New form of superhard carbon observed

http://www.physorg.com ^ | 11 Oct 2011 | Provided by Carnegie Institution

[Red Badger]

A small rod of glassy carbon.

[KoRn]

/mark

[Jonty30]

Depending how much it weighs, I can see this being used to protect soldiers or other kinds of shirlding if it can be produced in mass quantities.

[Uncle Ike]

” The team was led by Stanford’s Wendy L. Mao and her graduate student Yu Lin and includes Carnegie’s Ho-kwang (Dave) Mao, Li Zhang, Paul Chow, Yuming Xiao, Maria Baldini, and Jinfu Shu “

Stanford?? Or a Chinese Farming Village??

[M Kehoe]

Maybe one day we will have elevators to lower earth orbit?

Read that in a book one time, can't think of the author or title.

5.56mm

[Paradox]

Aurthur Clarke wrote some books about that, actually it was to a higher orbit than that, but as I recall, they used a type of “string diamond” to do it.. this sounds a lot like that.

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

anvils<\i>??? All the blacksmiths will be happy.

[Red Badger]

I’m sure they are all good Americans...........

[Red Badger]

More info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glassy_carbon

[SpaceBar]

Anvil is the canonical term for what we think of as a vice or pressure cell. The first diamonds were synthesized in a tetrahedral anvil (pressure cell) and simultaneously heated to high temperature to simulate the hydrostatic pressure that exists in the earth's mantle.

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

And you thought I didn’t know that??? /s/

[douginthearmy]

Noone stopped Anglo-saxon Americans from having lots of babies and raising them to work hard in math and science and go to top schools and become physicists. The fact that Chinese Americans have done this only speaks highly of them.

I am sure you can find plenty of Dick and Jane types names at the Occupy Wall Street protest. Perhaps instead of telling 2 entire generations that the most important thing is some ethereal "happiness" we should have stressed things like, financial security, responsibility and honor.

[Captain Beyond]

bflr

[Lurker]

“Friday” by Robert Heinlein. He called them “Beanstalks”.

[ctdonath2]

Arthur C Clark, “The Fountains of Paradise” is credited with the notion, though variants are older. Google “space elevator”. A very long rope tethered to the earth, long enough that its center of gravity is beyond geostationary orbit, will remain vertical. The rope must be strong enough, stronger than current materials allow yet physics/chemistry indicates suitable materials are indeed possible. Efforts are underway to encourage the technology needed to build a space elevator.

[Defiant]

That’s nothing. Check Obama’s skull.

[Soothesayer9]

Well thats nice, but when can I buy my +6 Grandmaster Armor already? Dragons aint gonna off themselves!

[Soothesayer9]

"Perhaps instead of telling 2 entire generations that the most important thing is some ethereal "happiness" we should have stressed things like, financial security, responsibility and honor."

The Chinese also don't have the punishing EPA regs that we do. They dont give a damn about smog, spotted owls, or lake pollution. Macau is friendlier to business than the U.S. is, but at the end of the day they are still COMMUNISTS and quite proud of it. A friend who lived in China asked many there what they thought on 9/11. The overwhelming response was "they finally got a bloody nose and they deserved it!".

[Red Badger]

Will do no good against dragons. Carbon burns............

[Aevery_Freeman]

Specific gravity 1.51! Withstands extreme heat.

Sounds like a candidate for engine blocks, bearings, races, etc.

Be still my gas-powered heart!