Bucky ball eye glasses

(SFX: laser fire or Star Wars fight)

     SCIENCE FICTION MOVIES HAVE LONG INCORPORATED FLASHING LIGHT SABERS
OR LASER GUNS IN THEIR FUTURISTIC FIGHT SCENES.  AND WHILE THE BATTLEFIELD
HAS YET TO SEE A DEATHLY LASER RAY, LIGHT COULD IN FACT BE USED TO BLIND
SOLDIERS.  TO THE RESCUE COMES A NEW KIND OF GLASS MADE OF A  SOCCER SHAPED
CARBON MOLECULE--CALLED A BUCKYBALL--THAT COULD ONE DAY BE USED TO MAKE
PROTECTIVE SUNGLASSES.  BUCKYBALLS ARE SUITED TO THIS TASK, SAYS AARON
KOSKELO AT LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABS WHO RESEARCHES THE GLASS ALONG WITH
GEANNE ROBINSON AND DUNCAN MCBRANCH, BECAUSE AS A BRIGHT LIGHT SHINES ON
A THEM, THEY IMMEDIATELY ADJUST TO LET ONLY A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF LIGHT
THROUGH.
     
     Koskelo: "if you shine light into something containing buckyballs, it will transmit that light up to a
certain point and then more or less clamps off." 
     WHEN LIGHT HITS A BUCKY BALL, IT TRANSFERS A LITTLE KICK OF ENERGY.
THIS EXTRA ENERGY, IN TURN, CHANGES THE NATURE OF 0THE BUCKYBALL MOLECULE
SO THAT IT CAN ABSORB MORE LIGHT THAN NORMAL--WHICH MEANS THAT THE LIGHT
WON'T TRAVEL ALL THE WAY THROUGH TO HIT THE WEARER'S EYES. SO THE VERY
LIGHT, ITSELF, TURNS ON THE INCREDIBLE BLOCKING POWER OF THE GLASSES.
     
     Koskelo: "as the light increases, you get more and more of the bucky balls going into this state and
that's a lot more strongly absorbing and so it tends to limit the amoutn of light that gets transmitted." 
     THE BUCKYBALL-EMBEDDED GLASS TURNS A LIGHT ROSE COLOR THAT WOULD
MAKE AN EFFECTIVE PAIR OF EYEGLASSES--ESPECIALLY FOR PILOTS WHO ARE
PARTICULARLY SUSCEPTIBLE TO BLINDING FROM ENEMY LIGHT FLASHES, OR EVEN AN
INNOCENT LASER LIGHT SHOW.  THE GLASS IS NOT QUITE READY TO BE MADE INTO
WAYFARERS OR RAYBANS JUST YET, BUT AS THE TECHNOLOGY IMPROVES, PILOTS
COULD HAVE ROSY SKIES AHEAD. 


RESEARCHERS AARON KOSKELO,  AT LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABS ARE MAKING USE
OF AN INTERESTING PROPERTY OF BUCKYBALLS FOR THEIR PROPOSED SUNGLASSES.