Blacker than Black

A little over a week ago, scientists from Rice University in Houston, Texas, and at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York announced that they created a substance that was blacker than any black previously known. According to National Geographic.com, this "array of tiny carbon cylinders standing on end like bristles on a brush ... reflects only 0.045 percent of the visible light shined on it".



The object at the far left is a "black standard" used by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology. The object on the far right is a piece of glassy carbon. The blackest black is the middle object. As you can see, it is "blacker than black".

Oddly, this material's theme song was released over 15 years ago.

Yes, that is Dead Mike from the hip-hop classic CB4. Which, may I state, is a completely underrated movie. I can't recall ever seeing it on BET, VH1, or VH1 Classic, who instead show "movies that (supposedly) rock" like Beetlejuice, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Showgirls, and UHF. Damn shame.

(Source: National Geographic.com "A Blacker Black" 1/25/08)