In nutrient-poor soils, carnivorous plants like the cape sundew supplement their diets by eating insects. To entice their prey, the cape sundew secretes droplets of sugary water. But unwary insects Keep reading
Month: December 2024
Ferrofluid Snakes
We’re used to seeing ferrofluids — with their suspended iron nanoparticles — as spiky fluids when exposed to a magnetic field. But this is not always the case. Here, the Keep reading
Ultrasound in Medicine
When you hear the term “ultrasound,” your brain likely jumps to grainy black and white images of unborn babies, but this technology has a lot more medical uses than just Keep reading
Branching Gels
If you sandwich a viscous fluid between two plates, then pull the plates apart, you’ll often get a complex branching pattern that forms as air pushes its way into the Keep reading
Event: Machine Learning in Mechanics
This Thursday, August 27th, the U.S. National Committee on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics is holding a special free webinar series on Machine Learning in Mechanics. Details for each talk and Keep reading
Speeding Sedimentation
Did you know that particles settle faster in an inclined container instead of a vertical one? This sedimentation phenomenon is known as the Boycott effect, after the researcher who first Keep reading
Crystalline Critters
In 5th grade, I grew crystals by evaporating solutions of salt water from miniature pie tins. The results were white, boxy crystals whose size depended on how much salt I’d Keep reading
Slow Mo Espresso
High-speed photography gives us an alternate glimpse of reality. Here it provides an all-new perspective on making espresso. Surface tension plays a starring role, first in pulling together the film Keep reading
Fungal Fluid Dynamics
Many plants gain the soil-bound nutrients they need by trading with symbiotic fungi. Underground, these fungi spread networks that gather and store phosphorus, which they then trade with host plants Keep reading
Sediment and Coral
As rivers wash sediment toward the sea, they carve elaborate deltas like that of the Rio Cauto in Cuba. Over time these sediments build up marshes, swamps, lagoons, and other Keep reading