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Miniature Star Trek style tractor beam built


Still Waters

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A miniature working version of a Star Trek-style "tractor beam" has been invented for the first time by scientists at a Scottish university.

Researchers from St Andrews demonstrated that the microscopic-scale apparatus could pull tiny particles suspended in water towards it via a beam of light, rather than push them away as would normally happen.

Although scientists have been able to manipulate light in various ways for decades, the experts claim they are the first to build a "tractor beam" which works of its own accord and does not require help from a computer to "trap" objects before shifting them.

http://www.telegraph...beam-built.html

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Star Trek: the best idea-giver science has!

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Star Trek: the best idea-giver science has!

well its early days yet for the beam, but if they throw enough money and research at it, who knows where it will end up!?

Agreed re Star Trek :tu:

Edited by seeder
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well its early days yet for the beam, but if they throw enough money and research at it, who knows where it will end up!?

Agreed re Star Trek :tu:

so far, it got us communicators (cell phones), tractor beams and 3D-Printers....all that other stuff is just a matter of time... ;)
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so far, it got us communicators (cell phones), tractor beams and 3D-Printers....all that other stuff is just a matter of time... ;)

and slidey automatic doors! I still remember the first big tesco's near us got auto doors.. I think I drove them nuts as a kid walking endlessly in and out of them! Feeling like I was on Star Trek! Nowadays there are everywhere...

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Star Trek has got to be the greatest (and the nerdiest) scifi ever.

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how could i forget to mention slidey doors?????

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and slidey automatic doors! I still remember the first big tesco's near us got auto doors.. I think I drove them nuts as a kid walking endlessly in and out of them! Feeling like I was on Star Trek! Nowadays there are everywhere...

The first buildings with escalators arrived in Ho Chi Minh City about ten years ago, and there was a long queue of people wanting to try it out -- over and over. Now of course they are everywhere.
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how could i forget to mention slidey doors?????

Swish swish :yes:

As for tractor beams?

A death ray would be easier.

I just say come to Papa!

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Ah Star Trek the show that keeps on giving.

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hehe... oh how the future will be like computers are to todays geriachtrics =D I sometimes anticipate going cenile with a hover car I wonder if bath robes will still exist :P

Exciting news though considering it doesn't technically kill the person by transporting them to the ship.

Edited by chopmo
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The swish swish door noise was actually a sheet of paper being taken from an envelope...

if you like the star trek sound effects you will love pressing buttons on this page, scroll down for verbals

http://www.mediacoll.../star-trek/tos/

Edited by seeder
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  • 2 weeks later...

As far as the heat generation goes, occassionally a ship caught in a tractor beam would break-up because it couldn't take the beam.

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dude that's awsome i love that movie star trek and i love the design of the gadget and etc.and well everything about it.they should make more of these devices that help humanity not make life worse and etc.i love technology but what i fear is that there are people that use for the opposite of good which is evil like the president and his drone attacks on American people even on non American people all life is precious and beautiful

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there's a link on the same page entitled 'british scientists invent non-melting chocolate hob nob'.

where's the fun in that??

'....and the winner of this year's ignobel award is....'

Edited by shrooma
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As far as the heat generation goes, occassionally a ship caught in a tractor beam would break-up because it couldn't take the beam.

if it was romulan, who cares....?

:-)

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Cool, but I'd rather have something like the Holodeck.

Rudimentary transporters are being worked on too, though they are only transporting atoms or molecules at this point from what I read.

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