Extremely Lightweight Nanocardboard Is Stronger than Corrugate...

Extremely Lightweight Nanocardboard Is Stronger than Corrugate... Extremely Lightweight Nanocardboard Is Stronger than Corrugate... Extremely Lightweight Nanocardboard Is Stronger than Corrugated CardboardCorrugated cardboard is a staple in the packaging industry. It utilizes the standard sandwich structure two solid sandwich panels separated by a layer of lightweight webbing or lattice. This design provides the optimum combination of low weight and high stiffness. Sandwich-structure composite materials are common across a variety of industries, especially for applications that require those characteristics. But, of course, industry is always look for lighter, stronger materials.A team of engineers from the University of Pennsylvania has created a new material called nanocardboard that is the ultrathin equivalent of corrugated paper cardboard. Not only is it extremely light weight - one square centimeter weighs less than a thousandth of a gram) - it is an excellent thermal insulator and springs back to its original shape after being bent in half.The idea came to Igor Bargatin, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering and applied mechanics at the University of Pennsylvania, while he was listening to a presentation on the mechanical properties of the shells of microscopic algae called diatoms. Some of these creatures rely on a sandwich structure to evolve hard outer shells that achieve very high stiffness while using only a extremum amount of material (silicon oxide).During the talk, it occurred to me that we should be able to make similar structures using micro- and nanofabrication tools, Bargatin said.Detail of the basketweave webbing geometry. Image University of PennsylvaniaHis biggest challenge was finding a way at the nanoscale to attach the top and bottom sandwich layers to the interior core. At the macroscale, he continues, you can just glue the face sheets and the lattice together, but at the nanoscale, the structures we work with are thousands o f times thinner than any layer of glue you can find.For You Is This the Most Wear-Resistant Material in the World?Bargatin teamed with the universitys Singh Center for Naleidechnology to design a solid silicon template with channels running throughout. The structure consists of perforated sheets and tubes connecting the sheets that exactly match the perforations. Aluminum oxide is then chemically deposited into an ultra-thin nanometer layer over the silicon. Aluminum oxide is used because it is easily deposited using atomic layer deposition, creating a conformal layer with a constant thickness and no gaps.Once the template is encased, the nanocardboard can be cut to size. After the sides are exposed, the silicon on the inside is etched away. It leaves a hollow shell of aluminum oxide with a network of tubes connecting the top and bottom faces and a thickness of tens of microns.This geometry allowed us to create a nanoscale analog of the sandwich plate in a single deposition step, wi thout using any glue, to create the monolithic structure we dubbed nanocardboard, says Bargatin.The teams simulations predicted that distantly spaced circular channels going through the sheets would provide optimal stiffness. However, the results were inconsistent due to wrinkles that randomly formed along the lines between the channels. The team eventually settled on a basket-weave design, featuring close-set, slit-shaped channels arranged in alternating directions. With this basket-weave structure, potential wrinkles do not meander around the channels, which takes a lot of energy, Bargatin says. As a result, wrinkles do not appear in the basket-weave structure at all.One of the most surprising properties of nanocardboard is that it can be bent very sharply and then recover its shape, as if nothing happened.If you try doing this with corrugated paper cardboard, a crease forms, which becomes a permanent line of weakness, Bargatin said. This behavior does not have a precedent in typi cal macroscopic sandwich plates because the extreme shape recovery is enabled by the same perforations that are necessary to create nanocardboard in the first place, which are missing in conventional sandwich plates.Bargatins team continues to explore applications that could benefit from the low weight and low thermal conductivity of nanocardboard. We are looking at microelectromechanical system sensor applications, from new types of probes for atomic force microscopy to resonant gas sensors, which can benefit from the very low thickness of the nanocardboard structure, he said. Potential also exists as a thermal insulator in thermionic energy converters.Future work will also explore an intriguing phenomenon Shining light on a piece of nanocardboard allows it to levitate. Heat from the light creates a temperature gradient between the two sides of the plate, which pushes a current of air molecules out through the bottom. Bargatin is currently exploring a new propulsion mechanism based on the photophoretic forces that cause the levitation. This could lead to new types of microflyers that operate at both atmospheric pressure or at very high altitudes of over 50 km, which is too high for traditional aircraft like balloons and airplanes.However, it is too early to speak about applications with any certainty until we can determine the fundamental limits of how large these forces can be, he said.fruchtmark Crawford is an independent writer. For Further Discussion This behavior does not have a precedent in typical macroscopic sandwich plates because the extreme shape recovery is enabled by the same perforations that are necessary to create nanocardboard in the first place. Prof. Igor Bargatin, University of Pennsylvania

