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Scientists Make World's Smallest Balloon, For Microscopic Birthday Parties
Posted by Kit Eaton at 7:41 PM on August 11, 2008
Graphene looks like it's going to be one of the "wonder materials" of the future, and a science team at Cornell University has just demonstrated the world's smallest balloon made of it. They stuck sheets of graphene over microscopic wells (1 to 100 square micrometers) cut into silica glass, trapping gas inside. By varying the pressure in the wells, they could make the graphene bulge inwards or outwards like a balloon, and the membranes proved pretty resilient: They could withstand several atmospheres of pressure. Though, like real birthday party balloons, the gas leaked out after a few days, it apparently did so through the glass, not the graphene. These tiny air pockets may have future uses as micro-sized weighing scales or even precise pressure sensors: It's another case of an invention waiting to find a use. [New Scientist]
Intended as an artistic statement by William Lamson from his collection Intervention, we can't help but to take note of the helium balloon as a clever, non-destructive way to defeat security cameras. Tethered at the right height and loaded with static electricity, a less honest man might use the technology to sneak into Nordstrom late at night to try on all the high heels. Wait, I meant, err, the gun store. To try out the guns. [
Oregon resident Kent Couch finished what our 
Father de Carli, the 
XP Vehicles wants to sell you and inflatable car that costs under US$10,000. It'll be shipped to you in two boxes and take roughly two hours for two people to build. Completely electric, the car's light weight means it can get 480 kms on a single charge or up to 4,000 if you use their "hot-swap" technology. Oh, and its NASA-grade inflatable material—the same stuff used by our landers in space—is supposed to let you drive off cliffs and stuff.
Our friend Robert Woodhead (of 
When he was a boy, Father de Carli had the same dream that most kids have: jump off the ground and reach for the sky. But when he grew up, instead of taking flight lessons, he literally did that. He jumped and flew with the help of a thousand party balloons. His first try was a success, travelling 110 km for 4 hours and 15 minutes. His second, however, has probably ended in disaster—after he took off with a GPS that he didn't know how to use.
When most of us think balloons, we think, "I never should have had children." But these solar balloons are a lot more promising than their carnival counterparts. Constructed of photovoltaic fabric, the soft tank is filled with helium and tethered by power wire above a home, saving space on the ground while optimising sun exposure. But it's not just the physical footprint that makes the technology so appealing. It's the price per watt.
