To all of us living in the modern world, it seems only logical that storing objects digitally takes up a lot less space than storing them physically. Unfortunately, digital is digital and physical is physical, and ne’er the twain shall meet – for now, anyway. If this 3D reconstruction sphere being developed by NEK continues to get better and better at creating precise digital copies of objects placed inside of it, we may just be using this method to print out perfect 3D replicas in a matter of years.

The OrcaM (Orbital Camera System) works by using seven cameras, very precise lighting conditions and some stellar specialized software. An object is placed inside the sphere and the sphere is sealed…and then something almost magical begins to happen. The machinery inside the sphere whirs and clicks and starts “learning” every minuscule detail of the object without touching it even once.

Of course, the current contact-free method could only be used to reproduce a rather simple object. A piece of machinery, for example, would contain too many invisible internal parts for the OrcaM to see and capture. But for items like the vase in the above images, every last millimeter of the real-world object is captured and reproduced flawlessly in digital form.

What good is this technology – other than performing really cool party tricks? This digital imaging system is so accurate that it could be used to produce copies of priceless relics for scientists to study without fear of harming the original. Valuable items could be offered in digital form for potential buyers to examine prior to an auction. Objects could be placed into a digital museum, or simply scanned into a game like Second Life. There are a million possibilities, all of them completely fascinating.

The post Reproduction Sphere Produces Perfect Copies of 3D Objects first appeared on Gajitz.

If your face is just so beautiful that you can’t stand to step away from the mirror every day, a little shop in Tokyo wants to give you a new way to enjoy your impressive mug: a tiny clone. The Clone Factory uses an awesome array of technology to map out customers’ 3D images and then create small doll-sized copies of actual people. The process uses rapid prototyping, or 3D printing, to translate the 3D images into action figure-like objects in virtually no time.

The results are amazingly realistic with a high level of facial feature accuracy. These small models run $1800 each, but it isn’t hard to imagine a market for life-size versions in the near future. We shudder to think how much those might cost. But just like in the movie Surrogates, humanoid robotic doubles might one day be the way we relate to the physical world without the fear of damage to our biological bodies…and this could just be the start.

The post You Times Two: Realistic “Clones” Made to Order in Tokyo first appeared on Gajitz.

Embryonic stem cells have been at the center of medical, scientific and religious debate for many years. They’re so in demand because they are basically blank slates; embryonic stem cells can be coaxed into becoming any type of cell in the human body. But because embryos need to be destroyed in order to obtain them, there are all kinds of ethical and religious problems at play. So if scientists were able to make stem cells without destroying embryos, it would be a very big deal.

Two teams of Chinese scientists have done just that by producing a live mouse from adult mouse skin cells. The cells were effectively “reprogrammed” with a virus to become every type of cell needed to produce a new mouse (other than a placenta). While both teams experienced some abnormalities and deaths in the first generation of petri dish mice, one of the teams was able to produce hundreds of second- and third-generation mice.

While this new type of stem cell production is extremely significant, scientists are quick to note that all types of stem cell research should continue. This technology is very far from being applied to humans, but eventually could be used to help increase our understanding of various diseases.

The post Hello Dolly? Live Mice Stem From Reprogrammed Skin Cells first appeared on Gajitz.