Each week, take a look at my latest article for the new hit game or add-on released for free from the Epic Games Store! This week, the free game is Prison Architect, a simulation game where you get to operate and construct a for-profit prison, just like you’ve always wanted to. Fans of any sim game will get a kick out of this, and fans of Rimworld or Dwarf Fortress will feel right at home.
We also get Godfall: Challenger Edition, a new version of the hit action-looter that streamlines play to just the most exciting action-challenge content of the game. Read on for more details.
What is the Epic Games Store?
Epic games Store
The Epic Games Store has been around for a while, the lesser-known alternative to Steam, the nearly ubiquitous platform for game purchases since it launched in 2003. But, where Steam originally existed and launched to promote Valve games, Epic Games Store launched in 2018 and quickly rose to success on the Fortnight franchise. At the time of Epic’s launch, Steam took a dramatic 30% cut from the sales of video games through their platform! This hurt both game designers and users, just wasn’t very nice. But the folks behind Epic realized something excellent: they could take a much lower cut and still have a profitable business. This led them to fast domination of the indie market, as small publishers flocked to the far better terms offered by Epic.
Mega Discounts
Epic Games Store offers some seriously incredible discounts regularly, in addition to all the normal discounts one would expect on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the usual holidays. But the most exciting is their weekly free game or add-on, which simply harpoons all competitors.
When I first heard about this free game, I thought that can’t be real. They must only offer tiny indie games.Not at all, dear reader. Not. At. All. Epic frequently lists unbelievable A-lister games on their weekly deal, as well as sometimes offer two free games instead of one. In addition, just because a studio is smaller doesn’t mean the games it makes aren’t impressive. I’ve picked up some of my favorite new games, for free, from this platform, and most of them have been made by smaller studios (or as side-projects for teams from big studios).
Welcome Wardens! Only the world’s most ruthless Warden can contain the world’s most ruthless inmates. Design and develop your personalized penitentiary in Prison Architect.
With over four million copies sold, this is definitely a major hit of a game. Why? Because it’s brilliant.
You take on the role of a contractor hired to build a successful for-profit prison, and whatever you say is what goes. All you need to do is keep the prisoners from breaking out, murdering each other, or killing all the guards. How hard could that be?
Watch the video:
Prison Architect offers you the chance to build your prison however you want: go for a clean and neat rehabilitation center where even the most hardened criminals can learn peace and love; go the route of the sadistic Prison-Maxx, with armed guards ready to beat and shoot at the slimmest opportunity; build your prison in the shape of the USS Enterprise… the choice is yours.
The dark comedy of the game really makes it, providing huge replay value alongside the powerful construction system that offers a vast array of possibilities really only limited by your imagination and the 2D game factor. If you’ve played games like Rimworld before, you’ll feel right at home with Prison Architect.
Instantly unleash Godfall’s power! Godfall Challenger Edition immediately unlocks a maximum level Valorplate, spoils you with skill points, and equips you with a spread of deadly weapons. Challenge all three end-game modes!
The main Godfall game has been a roaring success since it’s 2020 release. The action-looter RPG has acquired a large playerbase in a really short amount of time, and for good reason: the game is a total blast.
Godfall draws inspiration from fantasy settings like those from Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive, and follows a classic model of “fight enemies, get better gear, progress” which, alongside the co-op mode, makes this a great addition to the action-RPG genre.
Not everyone has been a fan of the game, with people loving it initially but growing a bit tired of the repetitive waves of enemies. Which is why the studio behind Godfall, Counterplay Games, has been hard at work producing more content, more dynamic ways to fight and grind, and totally new ways to engage with the base game.
So what’s new in Godfall Challenger Edition?
Watch the video:
Challenger Edition strips out all the story content of the game—in fact, it strips out all of the pre-endgame content altogether! Odd choice? Not at all.
This is the ultimate sandbox for Godfall players, a chance to dive into the special game modes that are usually unlocked by playing through the full game. Instead of grinding your way to the best and most powerful slot, you get to dive straight into your favorite mode as a fully powered and leveled-up Knight.
