A new way of assembling things, called metamaterials, may in
the not too distant future help to protect a building from earthquakes by
bending seismic waves around it. Similarly, tsunami waves could be bent around
towns, and soundwaves bent around a room to make it soundproof.
While the holy grail of metamaterials is still to make
objects and people invisible to the eye, they are set to have a more tangible
commercial impact playing more mundane roles - from satellite antennas to
wirelessly charging cellphones.