How Can You Put a Rainbow in a Science Kit?
February 3rd, 2010 // 3:44 pm @ admin
We live in a very curious world; One that is recreating itself at the atomic level every second we breath. Our bodies are changing out cells with new ones, photosynthesis occurs in tree leaves to replenish oxygen in our atmosphere, and somewhere, right at this very moment, a child is marveling a rainbow. [...]
Category : Blog & Science Kits
Manipulate Light Like No Other Human Can With Photonic Crystals & Opal
February 2nd, 2010 // 4:41 am @ admin
It has long been theorized that the hidden mysteries found in gemstone opal could ultimately unlock a revolution in the computer chip world known as quantum computing. Recently a new chemistry project developed by NanoScienceKits.org has been introduced in a simple format that can be conducted by both scientists and novices alike. But first, [...]
Category : Blog
Why an Opal Doesn’t Hold Color Like a Green Leaf or Blue Car
February 1st, 2010 // 3:35 pm @ admin
A miner in Australia stands tired and alone next to a hole in the ground. He is surrounded by desolate plains of dirt. The sun is hot, there is no water, and the distance is distorted in all directions by waves of heat. With his back to the sun, he wipes hard [...]
What the Heck is Opal Anyway?!
January 23rd, 2010 // 6:54 am @ admin
What is opal?
Opal is one of the most beautiful and precious gemstones found on the earth. It is predominantly found in Australia, which makes up 85% of the total opal in the world today. Opal is made over millions of years by water trickling through sandstone and picking up tiny particles of silica on [...]
How Can “Settling” Be Magic & What Does It Have To Do With Photonic Crystals?!
January 22nd, 2010 // 2:52 pm @ admin
“Opal is a crystal-like lattice of objects in space, in this case, silica microspheres”
One of the cool things about NanoScienceKits.org and our nano science kits is something called ‘natural order’ which is the way the photonic spheres settle into a lattice formation in the test tube. It is important for the nanospheres to be almost [...]
Category : Blog & Nanotechnology
What Is Scilica
January 20th, 2010 // 3:52 pm @ admin
Imagine a robot so small it can be intravenously introduced into the human body to detect and destroy foreign invaders; or a battery small enough to be used for a cell phone but powerful enough to start an automobile. Imagine a microprocessor that uses photons to carry information instead of electrons and doing it [...]
Category : Blog & Nanotechnology
The Building Blocks of Opal Explained
January 15th, 2010 // 7:11 pm @ admin
Silicon Dioxide or “Silica” is an oxide of Silicon. Under a scanning electron microscope, silica looks like tiny spheres. Although they range in size and shape naturally, the image below shows silica that is extremely uniform. Imagine trying to stack these little spheres into a pyramid. Because they are the same size and shape it [...]
Category : Blog