The emergent physics of animal locomotion

School of Physics Assistant Professor Simon Sponberg has the coveted cover story in the September issue of Physics Today. Sponberg, principal investigator in the Agile Systems Lab, gives a state-of-the-science report on animal locomotion; how different physiological systems within a moth, for example, interact within the insect to enable movement, and how that moth interacts with its environment.

Fire Ants Are Yet Another Hazard in Houston’s Flooded Streets

As if the swamped residents of the Texas Gulf Coast don't have enough reasons to curse Hurricane Harvey, here's one more: clumps of stinging fire ants bobbing in the floodwaters.

The Eclipse in Tech Square

The special memories of Eclipse 2017 @ Georgia Tech linger. This video from Tech Square ATL on the Aug. 21 celestial event was produced by Sandbox ATL in partnership with the University Financing Foundation, the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), and the Scheller College of Business.

Immunophage Synergy

"A pretty cool paper." That's how one of the hosts of the This Week in Microbiology podcast (ep. 159) describes the recent study by School of Biological Sciences professor Joshua Weitz and postdoctoral scientist Chung Yin (Joey) Leung.

Zeroing In on How Supermassive Black Holes Formed

There are black holes, and then there are supermassive black holes that could have played a role in the formation of the universe. How they got so big remains a mystery, but new theories and research may be closing in on answers. A study from earlier this year supports one of these theories: that radiation from nearby galaxies created the galactic monsters.

Nobel Physics Prize Goes to Gravitational Wave Scientists

"This year's prize is about a discovery that shook the world." That's how an official with the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences described the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics, which was awarded to the three founders of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) for the detection of gravitational waves. Georgia Tech has a front-row seat for that achievement, thanks to its membership in the LIGO Scientific Collaboration, a global team of scientists that helps t

For the first time, astronomers detect gravitational waves from two neutron stars colliding

The Aug.17, 2017, detection of gravitational waves and light from the merger of two neutron stars set off a race against time around the globe.

Gravitational Wave Astronomers Hit Mother Lode

The first-ever detection of gravitational waves and light from the collision of two neutron stars isn't just setting the scientific community ablaze. It also ushers in a new "multi-messenger" astronomy, with scientists arround the world gathering and studying those waves, light, and subatomic particles at the same time. So says Laura Cadonati,  professor in the School of Physics and the deputy spokesperson for the LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Obse

First-seen neutron star collision creates light, gravitational waves and gold

Welcome to the era of multi-messenger astrophysics – a single event in the cosmos that gives off both gravitational and electromagnetic waves. That's what the Aug. 17, 2017, detection by the LIGO Scientific Collaboration of two neutron stars merging means for the scientific community, which is celebrating yet another discovery that confirms a century-old theory from Albert Einstein.

Merging neutron stars generate gravitational waves and a celestial light show

"This is the first time we had a 3D IMAX view of an astronomical event," says Laura Cadonati, professor in the School of Physics and deputy spokeperson for the LIGO Scientific Collaboration. She's referring to more than 70 observatories around the world that helped confirm the first-ever detection of gravitational waves and light caused by the merger of two neutron stars.

Pages

Subscribe to School of Physics RSS