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NASA Spin-off Technologies
NASA spin-off technologies are commercial products and services which have been developed with the help of NASA, through research and development contracts, such as Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or STTR awards, licensing of NASA patents, use of NASA facilities, technical assistance from NASA personnel, or data from NASA research. Information on new NASA technology that may be useful to industry is available in periodical and website form in "NASA Tech Briefs", while successful examples of commercialization are reported annually in the NASA publication ''Spinoffs''. The publication has documented more than 2,000 technologies over time. In 1979, notable science fiction author Robert A. Heinlein helped bring awareness to the spin-offs when he was asked to appear before United States Congress, Congress after recovering from one of the earliest known vascular bypass operations to correct a blocked artery. In his testimony, reprinted in his 1980 book ''Expanded Universe (book ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teflon
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a synthetic fluoropolymer of tetrafluoroethylene, and has numerous applications because it is chemically inert. The commonly known brand name of PTFE-based composition is Teflon by Chemours, a spin-off from DuPont, which originally invented the compound in 1938. Polytetrafluoroethylene is a fluorocarbon solid, as it is a high- molecular-weight polymer consisting wholly of carbon and fluorine. PTFE is hydrophobic: neither water nor water-containing substances wet PTFE, as fluorocarbons exhibit only small London dispersion forces due to the low electric polarizability of fluorine. PTFE has one of the lowest coefficients of friction of any solid. Polytetrafluoroethylene is used as a non-stick coating for pans and other cookware. It is non-reactive, partly because of the strength of carbon–fluorine bonds, so it is often used in containers and pipework for reactive and corrosive chemicals. When used as a lubricant, PTFE reduces fric ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Curiosity (TV Series)
''Curiosity'' is an American documentary television series that premiered on August 7, 2011, on the Discovery Channel. Each episode focuses on one question in science, technology, and society (e.g., why the sank) and, for the first season, features a different celebrity host. Stephen Hawking hosted the premiere episode titled "Did God Create the Universe?", which aired simultaneously on seven Discovery Communications networks: Discovery Channel, TLC, Discovery Fit and Health, Animal Planet, Science, Investigation Discovery, and Destination America. Season one consists of 16 episodes. Curiosity: The Questions of Our Life The development of "Curiosity: The Questions of Our Life", was announced in September 2009. It was to answer questions and mysteries in fields like space, biology, geology, medicine, physics, technology, nature, archaeology, history, and the human mind. It was considered as a groundbreaking series for Discovery like the BBC's ''Planet Earth'' and ''Life''. Ori ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ceradyne
Ceradyne, Incorporated is a wholly owned subsidiary of the British company, Avon Rubber. Ceradyne, Inc. is a manufacturer of advanced ceramic systems and components and involved in many technical industries including nuclear power, oil and gas, solar energy, automotive, and defense. Background Ceradyne was founded in 1967 and in late 2004, the company added new product lines by acquiring ESK Ceramics of Kempten, Germany. In addition to producing ceramic components for industrial processes such as silicon foundries and ceramic fuel pellets for nuclear reactors, Ceradyne researched and produced varieties of ballistic armour for both personnel and vehicles. The ceramic armor was lighter than regular steel plate armor facilitating greater mobility. On September 16, 2007, the company was selling 25,000 sets of armor a month to the Pentagon.In December 2007, Ceradyne's lightweight armor was approved by the Army for use on military vehicles. Oshkosh Truck produced the first of thes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Transparent Ceramics
Many Ceramics, ceramic materials, both glassy and crystalline, have found use as optically Transparency and translucency, transparent materials in various forms from bulk solid-state components to high surface area forms such as thin films, coatings, and fibers. Such devices have found widespread use for various applications in the electro-optical field including: fiber optics, optical fibers for guided lightwave transmission, optical switches, laser amplifiers and Lens (optics), lenses, hosts for solid-state lasers and optical window materials for gas lasers, and Infrared homing, infrared (IR) heat seeking devices for missile guidance systems and night vision devices, IR night vision. Harris, D.C. (2009) "Materials for Infrared Windows and Domes: Properties and Performance", SPIE PRESS Monograph, Vol. PM70 (Int. Society of Optical Engineers, Bellingham WA) In commercial and general knowledge domains, it is commonly accepted that transparent ceramics or ceramic glass are varieties ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Space Foundation
The Space Foundation is an American nonprofit organization, the mission of which is to advocate for all sectors of the global space industry through space awareness activities, educational programs, and major industry events. It was founded in 1983. Locations Located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the foundation's headquarters includes team offices, as well as conference and other facilities. The Space Foundation has an office in Washington, D.C. and field representatives in Houston, Los Angeles, and the Florida Space Coast. Education The Space Foundation delivers K-12 student programs in laboratory, classroom and after-school settings. Programs include STEM, social studies, history, the arts and literature and are available to individual classes, school districts, public and private school, colleges and universities offering education curriculum and homeschool organizations. Space Symposium The Space Foundation hosts the annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Light-emitting Diode
