As solicited over twitter by TheFrogBlog, I designed a T7 Bacteriophage model for 3D printing via Shapeways. And, here it is: ](/images/Bacteriophage_Model.jpg) Bacteriophage T7 It's a little fragile at the tips of the legs, so I might increase the size a little to make it more robust. Also, the neck is a little weak where the head joins the body, so I may have to lower the head a little to strengthen that connection.
I've written before about Biocurious, the nascent Hackerspace for Biology that is raising money to rent out a real, no-kidding biotech lab full of professional equipment for community and citizen science. It's ambitious, it's brilliant, and it's already resulted in a study that's been published in Nature Medicine (a very prestigious journal even for well-equipped lab scientists), long before they reach their funding goal. The study in question was an excellent example of the power of citizen science and collaborative work.
Just for love, I designed and printed myself a little sculpture of a DNA double-helix on a small base. It's going to be my desk ornament in the lab for the next few months while I try to finish my project on time and write a thesis. Of course, nowadays if you've made something you're proud of, it's a trivial thing to offer it for sale to others with similar nerdy interests!