Combined with a backwards-compatible co-op mode that allows players of this version to connect with players of the standard version (who have completed the game already), Godfall Challenger Edition offers an amazing “bang for your buck,” especially when that “buck” is literally $0!
Destiny 2 is exactly the sort of mythic-science fiction action game you need, and with its incredible free-to-play model, there’s no drawback to checking it out. Taking on the role of Guardians, players protect Earth’s last remaining safe city from various alien races and a growing power of Darkness that threatens to cover all the lands in endless night.
Watch the video:
Not only is the story fun, but the first-person shooter gameplay is simply unbelievable, with some of the best in the genre. It’s not 3rd-person, like Godfall, but the team working on Godfall is filled with members from the Destiny 2 team, so you know you’re going to get something with a lot of passion behind it.
Rimworld
Rimworld is absolutely the best possible game to buy if you like this sort of top-down builder. While Prison Architect is highly specialized and specific, with great missions, goals, and objectives that help highlight the theme, Rimworld is basically free-form: do what you will and see what happens.
Watch the video:
Want to add a mod that allows you to be rough survivors in a post-apocalyptic wasteland ruled by zombies? Go ahead. Build a towering city of the finest wood (and just hope it doesn’t burn down?) You can. Become a trade settlement and travel far and wide with your goods? Rock on, man. The possibilities are unlimited.
Sometimes you want to share your Minecraft builds or moments with others, while other times you want to access screenshots of coordinates to the point of interest you promised you’d return to. Thankfully, no matter the need, finding your Minecraft screenshots through CurseForge is quick and easy!
A window will open that shows all the files in the instance you played. Find the Screenshots folder and double click to open it. Within are all the screenshots you made in your worlds!
It has finally arrived! The Mojang team has been working tirelessly to bring players the biggest changes to world generation since Minecraft first released in 2011. In Caves & Cliffs Part 2, the Overworld gets new terrain generation, an increased world height, dripstone caves, lush caves, and so much more!
The update is available for Bedrock Edition on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, and Windows 10 and 11. It’s also available for Java Edition on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Opening up a 1.18 world feels like it’s brought new life to the Minecraft universe. Not only are mountains taller and caves deeper, but even old biomes look fresh and new with more realistic terrain. In fact, there’s so much added and changed in this update that we’re jumping right into a guide on everything added or changed in Minecraft’s 1.18 Caves & Cliffs: Part 2 update!
There were a host of changes to gameplay and technical aspects of the game:
Accessibility option to stop the sky from flashing during thunderstorms
Online options screen where you can now find the Realms Notifications option
Added an option to specify the audio device used by the game
“Allow Server Listings” option to opt out of having your name displayed in server listings
Added illageralt, rune-like font from Minecraft Dungeons (currently only usable via commands)
New music by Lena Raine and Kumi Tanioka to the Overworld (when playing in Survival Mode) and the main menu
Added telemetry for world loading which is diagnostic tracking to better understand players, improve their experience, help prioritize development, and identify pain points.
Added world autosave indicator for single-player worlds
Added “Toggle Sprint” and “Toggle Sneak” to the Controls settings
Changed default brightness to 50
Dripstone clusters can no longer be found in normal caves, only in Dripstone Caves biomes
Generation range and build limits have been expanded by 64 blocks up and 64 blocks down, to a total range of 384 blocks
Geodes now only generate up to height 30
If it is raining, sleeping will stop the rain and reset the weather cycle
Mob spawners can now override light checks for spawning
Moved Keybinds out to their own settings screen, accessible from Controls
New setting called “Simulation Distance” which is how far away the game will actually load entities and apply changes to them
Players with higher than recommended render distance settings are now prompted to change it to the recommended value (BE only)
Removed world types “Caves” and “Floating islands” from the world creation screen
Servers can now set property hide-online-players to true in order to not send a player list on status requests
Size limit for server resource packs has been increased to 250 MB
Sprinting is no longer reduced to walking when gently brushing your sleeve against a wall
Swamp trees can grow in water 2 blocks deep (instead of just 1 block deep)
The terrain shape and elevation varies dramatically, independently of biomes. For example, forests and deserts could form up on a hill without needing a special biome just for that.
