The Eiffel Tower Does It Again

What did it do the first time? I'm not really sure, but this time it has inspired a new type of metal-like material.

This material is a new super light material. It's as strong as metal and 100x lighter than Styrofoam. This new material could reduce material demands worldwide because it's 99.9% air. 

Paper Battery

Sony has created a battery that is fueled by paper. This is awesome because it shows that there are more eco-friendly options out there and we should be exploring them. I still say save the trees. Old newspapers, magazines, and school work can be used to power these batteries, and we all know there are tons of those laying around.

The battery is powered by glucose. It's produced when the paper is broken down by an enzyme suspended in water. While this battery is still in development, it has been used to power a small fan. This is the start of new power sources. 

Beetle Plastic

Beetles may freak a lot of people out, but they they have helped develop an alternative to plastic.

Researchers at Wyss Institute were inspired by the exoskeletons of these little bugs. Shrilk, the material of the exoskeletons of beetles is made up of silk and chitin protein. Shrimp also has this same material in their shells. This material is clear, moldable and durable. It's also bio-degradable. This material could be used to create degradable packaging and tons of other things. It could replace plastic completely for a greener future.

Heart Powered Pacemaker

A pacemaker powered by the heart. That sounds pretty cool, and a little too good to be true. For anyone who doesn't know what a pacemaker is, it's a little machine that helps keep the heart beating normally for those with heart murmurs or other heart problems. Pretty ideal, right? The problem with them is that they run on batteries, which means people need surgery to put them in, and then surgery again later when the batteries die.

Engineers have started to develop a pacemaker that doesn't run on batteries at all. It's powered by the heart. Right now it's only a prototype. But engineers at the University of Michigan have developed a material that flexes with the beats of the heart. It can produce enough energy to power the pacemaker.