Print your own flute...or create some entirely new instrument to print

Multi-pipe trumpet concept by Amit Zoran

Seth Hunter tries out a freshly printed flute for acoustic quality.  The flute was printed by  MIT Media Lab researcher Amit Zoran, as he sought to see if human crafting was needed to create a worthy instrument. 3-D printing could allow a wide variety of new instruments to develop, such as the multi-pipe trumpet concept pictured, and digital modeling coupled with the speed and low cost of printing would allow the design to be tweaked without creating expensive custom molds.  Electronic instruments have largely been freed from traditional form and designers have been playing with a range of possibilities in design as in electric violin forms .

New violin forms

Liquid magnet sculpture pulses and flows

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She's hot. She's a pop star...and she's imaginary! Vocaloids take center stage

Mirror, mirror on the wall: Interactive mirror could change your morning

Meltdown Violin - playing with vocaliods

....or is that playing as a vocaloid? Man in classic anime form plays a a melody on his electric violin. Surreal, and very much in the grey zone. 
Now, not only are vocaloids passing from the world of imagination and tech to stand in three dimensions in our world, but 'solids" are trying to met them halfway.   
(Be patient. It takes him a moment to start, but it's worth it)

Mercedes Benz under 1000 lb concept car: "Tron" deja-vu?

New violin forms: Classic shape takes unexpected turns

What happens when form is freed from function and violins no longer need a resonant inner chamber? The violin is a perfect example of something that has remained more or less static in design for centuries and is now taking on bold new forms!


Electric violins only need to be able to be held and  played practically and have taut strings that can vibrate when bowed. We've come a long way from simple electrifying of traditional violins. CAD and new materials make for beautiful sleek designs, some with a nod to the traditional form and others pushing the boundaries of what is possible. More and more, design will be driven by aesthetics as functions become more technically based, and beautiful computer-aided design will replace loving hand craftsmanship.

Ashes to ashes and stardust to stardust. Space burial ad is oddly retro sci-fi

Celestis 07 

An ad for space burial that feels spookily like the made up future ads inserted into sci-fi movies

Sleeping with the fishes: Underwater reef burial

Neptune Memorial Reef Burial

Meet the Super Cow! How breeding has created "bodybuilder" cattle

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