Underground features, structures, and caves generate all the way down to y=-64
Unrendered chunk holes in the world should not appear anymore while flying fast with high render distance
View distance now causes chunks to load cylindrical around players instead of in a square
Villages are slightly more spread out
Advancements
Advancements have also gotten some additions as well:
Added “Caves & Cliffs” for falling from top to bottom of the Overworld
Added “Feels like home” for riding strider on lava for 50 blocks in the Overworld
Added “Star Trader” for trading with a villager at the build height limit
Added “Sound of Music” for playing music with a jukebox in a Meadow biome
Another change is to the list of effects that used to pop up to the left of a player’s inventory.
They now will list on the right side and has two modes:
Compact: a single icon for each effect
Classic: pre-existing list of effects listed fully
The game will automatically switch between the two modes to suit the available screen estate (including having the recipe book open)
Updating old worlds to 1.18 will be basically seamless! With the mechanic Mojang calls “blending”, surface height, biomes, terrain, and caves will all blend together. In old chunks, if there is any bedrock at y=0, the sections below non-air blocks will be filled with new generation. The old bedrock between y=0 and y=4 in old chunks will be replaced with deepslate and a new bedrock layer is formed at y=-64.
We’d be remiss to not remind everyone that the Deep Dark biome has been delayed until 2022 to be released with the 1.19, the Wild, update. So we’ll all have to wait a little longer to be terrified of the Warden mob.
The Deep Dark biome will also be home to the sculk blocks and include loot chests and mysterious structures.
While there are little additions of blocks from 1.17 to 1.18, there are a few changes and additions to Minecraft:
Added a new music disc from Lena Raine titled ‘Otherside’. This can be found rarely in Stronghold Corridor Chests, or much more rarely in Dungeon Chests.
Enchanting Tables now emit a low amount of light
Using Shears on the tip of a Cave Vine, Twisting Vine, Weeping Wine, and Kelp will stop them from further growing
Copper Ore now drops 2-5 (formerly 2-3) Raw Copper items
In the Stonecutter, a Block of Copper can be converted to 4 Cut Copper
Restricted Big Dripleaf placement to Clay, Grass, Dirt, Farmland, Moss, Rooted Dirt, Podzol, and Mycelium
Ore Veins are large, rare, snake-like underground ore formations. Copper Ore Veins form between height 0 and 50 and are mixed with Granite, while Iron Ore Veins form below height -60 and -8 and are mixed with Tuff.
While we already covered all the biome changes in another guide, we’ll still cover the exciting parts here. You can always read our other guide for deeper information and more changes (such as biome name changes). However, here are the new mountain biomes added!
Meadow
The meadow is a grassy biome filled with patches of flowers and turquoise-green grass or double tall grass. Rarely, a lone oak or birch tree of any size can generate and always has a bee nest. Both pillager outposts, and plains villages can generate in this biome, making this the only mountain biome where villages can generate. The meadow biome generates in the lower sides of some mountains but can also generate standalone in plateaus, mainly next to plains and other temperate biomes.
Grove
The grove creates a forest of spruce trees on the sides of a mountain. The surface is covered with snow, snow blocks, dirt, and a lot of powder snow instead of grass blocks. This biome generates in high altitudes beneath the peaks and on hilltops next to forested biomes such as dark forests and taigas, and can generate at lower altitudes if next to snowy biomes.
Snowy Slopes
The snowy slopes is a mostly barren biome covered in snow, multiple layers of snow blocks and powder snow, with some sides also having stone cliffs. This is the only mountain biome where igloos can generate. Just like the grove, this biome generates at the slopes of the mountain, beneath the peaks and in hilltops. They’re generally near areas with less forested biomes, like plains and snowy tundras, and can start generating at lower altitudes in snowy regions.
