MIT engineers have developed a magnetically steerable, thread-like robot that can actively glide through narrow, winding pathways, such as the labrynthine vasculature of the brain.
In this new paper, the researchers combined their work in hydrogels and in magnetic actuation, to produce a magnetically steerable, hydrogel-coated robotic thread, or guidewire, which they were able to make thin enough to magnetically guide through a life-size silicone replica of the brain’s blood vessels.
The core of the robotic thread is made from nickel-titanium alloy, or “nitinol,” a material that is both bendy and springy. Unlike a clothes hanger, which would retain its shape when bent, a nitinol wire would return to its original shape, giving it more flexibility in winding through tight, tortuous vessels. The team coated the wire’s core in a rubbery paste, or ink, which they embedded throughout with magnetic particles.
Finally, they used a chemical process they developed previously, to coat and bond the magnetic covering with hydrogel — a material that does not affect the responsiveness of the underlying magnetic particles and yet provides the wire with a smooth, friction-free, biocompatible surface.
They demonstrated the robotic thread’s precision and activation by using a large magnet, much like the strings of a marionette, to steer the thread through an obstacle course of small rings, reminiscent of a thread working its way through the eye of a needle.
The researchers also tested the thread in a life-size silicone replica of the brain’s major blood vessels, including clots and aneurysms, modeled after the CT scans of an actual patient’s brain. The team filled the silicone vessels with a liquid simulating the viscosity of blood, then manually manipulated a large magnet around the model to steer the robot through the vessels’ winding, narrow paths.
GUYS DID YOU SEE THE TIDE PODS COMMERCIAL FEATURING MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS???
Dr. Strange Fanfic writers' hcs were right about the Cloak of Levitation being stubborn and unrelenting when it comes to washing/cleaning itself KAHSHSHHAHSH
Math that is art, and art that is math
For me, drawing 3D plots has something really calming. Although the results have uncountable imperfections, the insight-gaining effect of drawing such illustrations is the most satisfying of all aspects. Makes one see the ratios and connections of the depicted plot's underlying patterns from a different perspective.
Episode 4 spoilers out of context
Episode 4: The Tomb - MOON KNIGHT (2022)
Taglist: @oscarseyebrow @the-little-ewok @mypedrom @prettylilhalforc @princessxkenobi @mariesackler @dailyreverie @nowritingonthewall @mandelirious @zinzinina
Moon Knight taglist: @ahookedheroespureheart @discontinuedly
hahah ayes
my childhood in one picture
the great octopus of oz
have this.
reblogging to save lives
1. the Event
have something scheduled for the day, be it a class, club meeting, shift at work, going to a friend’s, whatever. you must get shit done before the Event. i’ve also done it where the event is my roommates coming home, and I tell them to ask me what i did so i feel like I have to do shit. get creative.
2. exist in a space in which you can easily hyper-focus
pretty obvious, go to a cafe, library, friend’s house, whatever works for you, and do your thing. also! cleaning your house can really help with motivation and focusing, so that too.
3. “multitask”
this one took me a while to figure out. make your brain think you are “multitasking” so getting stuff done is less difficult. ie put the laundry in, meanwhile do the dishes, wipe the counters, vacuum. or put it one of those microwave meals in the oven instead, then you have a reward waiting for you after an hour of studying. for some reason, getting tasks done as a pastime until something else is done makes it way easier to do them
CHRISTMAS IN JULY, DAY 6: HALLOWEEN:
↳ SHADOW AND BONE CHARACTERS as GREEK GODS
Engineers at MIT and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have designed a heat engine with no moving parts. Their new demonstrations show that it converts heat to electricity with over 40 percent efficiency – a performance better than that of traditional steam turbines.
The heat engine is a thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cell, similar to a solar panel’s photovoltaic cells, that passively captures high-energy photons from a white-hot heat source and converts them into electricity. The team’s design can generate electricity from a heat source of between 1,900 to 2,400 degrees Celsius, or up to about 4,300 degrees Fahrenheit.
The researchers plan to incorporate the TPV cell into a grid-scale thermal battery. The system would absorb excess energy from renewable sources such as the sun and store that energy in heavily insulated banks of hot graphite. When the energy is needed, such as on overcast days, TPV cells would convert the heat into electricity, and dispatch the energy to a power grid.
With the new TPV cell, the team has now successfully demonstrated the main parts of the system in separate, small-scale experiments. They are working to integrate the parts to demonstrate a fully operational system. From there, they hope to scale up the system to replace fossil-fuel-driven power plants and enable a fully decarbonized power grid, supplied entirely by renewable energy.
Read more.
welcome to this weeks episode of
‘Is this Canon, or is this from a fanfiction I cant remember?”
a memorable mention being ‘is this an original post or did I see it somewhere else?’