A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corresponding to the energy of the photons) is determined by the energy required for electrons to cross the band gap of the semiconductor. White light is obtained by using multiple semiconductors or a layer of light-emitting phosphor on the semiconductor device. Appearing as practical electronic components in 1962, the earliest LEDs emitted low-intensity infrared (IR) light. Infrared LEDs are used in remote-control circuits, such as those used with a wide variety of consumer electronics. The first visible-light LEDs were of low intensity and limited to red. Early LEDs were often used as indicator lamps, replacing small incandescent bulbs, and in seven-segment displays. Later developments produced LEDs available in visible, ultraviolet (U ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
LASIK
LASIK or Lasik (; "laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis"), commonly referred to as laser eye surgery or laser vision correction, is a type of refractive surgery for the correction of myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism. LASIK surgery is performed by an ophthalmologist who uses a femtosecond laser or a microkeratome to create a corneal flap to expose the corneal stroma and then an excimer laser to reshape the corneal stroma in order to improve visual acuity. LASIK is very similar to another surgical corrective procedure, photorefractive keratectomy (PRK), and LASEK. All represent advances over radial keratotomy in the surgical treatment of refractive errors of vision. For people with moderate to high myopia or thin corneas which cannot be treated with LASIK or PRK, the phakic intraocular lens is an alternative. As of 2018, roughly 9.5 million Americans have had LASIK and, globally, between 1991 and 2016, more than 40 million procedures were performed. However, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
LADAR
Lidar (, also LIDAR, an acronym of "light detection and ranging" or "laser imaging, detection, and ranging") is a method for determining ranges by targeting an object or a surface with a laser and measuring the time for the reflected light to return to the receiver. Lidar may operate in a fixed direction (e.g., vertical) or it may scan multiple directions, in a special combination of 3-D scanning and laser scanning. Lidar has terrestrial, airborne, and mobile applications. It is commonly used to make high-resolution maps, with applications in surveying, geodesy, geomatics, archaeology, geography, geology, geomorphology, seismology, forestry, atmospheric physics, laser guidance, airborne laser swathe mapping (ALSM), and laser altimetry. It is used to make digital 3-D representations of areas on the Earth's surface and ocean bottom of the intertidal and near coastal zone by varying the wavelength of light. It has also been increasingly used in control and navigation for auto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eardrum
In the anatomy of humans and various other tetrapods, the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane or myringa, is a thin, cone-shaped membrane that separates the external ear from the middle ear. Its function is to transmit changes in pressure of sound from the air to the ossicles inside the middle ear, and thence to the oval window in the fluid-filled cochlea. The ear thereby converts and amplifies vibration in the air to vibration in cochlear fluid. The malleus bone bridges the gap between the eardrum and the other ossicles. Rupture or perforation of the eardrum can lead to conductive hearing loss. Collapse or retraction of the eardrum can cause conductive hearing loss or cholesteatoma. Structure Orientation and relations The tympanic membrane is oriented obliquely in the anteroposterior, mediolateral, and superoinferior planes. Consequently, its superoposterior end lies lateral to its anteroinferior end. Anatomically, it relates superiorly to the middle crani ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thermal Radiation
Thermal radiation is electromagnetic radiation emitted by the thermal motion of particles in matter. All matter with a temperature greater than absolute zero emits thermal radiation. The emission of energy arises from a combination of electronic, molecular, and lattice oscillations in a material. Kinetic energy is converted to electromagnetism due to charge-acceleration or dipole oscillation. At room temperature, most of the emission is in the infrared (IR) spectrum, though above around 525 °C (977 °F) enough of it becomes visible for the matter to visibly glow. This visible glow is called incandescence. Thermal radiation is one of the fundamental mechanisms of heat transfer, along with conduction and convection. The primary method by which the Sun transfers heat to the Earth is thermal radiation. This energy is partially absorbed and scattered in the atmosphere, the latter process being the reason why the sky is visibly blue. Much of the Sun's radiation tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Infrared Thermometer
An infrared thermometer is a thermometer which infers temperature from a portion of the thermal radiation sometimes called black-body radiation emitted by the object being measured. They are sometimes called laser thermometers as a laser is used to help aim the thermometer, or non-contact thermometers or temperature guns, to describe the device's ability to measure temperature from a distance. By knowing the amount of infrared energy emitted by the object and its emissivity, the object's temperature can often be determined within a certain range of its actual temperature. Infrared thermometers are a subset of devices known as "thermal radiation thermometers". Sometimes, especially near ambient temperatures, readings may be subject to error due to the reflection of radiation from a hotter body, or due to an incorrectly assumed emissivity. The design essentially consists of a lens to focus the infrared thermal radiation on to a detector, which converts the radiant power to an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