Jagged Peaks
The jagged peaks are one of the three peak biomes that generate only on the top of the mountain if they are tall enough, peaking at y=256. It is covered by a single layer of snow blocks with stone underneath often exposing ores such as coal, iron and emerald, and just like the snowy slopes, stone cliffs can generate in some sides of the mountain.
Frozen Peaks
The frozen peaks are covered with snow, snow blocks, glaciers of packed ice, and occasional small blobs of ice. Frozen peaks generate in smaller and smoother hills near snowy, cold and temperate biomes, but it can also generate in slightly jagged and taller peaks.
Stony Peaks
The stony peaks biome is a warmer variation of both the jagged peaks and the frozen peaks biomes that generates when a mountain peak is in a region with lukewarm biomes such as savannas, and jungles. It doesn’t generate snowy slopes or groves in the slopes of the mountain, unless there’s a colder biome bordering the peak. It is mainly covered by stone, with large strips of calcite and exposed ores. The grass and foliage in this biome have a unique vibrant light green tint.
Noise caves are the new cave generation method. The name isn’t because due to sound, it’s more of a technical term. While cave carvers (aka openings) and canyons generate the same, they’re combined with the three new types of caves:
Cheese caves have large stone towers stretching from the bottom of the cave to the top, and are often large enough to allow safe elytra flight.
Spaghetti caves are long, thin caves that have small aquifers and are more similar to original caves.
Noodle caves are thinner, squigglier, and more claustrophobic variants of spaghetti caves.
Caves can contain aquifers, bodies of water with different heights, that are independent of the sea level. Aquifers can sometimes result in large underground lakes, form inside mountains, or on the surface. There’s even a chance they’ll generate as lava aquifers below y=0!
There are also two new biomes included with cave generation!
Dripstone Caves
Dripstone caves generate with dripstone blocks and pointed dripstone both hanging as stalactites and growing from the ground as stalagmites. Small water wells of 1 × 1 blocks are generated in the ground. This biome also generates larger copper ore blobs compared to other biomes.
Lush Caves
Lush caves generate underground at any height, usually in areas with forested biomes. Azalea trees generate on any empty space above a lush cave, with roots consisting of rooted dirt and hanging roots that generate down until reaching the lush cave.
Within, moss and ores covers the floors and ceilings, along with moss carpets, grass, and azalea bushes. On the ceiling, vines and cave vines with glow berries grow down and light up the caves. Spore blossoms grow from the ceiling and drip water particles. A lush cave contains springs and shallow lakes with clay where dripleaf plants grow out of them.
If you’re interested in even more information on the update (because yes, there is plenty more to learn), click the below links to your corresponding game version:
Odin Hartshorn Halvorson is a writer, geek, and hopeful futurist. A graduate from Stonecoast MFA, his work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He is the founder of Round Table Writers, an organization dedicated to “writers helping writers.” Odin’s love of Roddenberrian and Straczynskian ideals leads him to contemplate technology’s role in our evolving philosophic landscape, a line of inquiry threaded through both his fiction and non-fiction writing. Learn more at OdinHalvorson.com
When I think of home automation with a Raspberry Pi, controlling my garage door is the first project that comes to mind. So I decided to build this myself.
For the first time, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston have been able to use a special form of 3D printing to create a “living ink” that can release cancer cures, absorb toxins from the body, and regulate its growth as needed by the host.
“We set out to develop a bioink… “microbial ink” that is produced entirely from genetically engineered microbial cells…”
The team wanted to create “an extrudable bioink that had high print fidelity, produce the bioink entirely from engineered microbes, and create a programmable platform that would push the emerging field of living materials to unexplored frontiers.”
They succeeded. Now, for the very first time, a living ink that is capable of responding to its environment has been created, and the future of medical technology just took a massive step into the future.
3D-printing microbial ink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
“Many bioink designs have already been explored, none so far have fully leveraged the genetic programmability of microbes to rationally control the mechanical properties of the bioink.”
