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metamaterials

Remember invisibility cloak tech? It's useful for talking to satellites

That bulbous protrusion in the front of many planes and pilotless drones could become a thing of the past if Intellectual Ventures' second spinout company pans out.

Executives at the Bellevue, Wash. patent-holding company today are expected to unveil Kymeta, a 15-employee company that's applying so-called metamaterials to satellite communications. Its first products, most likely for aircraft, should be available commercially by 2015. Eventually, executives say, Kymeta's technology could find its way to ships, trains, and even come in the form of a personal satellite hot spot that's about the size of a typical laptop computer.

You … Read more

'Invisibility' cloak could dampen blow from earthquakes

Crucial structures such as power plants and dams could be protected from earthquakes by surrounding them with specially designed rubber cylinders, according to researchers.

A team from the University of Manchester's School of Mathematics yesterday proposed creating barriers that would "cloak" buildings from the seismic waves of earthquakes. The researchers applied the same techniques that others have on scattering waves of light to render objects invisible.

In a paper published last week, the researchers say that artificially engineered materials, called metamaterials, have the potential to safeguard critical buildings and other structures such as airport terminals and bridges … Read more