And that’s why researchers at the McCormick School of Engineering are working on something that they call “rubber band electronics.” These electronics can stretch to over 200% of their original size, all while retaining a suitable level of functionality and conductivity. They achieved this by stretching a highly porous 3D structure (polydimethylsiloxane or PDMS) to three times its original size. They then filled the pores with EGaIn liquid metal. That allows for consistent electrical flow, even when the material is “excessively stretched.”

Current “stretchable” electronics are only able to stretch about 50%, so this over 200% stretch would be a monumental breakthrough in the field. There are “many potential applications [that] require a device to stretch like a rubber band,” said researcher Yonggang Huang. “With that level of stretchability we could see medical devices integrated into the human body.”

[Source]

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Well nature knows best. After all, it used the best possible materials to make the most intriguing and complex machine known to man – the human body. It is a fact that nature’s technology is unmatched. So what better way to find means to push the limits of electronics than to look inside the human body for answers!  The researchers at Tel Aviv University (TAU ) are doing exactly that, turning to blood, milk and mucus proteins in their radical quest to develop a transistor, veering away from the traditional ‘top-down’ approach followed in the case of silicon-based electronics.

The results, researchers say, could revolutionize electronics with protein-based transistors forming the base for a new generation of circuits which are of the nano scale, bio degradable and flexible. The research team of TAU, supervised by Dr. Shachar Richter and Prof. Michael Gozin, includes Ph.D students Elad Mentovich, Netta Hendler and Bogdan Belgorodsky. The promising results so far has led the team to believe that they are playing a big role in the transition of silicon era into a carbon one.

When the team applied various combination of proteins (blood, milk and mucous) to a base material, the molecules assembled itself to form a semi-conducting film with each different combination bringing in a different property and that too on a nano scale. This allowed the team to create a complete circuit with electronic as well as optical capabilities. The researchers were able to make use of the natural abilities of each protein to control the characteristics of the transistor like memory, conductivity, storage etc.

They used blood protein’s unique ability to absorb oxygen to dope the semi-conductors using specific chemicals to give it desired properties. Milk protein’s “strength” was used to make fibres for the architecture inside the circuit while mucosal protein’s optical abilities were used in circuits needing advanced optics. The research is cutting edge indeed, especially when you think of how this technology can be adopted to overcome the shortcomings of present day electronics, or addressing the rejection of implanted electronics in the human body.

The carbon-based electronics will also be more flexible than silicon-based ones in use now. Imagine the wide scope it has in areas where flexible technology is used like displays, mobile phones, tablets, microchips, not to mention its applications in the medical field. Being biodegradable, the technology will also solve the biggest problem the world is facing post silicon revolution – electronic waste management.

It pays to turn to nature’s ways, I guess!

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Have your outdated electronics taken up half of your room’s space? Perhaps they are piling up in the garage. Before you start planning to move to a large place, you might want to check out this ‘N+ew’ solution from Chilean Rodrigo Alonso. Of course, there are many recycling programs out there that will help you with your e-waste problems. But this new idea will help you to keep the memories as well.

Alonso has come up with a new way to make furniture out of all that electronic waste. Dubbed N+ew (or No More Electronic Waste), the showy seats are composed of e-wastes including circuit boards, multi-colored wires, computer components, QWERTY keyboards, and even scratched CDs.

He dumps all those stuff into a large cubic mold which is then filled with a clear epoxy resin and melted recycled aluminum to bind everything together. When it’s set, it will be polished to a high-gloss finish.

The result will be fine looking furniture which will also serve as a time capsule, and we won’t have to wait 100 years to take a peek at what’s inside.

The whole idea is definitely something that might become more popular in the coming years, especially because of the changing technological landscape which results in the introduction of new electronics which are e-wastes of the future.

Check out the gallery and you can place your thoughts in the box below.

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That’s the notion being put forth by Larry Downes of Forbes Magazine. Despite the slow bleed out from other electronic competitors, Best Buy actually saw its market share drop with a corresponding 40% drop in stock value last year. WSJ said that the “worst is yet to come” for Best Buy.

But why is that? One idea put forth has to do with customer service. You can generally categorize customers in one of two groups. There are the self-service types who know exactly what they want and don’t need any help. These are the folks that may rather turn to online shopping, or in the case of my local Vancouver area, a store like NCIX. Then, there are the folks who do want some customer service and guidance. The trouble is that Best Buy isn’t providing “customer service,” according to Downes. It’s “anti-service” because the associates are too busy upselling, suggestive selling, and cross-selling. That’s “in lieu of actual training on either the products or effective sales.”

And let’s not forget about the Apple Store. Best Buy has run out of that unique selling proposition, it seems, and it’s just going to be a slow and gradual death with customers leaking out to other channels. What do you think? Is Best Buy joining Circuit City to the pits? What can it do to attract customers again? Or will it be deemed “too big to fail” and get a government bailout?  What’s your experience at Best Buy?

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