Attempts to print living microbial structures have been attempted with inkjet printing, contact printing, screen printing, and lithographic techniques, but so far, it’s extrusion, or 3D-printing that has allowed the field to truly advance.
Various forms of printed microbial structures have been experimented with before now, but all of these required some sort of additional polymer. Instead, the team has developed a type of bioink that is completely derived from proteins produced by E.coli cells. It is by then injecting other, genetically modified E.coli cells, that the living structures are formed to allow for drug release and toxin absorption.
The genetically modified E.coli produces this ink by fusing positively and negatively charged protein modules, which attach to one another and lock to create crosslinked fibers. After this, the team filtered the resulting product to further concentrate the bacteria in order to create a compound of the suitable viscosity and elasticity needed for printing.
The result? A gel that can be piped to produce threads half a millimeter wide: that’s half the size of a pencil tip! This thread is strong enough to hold up even when stretched 16 milliliters apart, a giant distance for something so thin. This proved that their new technique for making bioink worked, and that they could get away with creating a bioink from nothing more than the protein connections produced by the E.coli bacteria.
Microbial ink to living bioink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
Once the researchers knew that their new microbial ink worked, they introduced genetically engineered microbes to the mixture. This produced 3D-printed living functional architectures: living material capable of carrying out a massive range of therapeutic applications.
By seeding this new bioink with a cancer-fighting drug called azurin, the researchers discovered that they could ensure the bioink released azurin whenever it detected a chemical called IPTG. These tests showed that the bioink could respond to its environment, actively producing the anticancer drug only when it needed to. This meant that the bioink could be further engineered to effectively control and/or induce cell growth and death, depending on the need of a patient.
Their next step was to see if their new biofilm could be taught to absorb something harmful. For this, the team chose the harmful chemical BPA (bisphenol A), an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1950s despite being shown to cause harmful effects.
The researchers added new modified cells that, via the same interlinking feature they used to connect to one another, could connect and trap particles of BPA: almost a full 30 percent of the toxin in the text liquid within just 24 hours.
The future of medical science: 3D-printed living therapy! Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
The science is complex, but the outcome is simple and beautiful. Future bioinks will be able to respond to the environment they are inside: such as a human body. There, they can automatically release lifesaving drugs directly to the source of serious conditions.
These new bioinks will also be able to tackle toxins in a patient’s body by binding to those toxins (using part of the same bonding mechanism that holds the bioink together). They will then be able to thereby capture those toxins and remove them from the body.
Best of all, this new 3D-printing process is cost-effective, fast, and incredibly stable when compared to previous methods that have been used. It pushes the boundaries of what such technology can do and, while you probably won’t be able to 3D-print your own anti-cancer therapy any time soon, there might be a day in the not-so-distant future when some of our worst illnesses are combated from by genetically-engineered living structures that defend us from within.
For the first time, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston have been able to use a special form of 3D printing to create a “living ink” that can release cancer cures, absorb toxins from the body, and regulate its growth as needed by the host.
“We set out to develop a bioink… “microbial ink” that is produced entirely from genetically engineered microbial cells…”
The team wanted to create “an extrudable bioink that had high print fidelity, produce the bioink entirely from engineered microbes, and create a programmable platform that would push the emerging field of living materials to unexplored frontiers.”
They succeeded. Now, for the very first time, a living ink that is capable of responding to its environment has been created, and the future of medical technology just took a massive step into the future.
3D-printing microbial ink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
“Many bioink designs have already been explored, none so far have fully leveraged the genetic programmability of microbes to rationally control the mechanical properties of the bioink.”
Attempts to print living microbial structures have been attempted with inkjet printing, contact printing, screen printing, and lithographic techniques, but so far, it’s extrusion, or 3D-printing that has allowed the field to truly advance.
Various forms of printed microbial structures have been experimented with before now, but all of these required some sort of additional polymer. Instead, the team has developed a type of bioink that is completely derived from proteins produced by E.coli cells. It is by then injecting other, genetically modified E.coli cells, that the living structures are formed to allow for drug release and toxin absorption.
