archaeology

New Ways to Resurrect Dinosaurs with 3D Printing

A paper published in the journal Radiology explores new techniques used to capture 3D information from dinosaur fossils. The new approach overcomes the problem of removing non-fossil material from the actual fossil during excavation and subsequent processing. Apparently when surrounding material is removed, small portions of the true fossil can be lost.    The new… Continue reading New Ways to Resurrect Dinosaurs with 3D Printing

A Whale of a 3D Print

It was near the end of a South American expedition for Smithsonian Natural History Museum’s Nicholas D. Pyenson, when he learned fossil whales had been uncovered nearby.    Examining the fossils, which had been uncovered by a road crew constructing a new highway across the Atacama Desert, Pyenson discovered the fossils were of a dozen… Continue reading A Whale of a 3D Print

Recreating the Ancient Past at Harvard

Museum curators at Harvard’s Semitic Museum are using 3D modeling to undo a part of the destruction of the ancient Iraqi city of Nuzi that was sacked by the Assyrians nearly 3,300 years ago.   Read More at Engineering.com

De-Extincting a Mollusk

3D printing is an amazing process, not only to simply watch a print appear from thin air, but also for the things it makes possible. We’re reading how a species of mollusk, the multiplacophoran Protobalanus spinicoronatus, extinct for 390 million years has been re-created using 3D printing.    Researchers at the Jackson School of Geosciences… Continue reading De-Extincting a Mollusk

Making Dinosaurs

It’s been the fantasy of many kids (and adults) to recreate dinosaurs. Those almost mythical, but real beasts from prehistoric times challenge our curiosity. What were they really like. Probably they’d eat you if they had a chance, but is there a way to rebuild the dinosaurs? The late author Michael Crichton proposed doing so… Continue reading Making Dinosaurs