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Atom Clusters Have Interesting Properties

Posted by michael on from the materials-science-still-a-very-interesting-field-to-enter dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Researchers have found clusters of aluminum atoms that have chemical properties similar to single atoms of of other elements. That, says Science Blog, could open the door to a new periodic table of cluster elements to create compounds with distinctive properties never seen before."

32 comments

  1. D-d-du-du-du-du- by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    DUPE!!

  2. Can't put my finger on it by Fr05t · · Score: 2, Funny

    This sounds familiar.. wasn't this posted already?

    1. Re:Can't put my finger on it by CAlworth1 · · Score: 1

      Yes, yesterday, but this is a new article.

      Old: http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/01/1 7/1318249&tid=126&tid=14

  3. Um, this was on /. by A+beautiful+mind · · Score: 1

    a day ago or something? Please editors be more careful!

    --
    It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
    Be yourself no matter what they say
    1. Re:Um, this was on /. by ColaMan · · Score: 1

      Please editors be more careful!

      (obligatory reply)

      You're new here, aren't you?

      --

      You are in a twisty maze of processor lines, all alike.
      There is a lot of hype here.
  4. Story Clusters by Inominate · · Score: 3, Funny

    What about the effects of clusters of identical stories? This needs to be studied!

    1. Re:Story Clusters by krymsin01 · · Score: 1

      Clusters of slashdot dupes tend to display the properties of Crapium.

      --
      stuff
    2. Re:Story Clusters by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      and Whiningen and Cryingen and Bitchingen too.

    3. Re:Story Clusters by Solder+Fumes · · Score: 1

      The study's gone on long enough, we need to see the results now.

      (death knell for any research scientist)

  5. New element: duplonium by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Duplonium:
    If taken internally, a person forgets what they did yesterday, thus duplicating effort today.
    Slashdot editors have a line on this new element.

    1. Re:New element: duplonium by over_exposed · · Score: 1

      You need to be more specific. I've done some research and found that only if taken rectally does it display said symptoms. Weird huh?

      --
      "The object of war is not to die for your country, but to make the other bastard die for his." - Patton
    2. Re:New element: duplonium by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That explains michael though perfectly.

    3. Re:New element: duplonium by Thing+1 · · Score: 1

      You heard it here first, folks: Slashdot editors to begin new line of spring clothing with THCrificness!

      --
      I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
  6. 3 easy steps to prevent dupes by EnronHaliburton2004 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Dear slashdot editors,

    Here are 3 easy steps on how to prevent duplicate articles. This is why your employeer pays you money.

    1. Use your own search feature to search for the actual hyperlink and/or a few keywords.
    2. Scan the article list over the last few days.

    This will prevent the vast majority of Dupes, and it won't take too much of your time.

    Finally, you should CHECK EMAIL SENT TO DADDYPANTS. Why isn't this done?

    Frequently, email to 'daddypants' bounces back. Other times, the email is ignored and the duplicate article is posted. I rarely see a duplicate article get pulled from the queue.

    If you actually check email sent to daddypants, it might encourage well-meaning /. readers to use that feature more often.

    You have an army of subscribers who are willing to help out AND PAY YOU MONEY TO DO SO.

    With my non-troll account, I am actually a subscriber. I like reading the articles before they get slashdotted, sometimes I'll post the text to a /. post, and if I see a duplicate article I send an email. I want to help, and I long for what /. used to be...

    --
    94% of Repubs and 21% of Dems voted to renew the Patriot Act
    1. Re:3 easy steps to prevent dupes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      It's useless to send messages to editors about their inability to read their own website, depsite getting a check from VM to do so. To be fair, this dupe isn't on the front page. But you've given me an idea.

      Dear Slashdotters,
      Let's stop complaining about dupes. Instead, let's exhort subscribers to cancel their subscriptions, and do this everytime there is a front-page dupe.

    2. Re:3 easy steps to prevent dupes by mschaffer · · Score: 1

      Finally, you should CHECK EMAIL SENT TO DADDYPANTS. Why isn't this done?

      I second this!

