Microbes Turn Waste into Plastic
Genetically engineered microbial cells may be used to produce new polymers. Photo: Linda Stewart, istockphoto.com As petroleum-based plastics become more expensive with the increased cost of fossil...
View ArticleSmart Sand
10mm smart pebbles with microprocessors and magnets. Photo by M. Scott Brauer. The interface between analog and digital realms is a territory that continues to expand in potential. Once constrained...
View ArticleMaking Trains Lighter
A train diesel engine housing made of a polyurethane-based composite. Image by Fraunhofer ICT. The path to resouce efficiency can take many directions. In the transportation sector, lightness rules....
View ArticleTerraforming with Paper
Daniele Papuli, Cartoframma, 2011 One proven method of producing provocative art installations is through a process of material assemblage. Artists like Tara Donovan and Tokujin Yoshioka have received...
View ArticleA Practical Use for Oobleck
Students fill a pothole with non-Newtonian fluid. Photo: Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer Remember playing with oobleck in science lab? The strange material that can shift between liquid and solid...
View ArticleA Glipse Into the Future of Light
"I.Rain" OLED system by Thierry Gaugain, 2012 Although they are not yet widely available to the consumer, Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs) represent a promising imminent future for lighting. OLED...
View ArticleThe Age of the Pavilion?
Netscape Pavilion by Oyler Wu Collaborative, 2011 Every design field has its version of racing. In the automotive industry, racing plays an important role not only in providing a venue for...
View ArticleA Visit to the Material World
Material World exhibit on opening night. Photo courtesy of the Danish Architecture Center. I recently had the opportunity to give a talk at the Danish Architecture Center in a symposium connected to...
View ArticleA Tale of Two Materials (Exhibits)
A glimpse at the material sample room in Hello Materials, at the Danish Design Center. While in Copenhagen for the Danish Architecture Center symposium and exhibition "Material World," I also had a...
View ArticleThe Importance of Industrial Hothouses
Image courtesy of The Economist The topics of digital fabrication and advanced manufacturing are nothing new, but a recent report in The Economist—which highlights these trends under the sweeping...
View ArticlePutting New Spins on Brick
The Brick Loft building, showing custom-designed ventilation blocks. Image courtesy of Farm. In Louis Kahn's parable of the brick, a brick "tells" Kahn how it should be used to create architecture ("I...
View ArticleNew Display Mimics Structural Color in Nature
New structural color display and its morpho butterfly inspiration. Photo courtesy of KAIST. Structural color is a natural phenomenon in which color is produced by the optical interference of light...
View ArticleLoudspeakers in Print
Demonstration of a printed speaker. Image courtesy of Technische Universität Chemnitz. In the early 20th century, Belgian artist René Magritte created The Treachery of Images, a painting that depicts...
View ArticleMaking Better Asphalt with Nanoclays
Undesirable ruts in asphalt roadbeds. Photo courtesy of Michigan Tech. As summer road crews get to work filling ruts and potholes, we are reminded of the shortcomings of modern asphalt. Although one...
View ArticleResearchers Use Viruses to Harness Power
A piezoelectric device powered by viruses. Photo courtesy of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Piezoelectric power harvesting has drawn much attention, given its ability to generate...
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