Scientists Create Cloak of Invisibility

[jpak]

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/tech/2006/oct/19/101908209.html

WASHINGTON (AP) - Scientists are boldly going where only fiction has gone before - to develop a Cloak of Invisibility. It isn't quite ready to hide a Romulan space ship from Capt. James T. Kirk or to disguise Harry Potter, but it is a significant start and could show the way to more sophisticated designs.

In this first successful experiment, researchers from the United States and England were able to cloak a copper cylinder.

It's like a mirage, where heat causes the bending of light rays and cloaks the road ahead behind an image of the sky.

"We have built an artificial mirage that can hide something from would-be observers in any direction," said cloak designer David Schurig, a research associate in Duke University's electrical and computer engineering department.

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[SmokingJacket]

1. Can this be used for good, or just evil?

The evil possibilities are the ones that unfortunately spring to mind... cool as this is...

[Occulus]

9. It's not true invisibility, as I understand the article

True invisibility would be very hard to do with this technique because you would have to block all components of visible light, each component with a seperate surface. Layering these surfaces would likely diminish their effectiveness. Maybe they could be arranged on a nano scale thusly:

roygbivroygbivroygbiv

Maybe arranged in columns or rows on the surface you're trying to mask. Each letter would correspond to a given wavelength of visible light, and that's what makes it very hard. I bet you couldn't make an object truly invisible; the best you could probably do would be to make the object harder than hell to see.

Now, for radio reception in urban areas, as the article says, you could use it to direct wireless signals around buildings- or maybe into buildings whose structure normally blocks those transmissions. The solar energy redirection is another great application.

Of course, the stealth applications have already been considered.

[SmokingJacket]

10. Hadn't thought of solar energy redirection.

Good idea! :thumbsup:

[pooja]

2. It is a thing.. it is up to humans to use it for good or evil.

[sui generis]

3. I clicked on your link to the picture but I couldn't see anything.

:shrug:





:rofl:

[bushmeister0]

4. Can it be used in time for the Midterms?

If these scientists can manage to cloak what's going on in Iraq for the next few weeks, the GOP might have chance. I hear Curt Weldon is enlisting his buddies at DARPA to hide his daughter for a little while too.

[Nozebro]

5. Very possible that cloaking technology was used in the 9/11 hoax. EOM

nt

[BootinUp]

6. That was good for a laugh anyways n/t

[Benhurst]

7. Maybe they can cloak

Barbara Bush.

[BootinUp]

8. Recommended.

lol.