Cloaking (Invisibility) Device

Wow. Researchers at Purdue University in Indiana have designed a cloaking technique that, theoretically, could make something as large as a passenger jet invisible.

Harry Potter would be proud. Actually, he's had a working invisibility cloak for some time now, so he's probably not all that impressed. But he's also a fictional character, so he can kiss my butt.

The design uses special fabric to bend light rays around the object being hidden. To the observer, it would appear as though nothing were there.

Invisibility, obviously, holds tremendous potential for a number of uses--many of which would be for the military. Imagine if we could make our tanks or other vehicles and weapons effectively disappear from the enemy's sight?

Also, Trekkers should take heart knowing that we are now one step closer to achieving that Holy Grail of starship design technology: the ship that can fire while cloaked. Sweet.