# acad: cinnamon buns, pretzels and bagels to explain unusual phases or states of matter, by Thors

<< What do a pretzel, a lock of hair and a scream have in common? >>

<< Thors Hans Hansson, a member of the Nobel physics committee, uses a cinnamon bun, a pretzel and a bagel to explain the field of topology, a highly specialised mathematics field studying unusual phases or states of matter >>

<< Referring to the two holes in the pretzel, the one hole in the bagel, and the shape of a bun, Hansson demonstrated that topology explains how a material's shape can be completely deformed into a new one without losing its core properties >>

Ilgin Karlidag. Bagels, pretzels, Boo! How to explain science Nobels. Oct 1, 2017

https://m.phys.org/news/2017-10-bagels-pretzels-boo-science-nobels.html

# bot-nano: programmable molecular machines to assemble molecular machines

<< It has been convincingly argued that molecular machines that manipulate individual atoms, or highly reactive clusters of atoms, with Angstrom precision are unlikely to be realized >>

AA << detail an artificial molecular machine that moves a substrate between different activating sites to achieve different product outcomes from chemical synthesis >>

AA << anticipate that future generations of programmable molecular machines may have significant roles in chemical synthesis and molecular manufacturing >>

Salma Kassem, Alan T. L. Lee, et al.  Stereodivergent synthesis with a programmable molecular machine. Nature 2017; 549: 374–378. Sep 21. doi: 10.1038/nature23677

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v549/n7672/full/nature23677.html

Scientists create world’s first ‘molecular robot’ capable of building molecules. Sep 20, 2017

http://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/scientists-create-worlds-first-molecular-robot-capable-of-building-molecules/

CAMERA - Chemistry at Manchester Explains Research Advances

https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCXf3CFkyGpa2eIeT5wz_Prw/featured

# chem: self-assembly in icosahedral (3D) nanoscale architectures

<< capsid proteins of spherical plant viruses can self-assemble into well-organized icosahedral three-dimensional (3D) nanoscale multivalent architectures with high monodispersity and structural symmetry >>

Narayanan KB, Han SS. Icosahedral plant viral nanoparticles - bioinspired synthesis of nanomaterials/nanostructures. Adv Colloid Interface Sci. 2017 Aug 31. pii: S0001-8686(16)30366-9. doi: 10.1016/j.cis.2017.08.005.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/28916111/

# gst: to estimate a minimum size of an earthquake

<< Although the overall size of an earthquake cannot be predicted from the rate of energy release, a minimum size can be estimated. Estimating this minimum size could add valuable seconds to early earthquake warning algorithms >>

M.A. Meier, J. P. Ampuero, T. H. Heaton. The hidden simplicity of subduction megathrust earthquakes.  Science Sep 22,  2017: 357 (6357): 1277-81. doi: 10.1126/science.aan5643

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/357/6357/1277

# astro: FRBs [Fast Radio Bursts]; you can imagine the sky is filled with flashes like paparazzi

<< If we are right about such a high rate of FRBs [Fast Radio Bursts] happening at any given time [at least one FRB is going off somewhere every second], you can imagine the sky is filled with flashes like paparazzi taking photos of a celebrity >> Anastasia Fialkov

Fast radio bursts may be firing off every second. Sep 21, 2017

https://m.phys.org/news/2017-09-fast-radio.html

Anastasia Fialkov, Abraham Loeb. A Fast Radio Burst Occurs Every Second throughout the Observable Universe. The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 2017; 846 (2). doi: 10.3847/2041-8213/aa8905 Publ Sep 8, 2017.

http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/aa8905/meta

# chem: strange transitions: tying a crystal into a knot

<< Single crystals are typically brittle, inelastic materials. Such mechanical responses limit their use in practical applications, particularly in flexible electronics and optical devices >>

AA << describe single crystals of a well-known coordination compound—copper(II) acetylacetonate—that are flexible enough to be reversibly tied into a knot >>

Anna Worthy, Arnaud Grosjean, et al. Atomic resolution of structural changes in elastic crystals of copper(II) acetylacetonate. Nature Chemistry. doi: 10.1038/nchem.2848. Aug 28, 2017

http://www.nature.com/nchem/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nchem.2848.html

<< crystals exhibit traditional characteristics of not only hard matter, but soft matter like nylon >> John McMurtrie

<< Under strain the molecules in the crystal reversibly rotate and reorganise to allow the compression and expansion required for elasticity and still maintain the integrity of the crystal structure >> Jack Clegg

Bendable crystals tie current thinking in knots. Aug 29, 2017.

https://m.phys.org/news/2017-08-bendable-crystals-current.html

# gst: chaotic networks inside a chaotic world, a 2015 review by Jennifer

<<  Networks grow as individual nodes connect to one another. By tweaking the rules that govern when nodes connect, researchers can shape the network’s properties >>

Jennifer Ouellette. The New Laws of Explosive Networks. Researchers are uncovering the hidden laws that reveal how the Internet grows, how viruses spread, and how financial bubbles burst. Jul 14, 2015.

https://www.quantamagazine.org/how-complex-networks-explode-with-growth-20150714/

also

<< The most celebrated part of this account, however, is at 2.216–93, where Lucretius [Titus Lucretius Carus] maintains that not only to explain how atomic collisions can occur in the first place, but also to account for the evident fact of free will in the animal kingdom, it is necessary to postulate a minimal indeterminacy in the motions of atoms, an unpredictable ‘swerve’ (clinamen) ‘at no fixed place or time’. Otherwise we would all be automata, our motions determined by infinitely extended and unbreakable causal chains >>

Lucretius. 4.Physics. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. First published Wed Aug 4, 2004; substantive revision Sat Aug 10, 2013

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/lucretius/#Phy