Science Breakthroughs in 2011: Cancer Vaccines, 3-D Printing, and More

Click here to print your lampshade. In 2011 three-dimensional printing came to the masses. Long used to manufacture industrial prototypes, 3-D printers use digital information to create 3-D objects in a single process with a single machine. By depositing metal or plastic layer by layer, the printers build the object of one’s desire. Tens of thousands of people are already designing everything from sake sets and cookie cutters to sculpture and jewelry using the 3-D printing service Shapeways. Fast, cheap, and reliable, 3-D printing may soon be out of control.