I do not know where I picked it from, but I have always had a great deal of interest in regards to Forensic science. The method employed by modern scientists to crack down those crazy headed killers is mesmerizing to watch. I do not know if my use of words is very apt, but it is really an exciting field. Maybe I picked up the interest while watching those hundreds of ‘Medical Files’ episodes on Discovery channels. Maybe it is those CSI episodes. I do not know the origin, but nowadays I make sure I don’t miss ‘Bones’. So it really gives me great pleasure to talk about a new micro-microwave, smaller than an ant, which can heat pinhead-size drops of liquid to precise temperatures critical for the kind of lab-on-a-chip devices investigators could someday use in the field for biological analysis such as DNA fingerprinting. In short, we are about to see the World’s tiniest forensic lab taking shape and that is a real exciting prospect indeed! National Institute of Standards and Technology is collaborating on this project with researchers at George Mason University.
This microwave looks nothing like the one which your mother uses to bake that cake you like so much. Three gold wires are laid onto a thin glass slide and divided by channels half the width of a human hair. The sample liquid is pumped into the channels, and the middle wire, which is hooked up to a microwave signal generator, emits microwave energy. The liquid absorbs this energy and heats up to a precise temperature. It works just like a kitchen microwave oven except that it can deliver whatever microwave frequency that the experts working on it choose for exact heating. This is great news for all those who have to sometimes spend months to get the right analysis for the DNA samples.
While it would be wonderful to use statements like, ‘We hope this technology is never used’, such things rarely work in the real world. The real world is a dangerous place with smart but sometimes lunatic freaks lurking around waiting for the next prey to come along. Every minute gained in such a situation can quite literally translate in to saving a life. Modern science hopefully will keep the pursuers ahead of the killers by offering such smart and handy technology. Any advantage is welcome in the dangerous battle of wits and time.
Source: Popsci
