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Mar 20, 2010: E8
E8 is a mathematical formula that gives math types a woodie.
New Scientist claims E8, which was first discovered in the late 1800's, has finally been observed in the lab.
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Radu Coldea of the University of Oxford and his colleagues chilled a crystal made of cobalt and niobium to 0.04 °C above absolute zero. Atoms in the crystal are arranged in long, parallel chains. Because of a quantum property called spin, electrons attached to the atom chains act like tiny bar magnets, each of which can only point up or down. Strange things occurred when the experimenters applied a powerful 5.5-Tesla magnetic field perpendicular to the direction of these electron "magnets". Patterns appeared spontaneously in the electron spins in the chains – in a simplified example with three electrons, the spins could read up-up-down or down-up-down, among other possibilities. Each distinct pattern has a different energy associated with it. The ratio of these different energy levels showed that the electron spins were ordering themselves according to mathematical relationships in E8 symmetry. |
Pico and ME Saturday Mar 20 02:28 AM
So thats who stole my spirograph.
Adak Saturday Mar 20 07:07 AM
He read my mind ^^^, and 'napped my post!! 
spudcon Saturday Mar 20 09:31 AM
Timothy Leary's eyeball scan
cabbagepulley Saturday Mar 20 09:37 AM
Those are the most hi-tech doilies I've ever seen...Grandma would be impressed!
Gravdigr Saturday Mar 20 03:51 PM
The first one looks like Skittles in a blender.
WillieO Saturday Mar 20 04:58 PM
It didn't give me a woodie...
Who has time to think of these things? shhesh!
rditlkustoleit Saturday Mar 20 09:44 PM
So far I've only contributed smart-ass observations, which is my first love and I will continue with, but...
The implications and potential applications of E8 are pretty cool.
1) Yet another example that the universe is rooted in order.
2) The scope, magnitude and direction of energy output and production can be coordinated by it's design/pattern/shape.
At a very basic level it's the difference between a light bulb connected via series vs. parallel circuit. Both can have the same energy source, but a parallel circuit will produce more power and a brighter light because of it's design, which allows for less energy resistance.
The complex ordering of E8 provide for a dizzying array of varied power output from a single energy source. (Think creative solutions to future energy needs).
OK, I've bored myself now.
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If we're not supposed to eat animals, why are they made out of meat?!
Elspode Tuesday Mar 23 09:36 PM
Hey, as long as I get my cold fusion powered inflatable backpacking microwave oven, I'm good.
limey Wednesday Mar 24 05:50 AM
Nope. E8 is around Dalston/Hackney in East London.
onetrack Wednesday Mar 24 10:04 AM
C'mon guys .. I was born at night .. but not last night. This isn't any E8 Maths order .. someones scamming you with pics they've snapped through their $20 kaleidoscope! 
Sundae Wednesday Mar 24 04:17 PM
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Originally Posted by limey
Nope. E8 is around Dalston/Hackney in East London.
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I went to a club in Dalston once. It was so cool it was almost horizontal. As was I when I left it.
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Your reply here?
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