    3. Re:3 easy steps to prevent dupes by Thing+1 · · Score: 1
      This is why your employeer pays you money.

      Actually, like any employer, they pay the editors money only because they think that the salary will have a good return on investment, i.e., that the editor's efforts will return more money to the coffers than not paying the editor would have.

      So: they don't want to stop dupes; their bosses insist on the dupes! It's advertising revenue. We can't stop it no matter how loudly we complain.

      --
      I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
    4. Re:3 easy steps to prevent dupes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      just wait till their bosses figure out that they could make more money by hiring better editors

      btw, shouldnt they be called story picker instead of editors?

    5. Re:3 easy steps to prevent dupes by Thing+1 · · Score: 1
      Doesn't matter what you call them; and their bosses are directing them to post duplicates because it increases advertising revenue.

      So, no, their bosses could not make more money by hiring better story pickers. (Unless by "better" you meant "willing to post more dupes"...)

      --
      I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
  7. I didn't see a dupe. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I subscribe to a "transactional" interpretation as opposed to "Many Worlds" when it comes to quantum mechanics. Clearly you subscribe to the later and you're performing operations on stories in my universe. Please be more considerate in the future. Thx.

    1. Re:I didn't see a dupe. by IWannaBeAnAC · · Score: 1

      Ok, but how do you explain wavefunction collapse? What dynamical law accounts for it?

    2. Re:I didn't see a dupe. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well if you're talking about that in the sense of say Copenhagen, then there's actually an experiment that casts serious doubt on that as well as many worlds. A Transactional interpretation is pretty wierd, I will admit, but one, it's quantum mechanics so.., and two it basically one of the only one's left standing.

  8. Nevermind the dupe... by stienman · · Score: 2, Funny

    I just want to get my hands on some transparant aluminum!

    -Adam

    1. Re:Nevermind the dupe... by Tree131 · · Score: 1

      someone please mod parent funny!

      Would you like some whale with that? :)

  9. Dupe Schmupe by Rares+Marian · · Score: 1

    Finally I can have my own T1000.

    --
    The message on the other side of this sig is false.
  10. Molecules by another name? by TapeCutter · · Score: 1

    The article says nothing about what a "cluster" actually is. With my limited chemistry knowlage it sounds like they are describing a molecule. In the case of Aluminium the "shells" are arranged as 2:8:13 so there are 14 possible molecular forms or "clusters".

    What is the difference? If there is no difference then it is not news that the atomic and molecular forms of elements have different properties. eg: I find it safer to breath my oxygen atoms in bound pairs.

    --
    And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage? - Pink Floyd.
    1. Re:Molecules by another name? by secretsquirel · · Score: 0

      The clusters of aluminum atoms is just like any metalic cluster and freely share thier outer shell electrons amongst each other, but small clusters can act like big atoms. This is different than in a molecular compound where different atoms are covalently bonded and share their electrons only with the specific atom its bonded to. Thats kinda just off the top of my head though so the details might be slightly off.

    2. Re:Molecules by another name? by Saikiran · · Score: 1

      It's not really a molecule. Molecules are "bonded" due to Chemistry(covalent bonds, sharing electrons and all that jazz). Clusters on the other hand are formed due to a need to minimise energy.

      To my understanding, it's something like soap molecules in water which most of us would have learnt about at some stage. They have a spherical head part which loves water and a long tail which hates water. So, bunches of molecules form spherical "clusters" where all the tails are on the inside of the sphere, guarded from water by the heads on the outside. Many substances form clusters (usually at low temperatures). Recently, Prof. Eugene Stanley and associates discovered that even Water forms these clusters at sufficiently low temperature.

    3. Re:Molecules by another name? by TapeCutter · · Score: 1

      Thank's, I knew I was missing something.

      --
      And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage? - Pink Floyd.
  11. Just tell me one thing by secretsquirel · · Score: 0

    Any chance that this stuff can be used to make admantium? that'd be schweet!

  12. Oh noes! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's only a matter of time before they add Dilithium to the new periodic table. And then we'll have geeky pointy eared guys running around everywhere. It'll be madness, I tells yous! Madness!