A Device will control the speed of light.

Korean researchers have developed a device that can control the speed of light. The new device is expected to accelerate the development of next-generation optical communication equipment.

Professor Kim Teun-teun of the Center for Integrated Nanostructure Physics (CINAP) of the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) announced that his team has developed a graphene-based metamaterial device that can control the speed of light, in cooperation with a research team led by Professor Min Beom-ki of KAIST.

Traveling faster than anything in the world, light is the most useful means for data transmission. However, light should be converted into electrical signals to transmit data. In this process, the speed of light is slowed down due to the limitations of electronic signal processors.

By combining graphene with a metamaterial, the researchers have developed a device that can slow down the speed of light and then accelerate it. The new device is expected to help develop next-generation optical communication devices.

A metamaterial is a material engineered to have a property that is not found in nature. Graphene is a single, tightly packed layer of carbon atoms that are bonded together in a hexagonal honeycomb lattice.

From Star Trek Sci Fi to reality: Meet the medical TRICORDER device. Video.

Hospital in Your Smartphone is what  Walter De Brouwer is promoting of his invention that he calls" SCANADU SCOUT". Walter is a Belgian entrepreneur who had to learn how hospitals work -- and don't work -- the hard way after his son suffered brain damage as the consequence of a fall.

His inspiration came directly from science fiction: "Star Trek was more than just a movie, it was a business plan," he told CNN's Nick Glass.

The Star Trek TRICORDER:

PAST and PRESENT

Why the name?

It's called "Scanadu Scout" -- after Xanadu, an ancient city of great splendor and scientific progress, made famous by English poet S. T. Coleridge -- and the greatest thing about it is that it's not a design concept, nor a million-dollar prototype, but an actual product. After a successful crowdfunding round via Indiegogo, the Scanadu has began shipping to backers at the end of January. 

How it works?

It is a tiny, round and white device and it works by placing it on one`s forehead.

Through its sensor, and in a matter of seconds, the Scanadu Scout measures heart rate, temperature, blood pressure, oxygen level and provides a complete EcG reading, that is send to your smartphone where there is an a proper application.

VIDEO TUTORIAL:

In Star Trek, the Tricorder was handled by a doctor, but De Brouwer thinks the most revolutionary aspect of the Scanadu is that it can be used by anyone: 

"We've medicalised your smartphone. You can now check your health as easily as your email. People will no longer ask if there's a doctor on the plane, but if there's a Tricorder."

 INDIEGOGO