Bioengineering in Motion

See videos of bioengineered systems in action in this online extra that accompanies the feature article, "Life Sciences, Applied."

This online extra accompanies "Life Sciences, Applied," from the January-February 2009 issue of Harvard Magazine.

 

In this video, blood pulses through tiny channels in a polymer. The lab group directed by Homans professor of surgery Joseph Vacanti uses a microfabrication technique to mimic blood vessels for use in tissue engineering.

 

 

 

A tissue-engineering application developed in the lab of associate professor of biomedical engineering Kit Parker, demonstrated in this video, uses an elastic film coated with a layer of heart muscle cells; these hybrid structures can engage in lifelike movements.


 

 

This video from the lab of assistant professor of computer science Radhika Nagpal demonstrates three ways to use modular robots programmed to work together cooperatively: a table made from a series of robots that work together to keep it level; a simulation of a bridge that would keep itself level even if the ground under it shifts; and a proposed design for a system to render complex three-dimensional shapes using thousands of modules working cooperatively.

 

Related topics

You might also like

This Astronomer is Sounding a Warning on 'Space Junk'

As debris accumulates in low Earth orbit, the danger of destructive collisions continues to rise.

Understanding AI Vulnerabilities

As artificial intelligence capabilities evolve, so too will the tactics used to exploit them. 

Crypto—To Regulate or Not?

The former director of Harvard’s fintech lab reflects on the future of digital assets.

Most popular

Eat Your Potatoes Mashed, Boiled or Baked, but Hold the Fries

Baked, boiled, and mashed potatoes are better.

The Latest In Harvard’s Fight with the Trump Administration

Back-and-forth reports on settlement talks, new accusations from the government, and a reshuffling of two federal compliance offices

The School of Public Health, Facing a Financial Reckoning, Seizes the Chance to Reinvent Itself

Dean Andrea Baccarelli plans for a smaller, more impactful Chan School of 2030.

Explore More From Current Issue

A crowd of people shout and march during a nighttime demonstration, while a man and woman in the foreground hold two silver-colored pans above their heads and bang on them with sticks

The Harvard Professor Who Quantified Democracy

Erica Chenoweth’s data shows how—and when—authoritarians fall.

An illustration of a green leaf being hit by a beam of light and bouncing off the leaf and then becoming a color prisim

Harvard’s Plant Collection Meets Space Science

Light-based analysis of botanical collections link plants to Earth’s changing climate.

A woman and a horse jump off a large platform into water

The Woman Who Rode Horses Into the Water

Scrapbooking a woman who rode horses into the sea