this post was submitted on 27 Nov 2025
312 points (98.4% liked)

Technology

77768 readers
2250 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related news or articles.
  3. Be excellent to each other!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, this includes using AI responses and summaries. To ask if your bot can be added please contact a mod.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
  10. Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.

Approved Bots


founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

A severed mosquito proboscis can be turned into an extremely fine nozzle for 3D printing, and this could help create replacement tissues and organs for transplants.

I've linked to a decent write-up on Tom's Hardware, but New Scientist covered it last week too.

Source paper: 3D necroprinting: Leveraging biotic material as the nozzle for 3D printing (science.org)

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] MushuChupacabra@lemmy.world 110 points 3 weeks ago (5 children)

I'm only in favor of this if the mosquito suffers mightily somewhere along the process.

[–] Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 50 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I want it setup so the hot filament goes into its asshole and then out through the probiscus.

Now there's a mental image.

[–] Nurse_Robot@lemmy.world 25 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

The process does involve gaslighting and lying to their mosquito family

[–] meco03211@lemmy.world 22 points 3 weeks ago

No no. I want them to know it was me.

[–] Cybersteel@lemmy.world 13 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

One almost killed me. Dengue.

[–] argarath@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago

Good news! Brazil developed a single dose vaccine against dengue!! I don't know when they're going to start vaccinating, but the vaccine has been approved, it's already tested and everything!

[–] Deebster 12 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

I'm currently living somewhere hot enough that the little pricks are a bother all year round.

[–] Bo7a@piefed.ca 15 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I'm currently living in Canada where the ground has been hidden by snow for a month.

i was bitten by a mosquito outside yesterday.

They are getting stronger.

[–] caseyweederman@lemmy.ca 5 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I'm currently living in Canada and we've seen two snowflakes this entire winter (they fell in October)

[–] Bo7a@piefed.ca 4 points 3 weeks ago

Lucky.

We have had full snow cover since mid-october here. But it has also been +3-5c most afternoons.

Although early snow often means warmer winter. And I can definitely handle the snow in QC better than the -40s I used to get in AB.

[–] jbloggs777@discuss.tchncs.de 77 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Interesting fact: You can use an elephant's trunk as a low-resolution 3D printing nozzle

[–] kami@lemmy.dbzer0.com 37 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

More interesting facts: you can use a human penis as a medium-resolution 3D printing nozzle

[–] GreenKnight23@lemmy.world 9 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

less interesting fact, my penis is a lower resolution than an elephant trunk.

[–] Saber_is_dead@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago

humblebrag!

[–] muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 weeks ago

Ugh, my prostate is not going to make an entire benchy. Ow.

[–] brown567@sh.itjust.works 12 points 3 weeks ago

This one seems about that size

[–] dellish@lemmy.world 10 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Yes but does it have to be dead at the time?

I'm really not sure why they felt the need to point this out in the article.

[–] crapwittyname@feddit.uk 13 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Yes, the first attempts via the more obvious approach of using a live mosquito were a lot trickier, because the techniques involved in persuading the mosquito to comply were outside of the highly-specialised knowledgebase of the team. That is, until the serendipitous moment when one particularly heavy-handed researcher accidentally killed a mosquito whilst trying to attach it to a printer. The surprise and elation that must have resulted when they realised they could use mosquito husks was, surely a sight to behold. The missing piece of the puzzle had finally fallen into place. Some might even say... by Divine Providence, perhaps?
I daresay some of the project leads were kicking themselves nonetheless: "It's so simple! Dead mosquito proboscises! Dead! Why didn't I think of that?!", etc. But I think we should go easy on them; we could all get a doctorate in the field of hindsight!
In the end, just like many discoveries before it: penicillin, safety glasses, velcro etc., this breakthrough simply owes a lot to blind chance.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Agent641@lemmy.world 57 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

3D printing is not vegan anymore.

