Tag Archives: Dan Shechtman
Why do quasicrystals exist?
Featured image: An example of zellij tilework in the Al Attarine Madrasa in Fes, Morocco (2012), with complex geometric patterns on the lower walls and a band of calligraphy above. Caption and credit: just_a_cheeseburger (CC BY) ‘Quasi’ means almost. It’s … Continue reading
Posted in Scicomm
Tagged crystallography, Dan Shechtman, density functional theory, DFT-FE, enthalpy, entropy, finite element analysis, fivefold symmetry, graphics processing unit, Linus Carl Pauling, nucleation, phase diagram, quasicrystals, scandium-zinc, surface energy, translational symmetry, unit cell, ytterbium-cadmium
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The calculus of creative discipline
Every moment of a science fiction story must represent the triumph of writing over world-building. World-building is dull. World-building literalises the urge to invent. World-building gives an unnecessary permission for acts of writing (indeed, for acts of reading). World-building numbs … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Op-eds
Tagged classical mechanics, creative discipline, critical points, Dan Shechtman, differential calculus, EPR paradox, fantasy fiction, Imre Lakatos, JK Rowling, Karl Popper, literary criticism, M John Harrison, Malazan Book of the Fallen, mathematical analysis, nerdism, Niels Bohr, Paul Feyerabend, Philosophy of Science, quasicrystals, replication crisis, smooth functions, Steven Erikson, Thomas Kuhn, Viriconium, world-building
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The notion of natural quasicrystals is here to stay
In November 2008, Luca Bindi, a curator at the Universita degli Studi di Firenze, Italy, found that the alloy of aluminium and copper called khatyrkite could be a quasicrystal. Bindi couldn’t be sure because he didn’t have the transmission electron microscope necessary to verify his … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged crystallography, Dan Shechtman, icosahedrite, khatyrkite, Luca Bindi, natural quasicrystals, Paul Steinhardt, Virat Markandeya
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A case of Kuhn, quasicrystals & communication – Part IV
Dan Shechtman won the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 2011. This led to an explosion of interest on the subject of QCs and Shechtman’s travails in getting the theory validated. Numerous publications, from Reuters to The Hindu, published articles and reports. … Continue reading
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Tagged Current Science, Dan Shechtman, Nobel Prize for Chemistry, quasicrystals, science journalism, Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Thomas Kuhn
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A case of Kuhn, quasicrystals & communication – Part II
Did science journalists find QCs anomalous? Did they report the crisis period as it happened or as an isolated incident? Whether they did or did not will be indicative of Kuhn’s influence on science journalism as well as a reflection … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged crystallography, Dan Shechtman, Dov Levine, Istvan Hargittai, Malcolm Browne, Paul Steinhardt, Penrose tiling, quasicrystals, science journalism, Structure of Scientific Revolutions, three-dimensional geometry
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A case of Kuhn, quasicrystals & communication – Part I
Dan Shechtman’s discovery of quasi-crystals, henceforth abbreviated as QCs, in 1982 was a landmark achievement that invoked a paradigm-shift in the field of physical chemistry. However, at the time, the discovery faced stiff resistance from the broader scientific community and … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Dan Shechtman, Linus Pauling, paradigm shift, quasicrystals, science journalism, Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Thomas Kuhn
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