3D printing will change the world, say researchers

China and Korea don't need one! they've inherited the "art" for centuries

@farmboy, the plastic is being printed on layer by layer. When the model is finished it usually needs to be rinsed with water. And then it can be painted. Ive only seen one type of printer though. Pretty cool stuff but it takes a long time to print bigger models.

Plastic gun, if it works, would pass through metal detectors. Bullets would still be metal though, but easier to hide.

You wouldn't want to make a cup from a 3D printer because it would probably fall apart, leak or poison you

But a prosthetic limb is OK?

I like to build plastic model planes, ships, and cars, and I think that a 3D printer could be cool for the hobby.

I think a really reliable 2D printer would be nice, first.

I can't wait for the future. The implementations of this, and whatever discoveries we make once we know the practical applications of the higgs-boson particle.

They already have a "working" plastic handgun built by a 3D printer. I put working in quotes because even the author of the 3D model for the gun says it works - but only sometimes - and the accuracy is more along the lines of a shotgun than a hand gun. The author of the gun model basically said that if you were going to assassinate someone, this gun isn't reliable enough - even at close range.

I don't really understand how these work. I know they use a plastic filament on a spool, so I assume the plastic is melted into a shape, but there doesn't seem to be a mold like in plastic injection molding. How do these things do what they do?

There's a good video of the process here: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Hyperboloid_Print.ogv The printers work with 3d files describing the object as a series of very thin layers and each layer is printed on top of the previous one.

Someone will be definitely wanted to print Casino chip.

No doubt it will change the world. I still can't afford it. LOL