• Question: whats the best invension you have ever done?

    Asked by patiencekhalifa to Carol, Ellie, John, Philip, Rebecca on 25 Jun 2012.
    • Photo: Carol White

      Carol White answered on 25 Jun 2012:

      Oh wow, if I’d invented something I think I’d be famous and living on a tropical island!

      But I haven’t…. I’ve discovered some new things with my experiments though – I’ve made new observations on the way seafloor creatures respond to food and oxygen!

      P.S. I have invented some amazing smoothies recently, but I’m not sure everyone would like the flavours!

    • Photo: Rebecca Lacey

      Rebecca Lacey answered on 26 Jun 2012:

      Hi patiencekhalifa!
      I haven’t invented anything in my work – I wish I had! That would be really cool!!

      I have discovered some interesting things in my work though – like why some people might be more likely to smoke than others and also why children who experience parental separation might be more likely to be depressed than those who grew up with two parents. It’s all really interesting stuff but not really an invention per se.

    • Photo: John Welford

      John Welford answered on 26 Jun 2012:

      The company I used to work for invented quite a few things like carbon fibre and radar, but personally I’ve not invented anything. I’ve put things together in new ways though.

      For example I used a set of really high speed cameras (like they use on nature programmes to show a bird flapping its wings) to film an explosion, and then processed the video from lots of cameras at different angles to work out where everything was in 3D. That was really cool and I’m not sure it had been done like that before – but I don’t think I can claim to have ‘invented’ it as someone had probably thought about doing it before me but just not done it.

    • Photo: Philip Glasson

      Philip Glasson answered on 26 Jun 2012:

      What’s the best invention you have ever done?

      Oooooooh!
      Good Question Patiencekhalifa !!

      I’ve invented quite a bit. Starting from when I was a kid, but I still keep inventing stuff both at work and in my spare time.

      I have invented / co invented:

      1)
      A Micro Channel Chip that allows you to observe a new phase of matter called Wigner-Wires. Where electrons line up like cars in a motorway traffic jam, all jostling for position but all staying in their lanes.

      Picture of the Micro Channel Chip
      http://physics.aps.org/assets/d3f0c18bc0e693bd

      Read more
      http://physics.aps.org/story/v8/st22

      2)
      A tinny-tinny Nano-Technology-Hand that allows you to hold and count individual electrons.

      Picture, counting right to left 5,4,3,2,1,none electrons.

      Read more
      http://www.rhul.ac.uk/physics/research/postgraduateopportunities/nanophysicsnanotechnology/singlequantumelectronicsonhelium.aspx

      3) and a Design for using individual electrons as small small (Quantum) switches to build a Quantum-based-Computer

      Picture

      Read more
      http://personal.rhul.ac.uk/ULAP/058/Lea_PhD_2_2005.htm

      What’s the best invention I’ve have ever made?

      Well..
      Its always..
      the one I will invented next!

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