this post was submitted on 30 Aug 2023
106 points (95.7% liked)

Uplifting News

11344 readers
29 users here now

Welcome to /c/UpliftingNews, a dedicated space where optimism and positivity converge to bring you the most heartening and inspiring stories from around the world. We strive to curate and share content that lights up your day, invigorates your spirit, and inspires you to spread positivity in your own way. This is a sanctuary for those seeking a break from the incessant negativity often found in today's news cycle. From acts of everyday kindness to large-scale philanthropic efforts, from individual achievements to community triumphs, we bring you news that gives hope, fosters empathy, and strengthens the belief in humanity's capacity for good.

Here in /c/UpliftingNews, we uphold the values of respect, empathy, and inclusivity, fostering a supportive and vibrant community. We encourage you to share your positive news, comment, engage in uplifting conversations, and find solace in the goodness that exists around us. We are more than a news-sharing platform; we are a community built on the power of positivity and the collective desire for a more hopeful world. Remember, your small acts of kindness can be someone else's big ray of hope. Be part of the positivity revolution; share, uplift, inspire!

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
WandererLagomorph770@lemmy.world
wolfeh@lemmy.world
106
Scientists Create New Material Five Times Lighter and Four Times Stronger Than Steel (www.goodnewsnetwork.org)
submitted 1 year ago by tst123@lemmy.world to c/upliftingnews@lemmy.world
21 comments fedilink hide all child comments
top 21 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social 28 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This is actually pretty cool:

The colleagues reported in Cell Reports Physical Science that by building a structure out of DNA and then coating it with glass, they have created a very strong material with very low density.

They use self-assembling DNA to build a lattice, which is then doped with microscopic glass. It's kind of like reinforced concrete but at the molecular scale. Scaling it up will be the hard part but the technique is pretty innovative.

[–] doggle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 year ago

I saw a YouTube video a while ago about 3d printing structures with organic filaments. Now self replicating DNA composites... it's interesting and a bit unsettling to think of a future where buildings may be literally alive.

[–] bfg9k@lemmy.world 15 points 1 year ago

One step closer to Mithril

[–] TubeTalkerX@kbin.social 11 points 1 year ago (2 children)

That only works in the Lab….

[–] snooggums@kbin.social 8 points 1 year ago

The first step of every new invention...

[–] Zink@programming.dev 5 points 1 year ago

I was looking for mention of the size of the piece they made, given that the material is a nano structure. No mention of it that I saw.

Probably not even visible to the eye.

[–] PrinzMegahertz@lemmy.world 7 points 1 year ago

Great. Now WB has to rebrand Superman to „Man of Material four times Stronger than Steel“.

[–] Techmaster@lemm.ee 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I always find it weird when they say stuff like something is 5 times lighter than something else. Or it's 10 times cheaper than something else. It seems better to say scientists have invented a new material that weighs 1/5 as much as steel.

[–] doggle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 year ago

Yeah. You can't x by a positive number and end up with a product that's smaller than x. It's literally incorrect, even though they obviously mean it's one fifth rather than "five times"

[–] anzo@programming.dev 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Show me a sword 🗡️

[–] Noodle07@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Sword or no award!

[–] Sibbo@sopuli.xyz 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

How does this compare to carbon fiber?

[–] mifan@feddit.dk 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Depends. Are you building a sub?

[–] cassetti@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago

Damn, beat me to it

[–] Curious_Canid@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

That was my first though too.

Also, I understand why they just talk about "strength", but it would be nice to have some real idea of which properties they really mean. Is it harder? Does it resist impact better? Does it resist lateral torsion better? Steels cover a wide range and almost always involve tradeoffs.

[–] DavidGarcia@feddit.nl 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Yeah it's kind of insane what a miracle material steel is. Especially for how long ago it has been discovered and we still haven't found another material that is better in every way, like how steel replaced iron or brass or copper. The balance of all the material properties for its weight/volume and its manufacturability and price is just unbeatable.

For scifi purposes,I tried to find another material that could beat it if cost wasn't an issue and I couldn't. Closest ones I could find that aren't already obiquitous in popular consciouness like titanium, aluminium, tungsten carbide etc. are Molybdenum and Beryllium. But yeah, they don't exactly beat steel either.

[–] c0mbatbag3l@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Isn't beryllium pretty brittle, though? Beryllium poisoning happens due to airborne particles, I thought it almost... crumbled? I guess?

[–] DavidGarcia@feddit.nl 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

yeah meanwhile iron is literally nescessary to make your blood transport oxygen. Mo and Be (and their alloys) just have similar strength to weight ratios, but they aren't exactly practical drop in replacements. So yeah, I haven't found anything better than steel, there's just materials that are better in one or two aspects, but nothing with the versatility of steel. To be fair, we have thousands of years of research into steel, perhaps we can still find something better. Idk, maybe some high entropy alloy.

[–] c0mbatbag3l@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

Materials science is still chugging along, I think there are more metals to discover.

[–] PetteriSkaffari@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

And how renewable is this new glass-coated DNA material? Iron scores pretty high on that one too.

[–] IFleeFromTheShape@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago

We at the space elevator tier material yet? Need to get that bad boy constructed asap