas in space to come back to one structure without loosing any energy. What this means is that the team has created a new phase of matter which was previously thought of as impossible. With the time crystal, the team can test their quantum computers to continue to recognize and detect new phases of matter on its own, which will further the understanding of quantum physics. The team as of now could only recognize and view a few hundred cycles of the time crystal, but will continue to work to try and view it indefinitely. 

Sources:

https://news.stanford.edu/2021/11/30/time-crystal-quantum-computer/

Dr. Jigang Wang

 

Dr. Jigang Wang is a prominent researcher in his field and has recently been a large contributor to the field of spectroscopy and microscopy. Dr. Wang began his higher education by getting his Bachelors in Physics at Jilin University in China in 2000. He then went on to earn a masters and subsequent Phd in Electrical and Computer engineering at Rice University in 2002 and 2005, respectively. He is currently a Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Iowa State University. In addition to his teaching role, he is also the senior scientist at the company Ames Lab where some of his more prominent research has come from.

One of these new findings has been a result of his investigation of microscopy techniques at this company. More specifically, he has been investigating ultrafast microscopy techniques to aid in the identification of new and more efficient materials for use in the photovoltaic component of solar panels. To achieve this, he has been working on microscopy technology to detect light at the terahertz frequency. This frequency is between Infrared light and microwaves and is useful in developing photovoltaic materials. The wavelength of this light is around a millimeter, so in order to detect it Dr. Wang and his colleagues have developed a microscope sensor that is only 20 nanometers in radius. With the use of this sensor, they have identified the compound Methylammonium lead (MAPbI3) as a potential candidate for a new photovoltaic material that could replace the traditional silicon used today. Dr. Wang is one of the most prominent researchers in his field and his contributions have made great strides to both the development of microscopy tools and the development of new photovoltaic solar technologies. 

Bored with work? Try spinning!

The other day while I was waiting in my lab for our microscope laser to warm up I got bored so I ended up spinning around in one of the chairs. While I was doing this I realized that I was pulling my legs in and pushing them out as I spun. As I was doing this I was speeding up as pulled my legs in, and I was slowing down as I let my legs stick out again. Thinking back to what was happening it makes a fun connection with our angular momentum topic that we covered in class. 

As I pulled my legs in, I decreased my moment of inertia (I). In order for the conservation of angular momentum to hold true, my angular velocity would need to increase to compensate for this, which it did! In the opposite sense, when I let my legs stick out again my angular velocity decreased because I was increasing my moment of inertia. An interesting aspect about this though is that my kinetic energy was actually increasing as I pulled my legs in and my angular velocity increased. But where would the extra energy come from to raise the kinetic energy of my system? It comes from the work that I did when I pulled my legs inward, that would have to counteract the centripetal acceleration that would pull them outwards. Anyways, good luck during exam week everyone!

Chonghe Wang and Continuous Ultrasound

    

     Chonghe Wang is an engineer graduate student at MIT who has recently been heavily involved in the production and testing of ultrasound patches that allow for continuous imaging over longer periods of time. Before starting his Ph.D. at MIT, Chonghe received his undergraduate degree from UC San Diego studying nanoengineering. Upon completion he moved to Harvard University for a year to start his Ph.D. in Engineering Science. Now at MIT, a team of scientists including Wang are doing extensive study on how to perfect the image resolution and durability of an ultrasound patch. In order to achieve this, the team created the patch by pairing a "stretchy adhesive layer with a rigid array of transducers," Wang says. This method allows for the device to conform to the skin while the transducers maintain their relative locations which can generate an image with more clarity and precision. "The device's adhesive layer is made from two thin layers of elastomer that encapsulate a middle layer of solid hydrogel." This layer mimics what is found in the gel used in a traditional ultrasound and allows for the easy transmission of sound waves. However, unlike the ultrasound gel we are used to, MIT's is "elastic and stretchy" and prevents dehydration. The bottom layer is meant to stick to the skin. The entire sticker measures about 2 cm^2 across and 3 millimeters thick which is about the size of a postage stamp. This research can change the way many doctors utilize ultrasounds and provide a much more accurate and consistent look into the body's deep internal organs over a longer period of time.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/07/220728142925.htm

http://zhao.mit.edu/teams/chonghe-wang/

A Bus Full of Children or Gravity? - Elannah De La O

Back home in Sonoma County, California, everyone has heard of the myth surrounding Gravity Hill. The tale is that if you encounter a strip of road on Sonoma Mountain, place your car in neutral, and the souls of a bus full of children will push your car to the top. Although I have never gone up this hill myself, my aunt and her children have and swear in having children's handprints on the back of their car afterwards. In thinking of this hill in conversation with my sister, it made me wonder if there was a possibility to explain the physics behind this.

A video of Sonoma Mountain's Gravity Hill taken for SFGate

How does one see a hill inclining and roll forward on neutral? In this case, it is an optical illusion. As explained by Elizabeth Borneman, a small strip of road such as Gravity Hill is an optical illusion by obscuring someone's horizon line partially or fully, which will affect how they perceive what is up and down. Sarah Kirker draws for SFGate the image below:

Typically, we are the top of the image. Our line of sight goes in front of us where we can see and perceive what is up and what is down. If we are perpendicular to the horizon line and know so, we can perceive an upcoming hill that goes upwards. If we are perpendicular to a downhill slope without being able to see a horizon line as featured on the bottom, we will see a straight or less steep downhill slope as an incline instead. For some roads, there are lots of trees to cover the horizon line but in the case of Gravity Hill, you can still see the surrounding area fairly clearly. What can change someone's perception is also the trees that have grown in such a way to give off the illusion of growing "uphill" when actually being downhill, which makes this road even cooler as it does seem so realistic to the human eye as an uphill.

So how does physics play into this? Simply put, when the car is in a neutral position, it will continue to move forward due to gravity alone. For Gravity Hill, the slight downward slope is enough to make the car continue to roll forward even with factors such as the force of friction, drag, and normal force. Although this is fairly simple, it is interesting to see how impactful an optical illusion is in making one question the laws of physics!

Sources:

https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/I-went-to-the-most-confusing-road-in-the-Bay-Area-15631568.php

https://www.geographyrealm.com/what-are-gravity-hills/