Tips for Using Google for Job Searches

Tips for Using Google for Job SearchesTips for Using Google for Job SearchesGoogle for Jobs uses advanced Google toolsto help job landlandseekers find positions closely matching their preferences. Learn what Google for Jobs is, how it works, and how it can improve your own job search. What Is Google for Jobs? Google for Jobs is a job search featurepowered by Google. Job seekers cansearchfor and apply to open positions directly from the Google search bar. Google for Jobs is similar to job search engines likeIndeed.com,which pulls job listings from many different sources. The difference is that Google is pulling the job listings for your review and Googles technology will power the search results. How Google for Jobs Works Like other Google products, Google for Jobs works very simply. When you type a query into Google Search, it will give you a list of jobs that match that query. The Google for Jobs search mechanism will retrieve jobs from many differentjob sitesand list them a t the top of your search results. TechCrunch reports that CareerBuilder, Monster, LinkedIn, Glassdoor,Facebook, Care.com, and other serviceshave partnered with Google. However, its important to note that one site that does not currently partner with Google for Jobs isIndeed.com. If you type marketing coordinator jobs into Google Search, for example, youll get a list of postings from various job sites.These will be toward the top of your search results, in a box labeled Jobs. This box will contain a few job listings, and then you can click on a link at the bottom of the box to see even more jobs that match your search terms. The job listing will show you when the job was posted, where it was originally listed, how long the commute is, and whether the position is full-time. Filter the Job Listings You can add filters to the Google search. Use them to filter those job listings like you do when you use theadvanced search optionson a job search site. You can narrow your search by cat egory, the date the job was posted, the type of job (full time, part-time, etc.), the company type, the specific employer, and more. You can also narrow your search by location Google for Jobs offers options for jobs within 2, 5, 15, 30, 60, 100, and 200 miles of your location (or any location you select). Check Salary Information Another feature of Google for Jobs is that you can seesalary informationfor the job, even if the listing doesnt contain any salary information. If no salary information is included, Google for Jobs will provide data on a typical salary for that kind of job, based on information compiled by Glassdoor, PayScale, Paysa, LinkedIn, and other sites. Get More Information At the bottom of each job listing, you can see even more information compiled by Google. You can see the companys rating on Glassdoor and other career-related sites (if this information is available), a link to the companys website, and even more job openings from the company. You can also see Go ogle Search results for the company if you want to get more information on the organization. Applying for Jobs If you are interested in a job, you can submit your application.At the top of the job description, Google for Jobs will show you all of the job boards that have this listing (including the company website), so you can choose which job board or website to use to apply. This is useful if you already have an account on some job boards, but not others. Saving Jobs and Job Alerts You can also bookmark any job listing by clicking on the Save button at the top of the posting. You can then access any bookmarked jobs by clicking on your Saved tab at the top of the Google for Jobs page. You can alsoset up job alerts for a particular job search. If you do this, Google will let you know when a new job that matches your requirements is posted. Google Jobs for Veterans Google also has a job search tool created to help veterans find job openings that are a match for their mili tary experience. Service members can search jobs for veterans on Google and then enter their specific military job codes (MOS, AFSC, NEC, etc.) to see relevant civilian jobs that require similar skills to those used in their military roles. How Google for Jobs Helps You Search By using Google for Jobs and Google Jobs for Veterans, you can save a step or two when you are searching for jobs. Instead of using a specific job search site to look for jobs that meet the criteria you enter, youcando all of this directly on Google. Find More Job Listings Googles job search tools can help job seekers find jobs that might not show up in a traditional Google search, or even in a job search on another job site. Users can refine results and produce more personally relevant lists of jobs by using filters for factors like industry, job title, location, and date posted. Narrow Down Your Search Criteria Google for Jobs helps job seekers find hard-to-categorize jobs that might not be easily found by clicking on traditional job categories like retail, sales, or finance. For example, if you search for teacher jobs, Google for Jobs will offer ways to narrow down your search. They will offer more detailed titles (such as Assistant Teacher, ESL Teacher, and more), as well as a list of relevant employers. Save Job Search Time Google for Jobs also saves job seekers time. For example, once job seekers generate a list ofopen positions, they will be able to click on individual jobs and apply directly through the employers website or another job board. Thats a big time saver. Get the Scoop on the Job and the Company Google for Jobs also provides a lot of information on the company, the average salary, and more. This helps job seekers quickly learn whether an organization is a good fit for them, which helps them save time applying to jobs they arent actually interested in. Optimally, users will have a better selection of jobs to consider, and they will be able to access them more easily . Thats a win for both job seekers and for employers who are having difficulty finding strong candidates.

The Pay is $100 an Hour, But Only Nitpickers Need Apply

The Pay is $100 an Hour, But Only Nitpickers Need Apply$100 an Hour, But Only Nitpickers Need ApplyThe Pay is $100 an Hour, But Only Nitpickers Need ApplyMany of us dream about what it would be like to have a high-paying job, like a doctor or a lawyer. A big house, fancy cars, the nicest clothes then we wake up Recently, a friend told me about a legit job where you get surgeons pay for simply being good with kids, having patience, and not getting grossed out easily. I know you dont believe me, but its trueOkay, okay, there is one major drawback you have to be a nitpicker. LiterallyThats right. Not nitpickers as in people who annoy you to death with every little detail nitpickers as in people who remove nitsa.k.a. lice eggsone at a time from your kids heads I know, gross, but keep going If youre a parent, youve probably received a letter from school at one point, warning you that head lice are going around ick It makes my skin crawl every time I think about it. I assumed if my sons ever got lice, Id wash the little buggers out (the lice, not my boys) with some special shampoo like my mom did with me and call it a day. But those nits are nasty little things that cement themselves to your kids hair. Enter the professional nitpickers.From what I could find, the art of nitpicking isnt so new. Its been around since at least the early 1800s, long before chemical shampoos were invented. But now, as certain lice populations departure to become resistant to the shampoos, and parents become more wary about chemicals in general, nit picking is becoming more necessary. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, surgeons make, on average, $219,000 a year, or approximately $105 per hour, based on a 40-hour week. (I would imagine most surgeons work more than 40 hours, so thats even less per hour.) A professional nitpicker can charge up to $200 for the first two hours and $100 for each additional hour, plus travel expenses So, lets do the math. If you service five kids per week, at $200 minimum per kid, youre making $52,000 a year working 10 hours a week Now double that if you get in with the PTO, or if theres an outbreak in certain schools at certain times, and you have yourself a $100,000+ job working half of a prototyp work week Doesnt seem so gross anymore, does it?There are some crazy, weird, and nontraditional jobs out there that pay well. Sometimes you just have to do something no one else wants to do.