A soap bubble cluster shown with physically accurate thin-film interference, which produces rainbow hues like an oil slick on pavement. A beach at sunset is reflected in the bubbles.
Bubble baths and soapy dishwater, the refreshing head on a beer and the luscious froth on a cappuccino. All are foams, beautiful yet ephemeral as the bubbles pop one by one. Two University of California, Berkeley, researchers have now described mathematically the successive stages in the complex evolution and disappearance of foamy bubbles, a feat that could help in modeling industrial processes in which liquids mix or in the formation of solid foams such as those used to cushion bicycle helmets. Computer-generated video of a cluster of bubbles popping out of existence. Based on a new mathematical description of foam evolution, the video illustrates the various physical and chemical processes involved: liquid drains from the bubbles' thin walls until they rupture, after which the remaining bubbles rearrange, often destabilizing other bubbles, which subsequently pop. Applying these equations, they created mesmerizing computer-generated movies showing the slow and sedate disappearance of wobbly foams one burst bubble at a time. The applied mathematicians, James A. Sethian and Robert I. Saye, will report their results in the May 10 issue of Science .
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