The genetically modified E.coli produces this ink by fusing positively and negatively charged protein modules, which attach to one another and lock to create crosslinked fibers. After this, the team filtered the resulting product to further concentrate the bacteria in order to create a compound of the suitable viscosity and elasticity needed for printing.
The result? A gel that can be piped to produce threads half a millimeter wide: that’s half the size of a pencil tip! This thread is strong enough to hold up even when stretched 16 milliliters apart, a giant distance for something so thin. This proved that their new technique for making bioink worked, and that they could get away with creating a bioink from nothing more than the protein connections produced by the E.coli bacteria.
Microbial ink to living bioink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
Once the researchers knew that their new microbial ink worked, they introduced genetically engineered microbes to the mixture. This produced 3D-printed living functional architectures: living material capable of carrying out a massive range of therapeutic applications.
By seeding this new bioink with a cancer-fighting drug called azurin, the researchers discovered that they could ensure the bioink released azurin whenever it detected a chemical called IPTG. These tests showed that the bioink could respond to its environment, actively producing the anticancer drug only when it needed to. This meant that the bioink could be further engineered to effectively control and/or induce cell growth and death, depending on the need of a patient.
Their next step was to see if their new biofilm could be taught to absorb something harmful. For this, the team chose the harmful chemical BPA (bisphenol A), an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1950s despite being shown to cause harmful effects.
The researchers added new modified cells that, via the same interlinking feature they used to connect to one another, could connect and trap particles of BPA: almost a full 30 percent of the toxin in the text liquid within just 24 hours.
The future of medical science: 3D-printed living therapy! Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
The science is complex, but the outcome is simple and beautiful. Future bioinks will be able to respond to the environment they are inside: such as a human body. There, they can automatically release lifesaving drugs directly to the source of serious conditions.
These new bioinks will also be able to tackle toxins in a patient’s body by binding to those toxins (using part of the same bonding mechanism that holds the bioink together). They will then be able to thereby capture those toxins and remove them from the body.
Best of all, this new 3D-printing process is cost-effective, fast, and incredibly stable when compared to previous methods that have been used. It pushes the boundaries of what such technology can do and, while you probably won’t be able to 3D-print your own anti-cancer therapy any time soon, there might be a day in the not-so-distant future when some of our worst illnesses are combated from by genetically-engineered living structures that defend us from within.
For the first time, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston have been able to use a special form of 3D printing to create a “living ink” that can release cancer cures, absorb toxins from the body, and regulate its growth as needed by the host.
“We set out to develop a bioink… “microbial ink” that is produced entirely from genetically engineered microbial cells…”
The team wanted to create “an extrudable bioink that had high print fidelity, produce the bioink entirely from engineered microbes, and create a programmable platform that would push the emerging field of living materials to unexplored frontiers.”
They succeeded. Now, for the very first time, a living ink that is capable of responding to its environment has been created, and the future of medical technology just took a massive step into the future.
3D-printing microbial ink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
“Many bioink designs have already been explored, none so far have fully leveraged the genetic programmability of microbes to rationally control the mechanical properties of the bioink.”
Attempts to print living microbial structures have been attempted with inkjet printing, contact printing, screen printing, and lithographic techniques, but so far, it’s extrusion, or 3D-printing that has allowed the field to truly advance.
Various forms of printed microbial structures have been experimented with before now, but all of these required some sort of additional polymer. Instead, the team has developed a type of bioink that is completely derived from proteins produced by E.coli cells. It is by then injecting other, genetically modified E.coli cells, that the living structures are formed to allow for drug release and toxin absorption.
The genetically modified E.coli produces this ink by fusing positively and negatively charged protein modules, which attach to one another and lock to create crosslinked fibers. After this, the team filtered the resulting product to further concentrate the bacteria in order to create a compound of the suitable viscosity and elasticity needed for printing.
