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ARPRO EPP Expanded Polypropylene
plastic foam material for designersNatural Building Materials, Techniques & Technologies Including Cob, Adobe Floors,Rubble Trench
Using natural building technologies to create healthy homes for humans and for the planet is an essential part of our mission.Montessori Revolution.
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polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene & neopreneMaterial ConneXion
Material ConneXion is the world's leading knowledge base for information about new and innovative materials.Carbon Nanotubes Hold Potential For Synthetic Tissue, Muscles
"When paired with the strong electrical conductivity of carbon nanotubes, this ability to endure wear and tear, or fatigue, suggests the materials could be used to create structures that mimic arPolymer, heal thyself
"Unlike previous self-healing systems that relied on capsules of agent buried in the polymer and which became depleted after one use, the new system can respond to damage at the same point many tNatureWorks LLC
Real. Right. Renewable.Brits pick PSP over textbooks
"A small pilot program in a school in England provides 30 students with PSPs to access study materials, replacing their textbooks..." Common sense - don't fight them, work with them. Hope soRace to the Bottom
"A maverick Australian prospector is planning to scoop untold riches - gold, silver, copper - from the bottom of the ocean. Is it a cleaner way to mine or the beginning of an environmental disast"Chemical origami" shrinks 2D discs into 3D objects
"The trick is to pre-treat a gel disc half the size of a beer coaster with a monomer solution "blueprint" that selectively shrinks when heated."Self Cleaning 'Lotus Plastic': Nature Inspires Scientists To Treat Surfaces Using Ultrafast Laser
"A self-cleaning surface like that of the leaf of a Lotus plant is ideal for many applications and consumer products. These ideal natural properties can be imitated remarkably well now."European nanotechnology team builds molecular rack-and-pinion
"The pinion is a 1.8-nm-diameter molecule functioning as a six-toothed wheel interlocked at the edge of a self-assembled molecular island acting as a rack." Whoa.New Scientist Technology Blog: The stuff of dreams
The stuff of dreams To keep you amused over the Christmas and New Year break, we've compiled a short list of fun materials - stuff that behaves a little bit outside the norm. Here's what we came up wiDNA-like ice 'seen' inside carbon nanotubes
"Nanoscale ice formations resembling the double helices of DNA will form when water molecules are frozen inside carbon nanotubes, detailed computer simulations suggest." No hints as to whatBiomimicry clips: Gecko Tape and Beetle Tape
"Super-adhesives that imitate Gecko feet have been in the lab for some time; now super-adhesives mimicking beetle feet are also being developed." Ain't nature marvellous?On The Cutting Edge: Carbon Nanotube Cutlery
"Researchers [...] have designed a carbon nanotube knife that, in theory, would work like a tight-wire cheese slicer." For a ridiculously tiny piece of cheese, mind you.Morphing Materials Take On New Shapes
"Researchers have developed advanced shape-memory polymers that could find uses as expandable stents and fasteners that close themselves." It's all about the materials, these days.Minerals, Organics and Early Life
"Where did our planet get the stuff from which life is made? The sources seem surprisingly diverse, and we’re learning more about how organic materials may have complemented each other in formingCreative Commons Joins OCW Consortium
"The mission of the ... Consortium is to advance education and empower people worldwide through opencourseware. "OpenCourseWare" is the free and open digital publication of high qualityBrand new substance created from water
"Mao’s team subjected water to a pressure 170,000 times greater than atmospheric pressure at sea level. Then they bombarded it with X-rays, causing the water molecules to split and reform into aThe complete work of Charles Darwin
"This site currently contains more than 50,000 searchable text pages and 40,000 images of both publications and handwritten manuscripts." The whole shebang. 'Nuff said.Fossilized Liquid Assembly: Nanomaterials Research Tool
"Borrowing a page from nature's playbook, researchers ... have developed a novel platform for the self-assembly of experimental hierarchical surfaces in a fluid." Heavy science, but interestUrban Grids / Respiratory Oases
" ... a ... firm called Elegant Embellishments has developed "a decorative, three-dimensional architectural tile" that can reduce vehicular air pollution, including nitrous oxide and grKonarka builds power plastic
Konarka develops light-activated power plastic that is flexible, lightweight, lower in cost and much more versatile in application than traditional silicon-based solar cells.Scientists make 'amazing' fuel cell breakthrough
"A team of Korean scientists has developed a new method of storing hydrogen as a solid, easing potential complications associated with the commercialisation of fuel cell technology." A step
