When we say that Erik Demaine has spent the best part of the past two decades folding paper into funny shapes, it’s a bit more impressive than it sounds. In fact, as an 18-year-old Ph.D. student (yes, ...

Back in 1999, Erik Demaine was a PhD student who created an algorithm that determined the folding patterns necessary to turn a piece of paper into any 3D shape. However, the algorithm was far from ...

In the 1960s, most computers took up an entire room. Faster computers now find themselves on the wrists of people all over the world. As devices get smaller, humanity seems to be on track to create ...

These could be the stuff of nightmares — if they weren’t so damn cute. Scientists at the University of Washington have developed adorable little electronic “microfliers,” the size of a postage stamp, ...

In the realm of microrobotics, small and malleable machines are, in the meme-y words of Mugatu, so hot right now. Scientists appear to be doing everything they can to crack the code behind what it ...

DNA origami, a fascinating technology that uses algorithms to design self-assembling 2- and 3D nanostructures using DNA helices, has added a new member to its growing catalog: multilayered ...

Researchers have created butterflies that flap their wings, flower petals that wiggle with the touch of a button and self-folding origami drawing on new advances in soft robotics. Imagine opening up a ...

Inspired by the paper-folding art of origami, engineers have discovered a way to make a single plastic cubed structure transform into more than 1,000 configurations using only three active motors.

An ongoing problem for NASA, SpaceX, and other entities involved with space travel is packing as much equipment as possible into a single rocket to reduce launch costs and make space exploration more ...