The February issue of Materials World (crikey, is it February already?) focuses on plastics. John Loadman, a retired analytical chemist from Bishops Stortford, examines the history of vulcanised rubber, while James Lewis, Chairman of Bac2 Ltd, Southampton, describes how the cost of fuel cells can be reduced with a new conducted polymer. Related articles focus on plastic photovoltaic solar panels and non-destructive inspection of polyethylene pipes. In other feature stories, Michael Forrest takes a look at the Chinese coal mining industry and the use of computer modelling mining methods. In the news section, the team investigates the development of polymer lasers by UCLA as well as the relationship between academia and industry.
I confess to a personal favourite in this month's edition, a news-in-brief item (known as a NIB in the trade, folks!) about a new range of guitars developed by a firm called Cool Acoustics. The Secret Valentine steel-string is promoted by Gordon Giltrap and features a wooden body and neck with a foamed polycarbonate soundboard, claimed to have improved tonal quality over wooden versions. I want one.
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