新奇事件簿 科学家发明世界上最轻的材料（在线收听）

Scientists have invented the world’s lightest material. It is so light that it can rest on top of a dandelion. Researchers from the University of California, the California Institute of Technology, and HRL Laboratories created the material they call ''ultralight metallic microlattice'' (UMM). It is 100 times lighter than styrofoam – the material commonly used in packaging goods – and 10,000 times lighter than ultralight aerogels and carbon foams (also used for packing). Lead researcher Tobias Shandler of HRL explained why the material is so light. He said: “The trick is to fabricate a lattice of interconnected hollow tubes with a wall thickness 1,000 times thinner than a human hair.'' It is so hollow that it is 99 per cent air.

科学家发明了世界上最轻的材料。这种材料非常轻，可以停留在蒲公英上。来自加利福尼亚大学，加州科技研究所和休斯研究实验室(HRL)的研究人员创造了这种材料，命名为“超轻金属微格”（UMM）。这种材料比普遍用于包装货物的泡沫聚苯乙烯轻100倍，比超轻气凝胶和泡沫炭轻1万倍。来自HRL的首席研究员Tobias Shandler解释了这种材料如此轻的原因。他说：“其中的技巧就是把一些互相连接的空心管编织成比头发薄1000倍的壁垒。其空心程度非常高，其中99%都是空气。”

The new material has been made largely of the metal nickel, but Bill Carter, a manager at HRL, said it could be made out of other materials. He said UMM is so light that: “It takes more than 10 seconds…for the lightest material we've made to fall if you drop it from shoulder height.'' The developers believe there are dozens of uses for UMM and that it will be in many everyday objects within the next decade. Computer experts say UMM will help create lighter and faster computers. Another use is impact protection - researchers say that when it is squashed to half its height, the material almost rebounds back to its original form. Other uses include sound dampening and thermal insulation.

这种新材料大部分是由金属镍制成的，但是HRL经理Bill Carter表示也可以用其他材料制作。他表示，UMM非常轻，“我们制作的这种最轻的材料从肩膀的高度落地需要超过10秒钟的时间。”开发人员相信UMM有几十种用途，未来十年许多日常物品会用到这种材料。计算机专家表示，UMM可以制造出更轻便更快速的计算机。另外一种用途是冲击保护——研究人员表示，这种材料被挤压到一半的高度时，还可以恢复最初的形状。其他用途包括隔音和绝热。