Gearfuse

Atomically, DNA and its components are about as tiny as we can get before we enter the realm of “I don’t know what the hell I’m looking at here.” So you can imagine how “nano” we’re talking here when we mention a nano-sized box, made of DNA, which can only be opened by a specific DNA strain. Now THAT’S security.

Danish scientists at the Aarhus University Center for DNA Nanotechnology created a 3D box made of DNA. The box’s lid can only be opened when a specific strain of DNA is introduced as the key. What could science possibly use such a tiny box for? Targeted drug delivery, for one. These nano boxes could one day course through your veins, seeking a specific piece of DNA to open its latch and spread its love, just like your mother.

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Check out Guilherme Martin’s first attempt at making a robot. He uses an Arduino and motor shield with one servo for steering and a standard DC motor for movement. It’s dubbed “baratinha” meaning “little cockroach” in Portuguese. Using two micro-switches as if they were antennae, baratinha is able to detect obstacles in its way.  It’s just like a real cockroach except it won’t eat your food or leave a foul odor in its wake.  I wonder if it’d survive an atomic blast?

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