Invisibility cloaks!

[JustHer]

I could use some creative minds for these...

What do you think is a potentially useful application of an invisibility cloak? What is the motivation behind creating an object that can make an object invisible in the electromagnetic spectrum??


I am working on a research paper on optical carpet cloaking using metamaterials, and I am required to discuss the motivation behind all the research being done in this field.

It seems like the only provided reason I can find online is that it is really cool.

 

[/DG/]

It seems like the only provided reason I can find online is that it is really cool.

That's because it IS really cool.

Um . . . but if you're looking for serious, practical uses, I suppose it'd be a great help in the military.

 

[teslashock]

It will greatly enhance the lives of Peeping Toms!

Oooohh and you could use them on furniture to make it look like your dinner plates and television are floating! And if you sleep on an invisibility-cloak covered bed, you'll appear to be floating as well!

Not to mention that you could do fun, tricky experiments on animals.

 

[JustHer]

That's because it IS really cool.

Yeah, this seems to be the general consensus in all of these scientific articles. =/

It will greatly enhance the lives of Peeping Toms!

Shit, that is the first thing I thought of... sneaking into the girls locker room.

Also - experiments on animals? Really? THATS what you would do?

 

[Risen]

Military application, of course. Would also be highly useful for the intelligence department(s).

The purpose of an invisibility cloak is to hide/conceal. Usually those who have something to hide aren't hiding it because they feel it's for the good of those they're hiding from. Quite the contrary, actually. Therefore, civilian use of such technology would lean towards being for unscrupulous purposes. And people wonder why the government hides some technologies...

 

[teslashock]

The purpose of an invisibility cloak is to hide/conceal. Usually those who have something to hide aren't hiding it because they feel it's for the good of those they're hiding from. Quite the contrary, actually. Therefore, civilian use of such technology would lean towards being for unscrupulous purposes.

There could be a violent black market for the apparel, ultimately leading to the destruction of society as we know it!

 

[JAVO]

Out of sight, out of mind.

The intelligence community prefers to be sneaky and unseen.
The military wants to accomplish their objective without being detected.
Satellites watch, but don't want to be watched.
Civilian structures and transportation which are likely terrorist targets would prefer to stay out of sight, and thus out of mind.
Architects could hide the more pragmatic and unattractive aspects of the design.
My house and yard are more private when all they are is grass and sky.
Everyone is good when They might be watching, but are They good?

 

[Spamtar]

Could be a good way not to be seen. Why do we not want to be seen. Usually so we can observed without interfering with the study group. Thus could make experimentation more objective. Thus a greater blind scientific method, used to prevent research outcomes from being influenced by either the placebo effect or the observer bias.
Also a good way to discover secrets, to steal/manipulate and to assassinate/ espionage
When you make one let me know and we will go to the casino and then go shopping (where I then can use it to check out the ladies changing room )

 

[runvardh]

Does it mean I'm too much of a hick when I think of hunting as a civilian application?

 

[Laurie]

Something else for conspiracy theorists to flip out about.

 

[Punggung]

If one american city or Frankfurt were to tire of their skyscraper-dominated landscape they could easily conceal them by draping them in invisibility cloaks. Only downside would be keeping the cloaks clean and hinder birds from flying into the building.

 

[JustHer]

If one american city or Frankfurt were to tire of their skyscraper-dominated landscape they could easily conceal them by draping them in invisibility cloaks. Only downside would be keeping the cloaks clean and hinder birds from flying into the building.

LOL keeping birds from flying into them!!!

I could see how that could be a large problem.

 

[Fluffywolf]

Could've sworn I posted here, must have lost focus and forgot to press the post reply button.

To create a functioning invisibility cloak there's a few things it needs to do.

1. Transporting unidirectional light from any one side to the other to support every point of view.
2. Cover for the loss of space within the cloak.
3. Not contaminating any of the lightwaves.

Theoretically impossible. It's like placing a ball on a hill side and expect it to slide off, rather than rolling off. Can't catch the light and show it on the other side of the cloak perfectly unidirectional. Closest is using edged prisms which can get pretty close to the naked eye, but will never be perfect. Since a circular projection of unidirectional light from all points on a cloak would contaminate one and other. And though with prisms you can avoid contamination, you still can't cover for all angles.

That said, there has to also be a processor keeping all prism locations coordinated and in check, in order to send the light waves to the prisms from the right angles.

So making an invisibility cloak would involve millions of tiny mirror prisms and lenses, some hydraulics and a computer processor. And would probably be one helluva heavy cloak.

It gets exponentially easier if the cloak is solid and fixed, and not flexible. Even though that would be just as impractical.

 

[Antimony]

What do you think is a potentially useful application of an invisibility cloak?

1. Military
2. Rednecks can be more stealthy hunting
3. The previously mentioned Peeping Toms
4. Sneaking into class
5. Sneaking out of houses
6. Making mini ones and hiding disgusting food in there that you really do not want to eat.
7. Fun!

What is the motivation behind creating an object that can make an object invisible in the electromagnetic spectrum??

Hiding things.

It seems like the only provided reason I can find online is that it is really cool.

I would buy one.

 

[Spamtar]

What do you think is a potentially useful application of an invisibility cloak?

6. Making mini ones and hiding disgusting food in there that you really do not .

Good list, also maybe they can be woven into clothing to make anorexics look skinnier.

 

[Kangol]

I think it'd aid in more effective plating, allowing for thicker and stronger protection without sacrificing or even increasing visibility. You could have a car with complete visibility. If the technology does mean transmitting images from one side to the other, it should also mean that it does not have to transmit images on one side, and so you could have a car/vehicle that's opaque on one side and clear on the other.


/me demands royalties now

 

[matmos]

An old question.

The quiz: I say nothing.

teslagirl knows. Invisibility confers absolute freedom.

Ring of Gyges - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A thought game. With ropes attached.

What are your so-called morals; how disposable are they?

And what's wrong with sneeking into the ladies' changing room, anyway?

You decide.

 

[Le Grande Muffin]

Warmongering no doubt. And much coinage of the realm lavished to those who successfully do –who will be devoid of conscience in the ghoulish sense no doubt.

yes id use it in the tescos muffin aisle most likely

I have become muffin, devourer of worlds...which has a lovely eloquence to it, without the mushroom cloud.

 

[foolish heart]

Could've sworn I posted here, must have lost focus and forgot to press the post reply button.

To create a functioning invisibility cloak there's a few things it needs to do.

1. Transporting unidirectional light from any one side to the other to support every point of view.
2. Cover for the loss of space within the cloak.
3. Not contaminating any of the lightwaves.

Theoretically impossible.

It would be impossible to perfect but still theoretically possible in my opinion. You would not need super processor, just highly complex algorithm and orbs which collect and transmit light in 360 degrees (the user would also need to see what is outside of the cloak). radio waves to determine exact distance between orbs on opposing sides, etc.

the imperfections would be in the fact that processing speed will never match the speed of light so if someone is observing closely they would always notice a shape trailing. also, orbs could not fit together perfectly causing many tiny gaps which would create a peculiar shadow due to the fact that the lighting inside the cloak is slightly different from outside.


as far as applications go, i think the light redirection algorithm would have countless uses in terms of highly accurate redirection of lasers for military and industrial. the cloaking ability would be classified for military recon purposes and not likely to be available to anyone else.

 

[Qre:us]

Where can I obtain one of these, outside of the Wizards' realm?