With technology and AI reaching once thought unbelievable, Skynet-like levels, more and more possibilities have opened up. Luckily, an open war with machines and terminators is not one of those things, but 3D printing is.
3D printing encompasses any of the many various procedures where materials are joined together to create a solid object, all controlled and guided by a computer. 3D stands for three-dimensional, meaning that the said object can be, well, almost anything. Surely, there are limits to 3D printing, but given how many things you CAN 3D print, here is a list of some of the more interesting ones.
· Body Parts
While this might seem impossible as 3D printing is usually associated with plastic, body parts have been printed for a while. 3D printing body parts is more than just plausible, but also reliable and cheaper than waiting for certain parts to be donated.
Body parts are printed using different, bio 3D printers which instead of plastic use a specific gel to make stuff such as ears or blood vessels, while collagen is also present, including human cells. Ears and blood vessels, as well as skin grafts, have become common and are very usable. Kidneys are also easy to make but are not yet functional.
Bones are frequently made, yet a certain ceramic material is used as opposed to the gels used for other body parts.
· Musical Instruments
Traditional ways of making instruments, especially by hand, can take lots of time. 3D printing them can save you both time and money. Since this is new and still requires a lot of precision and planning, only a couple of instruments have been made and shown to function properly.
3Dvarius makes 3D violins, electrical ones. They sound great and are available in different options, varying from beginner, to a bit more serious, to a professional player.
3D flutes have also come into existence, some of them being a bit more capable than regular flutes. The University of Wollongong in Australia, its researchers, specifically, have made 3D flutes which can make slightly smaller notes than you could usually get. You can go beyond the semitones and with very precise hole diameter size and hole distance, you get a different instrument which may attract musicians due to its unique ability to produce different tones. Not only that, but 3D printed flutes are cheaper and the value part is also attractive.
· An Entire House
3D printing is really entertaining as people print everything and leave their recipes online, but an entire house? Yes, that was done in Beijing, China. A company called HuaShang Tengda 3D printed an entire 400 square meter (4305 square feet) villa, on site. This was done in a period of 45 days, while it would have taken many more months for such a project to be completed in a traditional manner.
There are many more fascinating objects and parts, even, you can print, including food. These are simply the most interesting ones yet plans for more are surely in motion.
