Scientists hail "frozen smoke" as material that will change world

[jyrzyk]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2284349.ece

[mhb]

"The heating has improved significantly. I turned the thermostat down five degrees. It's been a remarkable transformation," he said.

Wow. Really good insulation can make 65 feel like 70.

[brlewis → mhb]

I think the way it works is that really good insulation makes the temperature more uniform. With poor insulation, it may be 65 at the thermostat, but only 60 near an exterior wall.

[ed]

Hasn't this stuff been around for a while?

[savrajsingh]

does anyone know where I can buy some aerogel to play with it? :)

[nickb → savrajsingh]

You can buy some here: http://homepages.cae.wisc.edu/~aerogel/outreach.html

For only $25. But, they have pretty long waiting lines so contact them early.

[mhb → savrajsingh]

http://www.unitednuclear.com/aerogel.htm

But currently out of stock. They have plenty of other stuff you're going to want, too.

[stuki → mhb]

Does this almost weightless material really 'negate' acoustical energy transfer, as mentioned in this link? Considering the current cost and engineering effort required to build an upper floor recording studio with decent drummer insulation....... Sounds like startup material to me.