February_AMP_Digital

62 / 66

STRESS RELIEF
Shape-shiftingpaperholds promise for packaging
A student at TheUniversity of BritishColumbia, Canada, is developing self-folding paper
that transforms into multidimensional figures when heated. The technology can be used for
everything fromorigami-like decorations to sustainable packaging and insulation. A comput-
er program is used tomake small cuts and creases in a sheet of paper. A special thermoplastic
polymer is then attached to pre-cut and pre-creased paper and heated to about 110°C for 10
to 20 seconds. As the polymers heat up, they shrink and lift the paper into various angles,
turning it into a 3D shape.
When paper is folded into 3D structures, it is light and strong, and inexpensive to make.
It is also easy to transport and has less environmental impact than other materials. Com-
pared to plastic, less energy is used to make self-folding paper. One day it could be used for
noise and heat insulation, toys, folding beds, step stools, and even mattresses, although the
most promising application is packaging. .
Beerbrewingwastemakes biomaterials forbones
Researchers from the Centre for Biomedical Technology of Universidad Politécnica de
Madrid (UPM), the Institute of Materials Science, and the Institute of Catalysis and Petro-
chemistry of Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), in collaborationwith the
Mahou and Createch Co., all in Spain, developed biocompatible materials to support bone
regeneration from the food industry—mainly bagasse (residue) frombeer brewing. The new
materials are an alternative to prosthesis made from processed sheep bones or synthetic
materials. .
A biomaterial used as a matrix for bone regeneration was made from a 1-cm-high porous block
obtained from the beer bagasse treatment. Courtesy of CSIC.
Birdsnap: Anewapp forbirdwatchers
Columbia University, N.Y., researchers developed Birdsnap, a smartphone
app that uses computer vision and machine-learning techniques to produce an
electronic field guide featuring 500 of the most common North American bird
species. Birdsnap, which enables users to identify bird species through upload-
ed photos, is linked to a website that includes about 50,000 images. Birdsnap
also features birdcalls for each species, and offers users several ways to orga-
nize species. “Our goal is to use computer vision and artificial intelligence to
create a digital field guide that will help people learn to recognize birds,” says
Professor Peter Belhumeur.
Birdsnap works like facial-recognition technologies in that it detects parts of
a bird so it can examine the visual similarity of comparable parts. The app auto-
matically finds visually similar species andmakes suggestions about how they can
be distinguished. “What’s really exciting about Birdsnap is that not only does it do
well at identifying species, it can also identify which parts of the bird the algorithm
uses to identify each species,” says Belhumeur. . Birdsnap provides access to an electronic field
guide to 500 of the most common North
American bird species.
Self-folding lamp.
Courtesy of Martin Dee. A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5
6 2