The colleagues reported in Cell Reports Physical Science that by building a structure out of DNA and then coating it with glass, they have created a very strong material with very low density.
They use self-assembling DNA to build a lattice, which is then doped with microscopic glass. It’s kind of like reinforced concrete but at the molecular scale. Scaling it up will be the hard part but the technique is pretty innovative.
I saw a YouTube video a while ago about 3d printing structures with organic filaments. Now self replicating DNA composites… it’s interesting and a bit unsettling to think of a future where buildings may be literally alive.
This is actually pretty cool:
They use self-assembling DNA to build a lattice, which is then doped with microscopic glass. It’s kind of like reinforced concrete but at the molecular scale. Scaling it up will be the hard part but the technique is pretty innovative.
I saw a YouTube video a while ago about 3d printing structures with organic filaments. Now self replicating DNA composites… it’s interesting and a bit unsettling to think of a future where buildings may be literally alive.