Magazine
September-October 2011
September-October 2011
Volume: 99 Number: 5
Synthetic materials will eventually crack as they are pulled, pressed or twisted during everyday wear and tear. Taking inspiration from biological materials that can heal themselves, Scott R. White and his coauthors at the University of Illinois are developing materials with built-in automatic repair systems ("Self-Healing Polymers and Composites"). On the cover, a composite has a woven vasculature that is used to deliver new material to a damaged site. At left, an artist's rendition of one of these materials contains tiny spheres of healing agent. A crack has ruptured some of the spheres, which have spilled their contents and healed the damaged area. (Image courtesy of Piyush Thakre, Alex Jerez, Ryan Durdle and Jeremy Miller, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois.)
In This Issue
- Art
- Astronomy
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Communications
- Computer
- Engineering
- Environment
- Ethics
- Evolution
- Mathematics
- Medicine
- Policy
- Sociology
- Technology
Self-healing Polymers and Composites
Scott R. White, Benjamin J. Blaiszik, Sharlotte L. B. Kramer, Solar C. Olugebefola, Jeffrey S. Moore, Nancy R. Sottos
Chemistry Technology
Capsules, circulatory systems and chemistry allow materials to fix themselves
Scientists' Nightstand
Bird Bonding
Sarah Kocher
Biology Review Scientists Nightstand
A review of The Nesting Season: Cuckoos, Cuckolds, and the Invention of Monogamy, by Bernd Heinrich
