Beam Dump Makes Sure Your Laser Path is Safely Terminated

Between hot things, sharp things, and spinny things, there’s more than enough danger in the average hacker’s shop to maim and mutilate anyone who fails to respect their power. But somehow lasers don’t seem to earn the same healthy fear, …read more

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Precision Optics Hack Chat with Jeroen Vleggaar of Huygens Optics

Join us on Wednesday, December 2nd at noon Pacific for the Precision Optics Hack Chat with Jeroen Vleggaar!

We sometimes take for granted one of the foundational elements of our technological world: optics. There are high-quality lenses, mirrors, filters, and other precision optical components in just about everything these days, …read more

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Samsung’s hologram prototype sports 4K visuals and wide viewing angle

Science fiction has been dangling the promise of holograms in front of us for decades, but like hoverboards and flying cars, the tech always feels just out of reach. Now Samsung has made a major stride towards realistic holograms, with a prototype thin… Continue reading Samsung’s hologram prototype sports 4K visuals and wide viewing angle

Alphabet project uses light beams to bring broadband to remote regions

An Alphabet X innovation lab project has been working on a high-speed wireless optical communications network that uses beams of light instead of cables or radio waves, and folks in Kenya will be the first to benefit from the fruits of these labors.Con… Continue reading Alphabet project uses light beams to bring broadband to remote regions

Self-erasing “invisible ink” chip alerts users to unauthorized access

Researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a kind of electronic “invisible ink” that can help alert users to any unauthorized tampering with a device. When the chip is exposed to light it will erase information printed on it, making it cl… Continue reading Self-erasing “invisible ink” chip alerts users to unauthorized access

Infinity Mirror at Warp Speed

Inventing often combines more than one old ideas into a new one. Even when the fused things are similar, the result can be more valuable than the sum of its parts. Unlike those analog watches with a digital clock below the face, when [Mojoptix] combined the re-reflecting properties of an …read more

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Schlieren on a Stick

Schlieren imaging is a technique for viewing the density of transparent fluids using a camera and some clever optical setups. Density of a fluid like air might change based on the composition of the air itself with various gasses, or it may vary as a result of a sound or …read more

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Internet speed record shattered at 178 terabits per second

The fastest internet speed in the world has been clocked at an incredible 178 terabits per second (Tb/s) – fast enough to download the entire Netflix library in under a second. Engineers in the UK and Japan have developed new ways to modulate light bef… Continue reading Internet speed record shattered at 178 terabits per second

Pentax binoculars are an optical multitool for inquisitive eyes

Ricoh Imaging this week launched the Pentax V sport optics series, which will include both binoculars and monoculars. In fact, with its first product, it already includes both. The all-new Pentax VD 4×20 WP is an innovative multifunctional optical tool… Continue reading Pentax binoculars are an optical multitool for inquisitive eyes