[–] GreyEyedGhost@lemmy.ca 14 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

I'd say harming mosquitoes (females only, that feed on blood) is better than vegan!

load more comments (3 replies)
[–] gedaliyah@lemmy.world 40 points 3 weeks ago

And here I've been throwing away all my dead mosquitoes like a sucker.

[–] veeesix@lemmy.ca 39 points 3 weeks ago

Necroprinting is the new Necromancer skill upgrade I’ve been waiting for.

[–] msage@programming.dev 37 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Aahhh yes, man-made horrors beyond my imagination.

[–] Quetzalcutlass@lemmy.world 22 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

This reminds me of a post where someone hooked a dead spider up to a syringe and used it as a grabber. A spider's musculature is hydraulic so the legs would curl and uncurl as the syringe was pressed.

Definitely one of the creepier things I've casually stumbled upon.

Edit: Behold, necromancy! (time-stamped video)

[–] Lemming6969@lemmy.world 28 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

There is no way this is more viable than a manufactured micro needle, nor scalable.

[–] some_kind_of_guy@lemmy.world 51 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Not scalable? You haven't seen my back yard in the summer time, I'm gonna be rich!!

[–] Valmond@lemmy.world 18 points 3 weeks ago

He said: I'm gonna be rich!

But all he got was an itch 🎶

[–] Chais@sh.itjust.works 5 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Keep in mind, you can't squish them.

[–] some_kind_of_guy@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah yeah, we'll figure that out, but first let's talk about that first round of VC funds, right?

[–] Corkyskog@sh.itjust.works 11 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

If you scaled it, it wouldn't be high-resolution anymore.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] squaresinger@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago

It is not. This is just yet another piece of garbage science made to get into headlines, nothing more or less.

[–] HootinNHollerin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 28 points 3 weeks ago

I’m a fan of the flinstones timeline over the techno dystopia

[–] lemmyout@lemmy.zip 26 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

I like how the title specifies the mosquitos are dead. Otherwise I would have imagined a swarm of mosquitos trained to perform like some cartoon.

[–] muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works 15 points 3 weeks ago

There is a 3d printer hotend called the mosquito. The company behind it is incredibly litigious. It’s why literally the entire community hates them.

[–] WindyRebel@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago

Probably something from The Flintstones.

[–] 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 19 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

So these 3D printed things arent vegan?

[–] Sterile_Technique@lemmy.world 16 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Mosquitoes are an exception to the values typically exhibited in veganism.

[–] some_kind_of_guy@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Say what? Is this not exploiting an animal, or worse, creating a potential market incentive to further exploit animal bodies and life? I'm not even vegan. I know individuals have exceptions, and the philosophy is a spectrum rather than a monolith and all that, but are mosquitoes not animal life?

[–] Lemminary@lemmy.world 21 points 3 weeks ago

I think they were joking.

[–] nyan@lemmy.cafe 13 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Ugh. I hope that there being a use for the little bastards now doesn't make people breed them on purpose.

[–] Deebster 8 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Have you seen the footage of scientists feeding them from their own arms? Nooope, not for all the tea in China.

[–] CentipedeFarrier@piefed.social 3 points 3 weeks ago

If it makes you feel better, the people who stick their arms in aren’t allergic to mosquito bites. Doesn’t bother them to get bit beyond the feeling of being bit.

I mean I guess it could happen that they are just masochistic, but typically not.

[–] some_kind_of_guy@lemmy.world 7 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

I did not have GMO mosquitos bred for a more effective proboscis escaping into the wild on my bingo card

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] orenj@lemmy.sdf.org 12 points 3 weeks ago

I cannot believe i've never encountered the term "necroprinting" in a scifi/scifantasy setting before

[–] muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works 5 points 3 weeks ago

Dude, that’s metal.

[–] Grimy@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago
[–] fubarx@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

I challenged my family not to say WHAT! when reading that headline. So far, everyone's failed (including myself).

load more comments
view more: next ›