Weiming Institute, Materials Division.
When Li Dong arrived at the testing room, a crowd had already gathered around the temperature-controlled stage.
Some were bent over, others craning their necks. Hardly anyone noticed him pushing the door open.
Qi Shiming stood outside the crowd. Seeing Li Dong enter, he hurried over.
"Director Li, that student of yours..."
Qi Shiming sighed in admiration.
"He's something of a monster."
Li Dong smiled without explaining.
When Lin Yi had first returned to China, he had not even been a graduate student, yet he had already given Li Dong some inspiration on the thermal barrier coating problem.
And now, Li Dong had used a Fields Medal on him, permanently raising his base attributes by 20%.
So Li Dong thought Lin Yi's base attributes might now have reached 0.3 or 0.4.
In mathematics, those attributes would put him in contention for a Fields Medal. In physics, they could put him in contention for a Nobel Prize.
"Professor Qi, how are things looking?"
"We've just finished the third heating and cooling cycle. The resistance and magnetic measurements from the first two rounds were fine."
"But everyone still wants to be sure. They want to finish this entire round of testing, then do it once more."
Qi Shiming smiled at the researchers still gathered around the temperature-controlled stage.
"Personally, though, I think we've got it."
Li Dong nodded and walked over to the stage.
A small grayish-black sample, roughly the size of a thumb, was secured to it. Several fine wires ran outward along grooves in the surface.
Directly above the sample, a tiny silver magnet hovered in midair.
Li Dong bent down a little farther and confirmed that the sample and magnet were not touching.
What he was seeing was superconducting magnetic levitation.
Once the sample entered