Magic sand an ideal tool for exploring granular materials theiet.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theiet.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
FEATURE: Deconstructing reconstruction to increase understanding of Fukushima
Ten years after the earthquake-tsunami disaster and subsequent nuclear accident, roads and other public infrastructure in devastated areas of northeastern Japan have been restored, houses rebuilt and new commercial centers created. Reconstruction appears to be on track.
But some local residents and others who have witnessed the changes to Fukushima Prefecture, one of the hardest-hit areas, worry about the future and especially what will become of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and its surroundings.
Police officers man a checkpoint in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, about 20 kilometers from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant on April 11, 2011, a month after the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami disaster. The Japanese government on the same day expanded its evacuation order to include some areas with high amounts of cumulative radioactive materials beyond the evacuation zone
Tokyo, Japan - Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have studied the properties of mixtures of silicone-coated magic sand , a popular kid s toy, and normal sand. Silicone-coated sand particles were found to interact with each other only, and not with other sand particles. The team discovered that adding silicone-coated sand beyond a certain threshold leads to an abrupt change in clustering and rigidity, a simple, useful way to potentially tune the flow of granular materials for industry.