Acoustic Levitation Works On Small Animals

anthemaniac writes "Researchers for at least two decades have used acoustic levitation to suspend light materials without a container. Wenjun Xie, a materials physicist at Northwestern Polytechnical University in China, has previously used ultrasound fields to levitate globs of iridium and mercury, very heavy materials. Now the scientist has performed the feat with live animals. From the story: 'Xie and his colleagues employed an ultrasound emitter and reflector that generated a sound pressure field between them. The emitter produced roughly 20-millimeter-wavelength sounds, meaning it could in theory levitate objects half that wavelength or less.' Apparently the ants, spiders and ladybugs endured the trick just fine, but the fish didn't do so well due to lack of water."

Comments

Biological heating effects?

[BWJones]

One might also wonder about some of the biological effects of energy this high, especially with animals that contain more water. Heating is always a concern and something that many high powered ultrasound devices have not adequately addressed with developing biological systems.

As an aside, I seem to remember that former Admiral Bobby Inman served on the board of directors for (SAIC) and was involved in some acoustic work along these lines, but I think they were focusing on inanimate objects. I could be wrong about that, but it came out of a conversation I had years ago with members of the science directorate.

Re:Biological heating effects?

[Red Flayer]

Well, ultrasound is used to create the field... but the emitter that produces the waves for levitation has waves of much, much longer wavelength (and therefore much lower frequency). I think instead of at the molecular level, the concern would be at the macro level... that is, can animal tissue deal with rapid mechanical manipulation from the soundwaves?

And is it possible for animals to have cavities or structures with a resonant frequency equal to that of the emitted waves? That's where the real danger lies, I think.

Fish difficulties? Not for me.

[Red Flayer]

Apparently the ants, spiders and ladybugs endured the trick just fine, but the fish didn't do so well due to lack of water."

Well, if you put the fish in water, for some reason the restriction on the size of the fish being 1/2 the wavelength disappears.

It's even easier to get fish to levitate in water if you never feed them.

Re:Small Aminals?

[BWJones]

Come on. A spider ISN'T an aminal. (sic)

And this ladies and gentlemen is why we need better education funding and resources with a greater focus on math and science in schools, not to mention spelling and grammar. :-)

Re:Small Aminals?

[spun]

That is SO mammalist of you. Expect a call from the PC police.

Thats nothing

[LiquidCoooled]

I was once lay on the bed and my cat decided to curl up in the small of my back.
When I let out a ripper of a fart I swear he hovered right there for about 15 seconds.

(Incidentally, after that event he never lay on my back again)

Re:I for one...

[EvilTwinSkippy]

That's deaf levitating ant overlords to you. :)

WHAT???

Technicality

[Rob T Firefly]

Apparently the ants, spiders and ladybugs endured the trick just fine

Actually, they're fairly pissed. They only seem "just fine" because they lack the proper fingers to angrily flip off the scientists.

Re:Technicality

[ZombieRoboNinja]

Especially the ladybugs, who hastened to emphasize that they can ALREADY FLY.

Re:50 Hz?

[cnettel]

Ehum, only if sound travelled 1 meter per second in air. Hint: it doesn't. It's more like 340, hence the frequency is 50 * 340 = 17,000 Hz.

Diminutive!

[Short Circuit]

I'll have you know that none of those animals were small. The System Reference Document doesn't list them, but I'm confident they'd be identified as "diminutive," or smaller still.

Re:Small Aminals?

[Anonymous Coward]

No, he's right. Spiders are not aminals.

Don't worry

[PIPBoy3000]

They have magnetic levitation for fish and frogs.

Bad day for arachnaphobics

[ciaohound]

Now it's levitating spiders? I am so screwed.

Re:Not for me either

[krell]

"Attempts at levitating large creatures such as whales using this method have so far proved unsuccessful."

Oh? Quite successful, considering the large amount of airborne blubber that resulted. At least for a few seconds, anyway.

Marvin the depressed ant

[HangingChad]

I'm just walking along, minding my own ant business, and all of sudden some jackass decides to levitate me. Oh, that's right, it's so funny to pick on the ants. Everyone picks on the ants. We're just trying to make a living and feed the queen...she gets to drink nectar. Think the rest of us get any nectar? Not us worker ants. You try running around blind trying to follow a scent trail during allergy season. We get stepped on, eaten by other bugs and birds...don't get me started. And then there's the nursery, those ingrates never get enough. Like it's not bad enough putting up with their crap along comes to the dominant species and thinks it's just SO funny to levitate us. Suppose I should be glad they didn't roast us under a magnifying glass like the neighbor kid. Little delinquent. I'll be he grows up to be a career criminal. It's all so meaningless.

I'll believe it

[kick_in_the_eye]

when pigs fly