Category Archives: Technology

Look. Up in the Sky. It’s a bird. No, it’s a plane. Really- it’s a drone!

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You know the military is really keen on drones.  It offers them unique possibilities to track (and kill) enemy combatants without putting any troops at risk.  Of course, it also provide the opportunity to err and kill civilians.  Or, to kill civilians who may be contiguous to the enemy the military wishes to eradicate.

Continue reading Look. Up in the Sky. It’s a bird. No, it’s a plane. Really- it’s a drone!

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One small step. One critical step.

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I’ve written about 3D printing for medical applications.  And, we are making progress.  But, the biggest issue precluding their become a reality to produce viable organs is the need to provide blood and nutrients- i.e., perfusion.  That’s why folks have developed scaffolding systems (for information on scaffolding, click here)  to develop the network of blood vessels necessary.   Once that threshold is crossed, organs like the bioartificial kidney would be possible (as described here).   The issue is generally that constructing these hollow channels into blood vessels tend to leak or rupture at the structural seams.

Continue reading One small step. One critical step.

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A biocompatible transistor?

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There are so many ailments that are the result of neural miscommunications.  Where the brain and the rest of the nervous system fail to send and receive messages properly.  Which is why so many researchers are searching for the holy grail: the brain-computer interface that will overcome such deficiencies.  And, while that holy grail has not yet been found- we now believe it does exist.  A switch- one that transcends electronics and biology.

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Can we turn the course of events?

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So, it’s not a fluke.  Remember when we discussed the Santa Cruz experiment to predict crime?  So that the police could beef up patrols in those areas that were likely to have crimes perpetrated.    Well, now STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) may have a valid method to predict incidents of war (not the incidence of war, though).

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Step on a crack, break your mother’s back (or spend $ 75 billion?)

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OK.  True confessions.   I hate slowpokes on the road.  You want to drive below the speed limit- stay right- all the way to the right.  Better yet- if you feel that driving 50 is nifty, stay off the interstates.    Second verse.   Why does it take 13 folks standing around watching one guy fix a pothole?

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College Life Today…

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Over the past four decades, college education has changed a lot.  I’m not sure it’s for the better.  As I’ve written, the requirements for a B.S. in chemical engineering (my primary degree) have decreased from 144 to 120 credits.  And, this is while chemical engineering has expanded to include medical and biological applications, which means additional courses of study need to be added. Now, courses in electrical engineering and aeronautical engineering could be cut to be replaced by these new areas.  But, that’s only part of the issue.

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3D printing. Coming to a corner near you?

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Rapid prototyping.  Additive manufacturing. 3D printers do that. (Remember, a 3D printer “prints” three-dimensional objects by producing layer by layer the object desired- with light-activated or heat activated raw materials.)   And, I’ve written about them for a while now.  When I first began using them, their prices were sky high.  And, like laser printers that have dropped in price from $2K to under $ 200, 3D printers can now be bought or made for $ 400 to $ 1200.  (Note that 3D printers more closely resemble inkjet printers.)  And, the size of some of them are pretty compact, sitting on a desk.  Of course, the parts these smaller units made are limited in size (kind of toy-like), but…

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