n, L. Cooper, and S. Schrieffer for their theory (known as the BCS theory) of classical superconductors. This quantum mechanical theory proposes that at very low temperatures electrons in an electric current move in pairs. Such pairing enables them to move through a crystal lattice without having their motion disrupted by collisions with the lattice. Several theories of high-temperature superconductors have been proposed, but none has been experimentally confirmed. Magnetic levitation is an application where superconductors perform extremely well. Transport vehicles such as trains can be made to "float" on strong superconducting magnets, virtually eliminating friction between the train and its tracks. Not only would conventional electromagnets waste much of the electrical energy as heat, they would have to be physically much larger than superconducting magnets. A landmark for the commercial use of MAGLEV technology occurred in 1990 when it gained the status of a nationally funded project in Japan. The Minister of Transport authorized construction of the Yamanashi Maglev Test Line, which opened on April 3, 1997. Two years later on April 14, 1999, the MLX01 test vehicle attained an incredible speed of 343 miles per hour.Although the technology has now been proven, the wider use of MAGLEV vehicles has been constrained by political and environmental concerns. The world's only MAGLEV train to be adopted into commercial service, a shuttle in Birmingham, England, shut down in 1997 after operating for 11 years. Meanwhile, the U.S. government has earmarked nearly a billion dollars to build a MAGLEV train at one of seven proposed sites. And Germany's commercial MAGLEV is expected to become operational in 2006. An area where superconductors can perform a life-saving function is in the field of biomagnetism. Doctors need a non-invasive means of determining what's going on inside the human body. By impinging a strong superconductor-derived magne...
