CLEO/QELS Science Luncheon

BALTIMORE, May 8 - The CLEO/QELS Science Luncheon took place on Tuesday on the third floor of the Baltimore Convention Center. Speakers from Harvard Medical School, Rice University, the University of Rochester and Logicon Federal Data gave talks on subjects such as laser tweezers, nanoshells and optical coherence tomography.
   Brett Bouma, from Harvard Medical School and Mass. General Hospital, talked about research on a technique called optical coherence tomography, which can be used on patients following a stent angioplasty procedure to monitor the stent deployment and how well the stent is keeping the artery open.
   Andrew Resnick, from Logicon Federal Data, discussed experiments on the Light Microscopy Module (LMM) for the first time in a public setting. The LMM is a remotely controllable on-orbit microscope subrack facility, allowing flexible scheduling experiments within the GRC Fluids Integrated Rack (FIR) on the International Space Station. Three of the experiments investigate various complementary aspects of the nucleation, growth, structure and properties of colloidal crystals in microgravity and the effects of micromanipulation upon their properties. Some key diagnostic capabilities include video microscopy to observe sample features such as basic structures and dynamics, thin film interferometry and laser tweezers for colloidal particle manipulation and patterning.
   Naomi Halas, from Rice University, discussed a recently developed type of nanoparticle, called Nanoshells, with unique applications in Biotechnology. Nanoshells have the potential to be responsible for a rapid streamlining of medical tests, transforming what can typically be days-long procedures confined to medical labs to potentially or even emergency medical settings. The biosensing capabilities of Nanoshells permit them to be used for a broad range of specific medical tests for such things as allergy sensitivity, toxins and viruses such as HIV.
   Ian Walmsley, from the University of Rochester, discussed his work on a simple optical system that performs a database search of 50 items in a way that cannot be emulated in any particle-based computer. The research might provide insights into building a practical version of a coveted "quantum" computer.