The result? A gel that can be piped to produce threads half a millimeter wide: that’s half the size of a pencil tip! This thread is strong enough to hold up even when stretched 16 milliliters apart, a giant distance for something so thin. This proved that their new technique for making bioink worked, and that they could get away with creating a bioink from nothing more than the protein connections produced by the E.coli bacteria.
Microbial ink to living bioink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
Once the researchers knew that their new microbial ink worked, they introduced genetically engineered microbes to the mixture. This produced 3D-printed living functional architectures: living material capable of carrying out a massive range of therapeutic applications.
By seeding this new bioink with a cancer-fighting drug called azurin, the researchers discovered that they could ensure the bioink released azurin whenever it detected a chemical called IPTG. These tests showed that the bioink could respond to its environment, actively producing the anticancer drug only when it needed to. This meant that the bioink could be further engineered to effectively control and/or induce cell growth and death, depending on the need of a patient.
Their next step was to see if their new biofilm could be taught to absorb something harmful. For this, the team chose the harmful chemical BPA (bisphenol A), an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1950s despite being shown to cause harmful effects.
The researchers added new modified cells that, via the same interlinking feature they used to connect to one another, could connect and trap particles of BPA: almost a full 30 percent of the toxin in the text liquid within just 24 hours.
The future of medical science: 3D-printed living therapy! Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
The science is complex, but the outcome is simple and beautiful. Future bioinks will be able to respond to the environment they are inside: such as a human body. There, they can automatically release lifesaving drugs directly to the source of serious conditions.
These new bioinks will also be able to tackle toxins in a patient’s body by binding to those toxins (using part of the same bonding mechanism that holds the bioink together). They will then be able to thereby capture those toxins and remove them from the body.
Best of all, this new 3D-printing process is cost-effective, fast, and incredibly stable when compared to previous methods that have been used. It pushes the boundaries of what such technology can do and, while you probably won’t be able to 3D-print your own anti-cancer therapy any time soon, there might be a day in the not-so-distant future when some of our worst illnesses are combated from by genetically-engineered living structures that defend us from within.
For the first time, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston have been able to use a special form of 3D printing to create a “living ink” that can release cancer cures, absorb toxins from the body, and regulate its growth as needed by the host.
“We set out to develop a bioink… “microbial ink” that is produced entirely from genetically engineered microbial cells…”
The team wanted to create “an extrudable bioink that had high print fidelity, produce the bioink entirely from engineered microbes, and create a programmable platform that would push the emerging field of living materials to unexplored frontiers.”
They succeeded. Now, for the very first time, a living ink that is capable of responding to its environment has been created, and the future of medical technology just took a massive step into the future.
Microbial 3D-printed “Living Ink” Fights Cancer
3D-printed E.coli-based bioink can release anti-cancer drugs and absorb dangerous toxins.
3D-printing microbial ink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
“Many bioink designs have already been explored, none so far have fully leveraged the genetic programmability of microbes to rationally control the mechanical properties of the bioink.”
Attempts to print living microbial structures have been attempted with inkjet printing, contact printing, screen printing, and lithographic techniques, but so far, it’s extrusion, or 3D-printing that has allowed the field to truly advance.
Various forms of printed microbial structures have been experimented with before now, but all of these required some sort of additional polymer. Instead, the team has developed a type of bioink that is completely derived from proteins produced by E.coli cells. It is by then injecting other, genetically modified E.coli cells, that the living structures are formed to allow for drug release and toxin absorption.
The genetically modified E.coli produces this ink by fusing positively and negatively charged protein modules, which attach to one another and lock to create crosslinked fibers. After this, the team filtered the resulting product to further concentrate the bacteria in order to create a compound of the suitable viscosity and elasticity needed for printing.
The result? A gel that can be piped to produce threads half a millimeter wide: that’s half the size of a pencil tip! This thread is strong enough to hold up even when stretched 16 milliliters apart, a giant distance for something so thin. This proved that their new technique for making bioink worked, and that they could get away with creating a bioink from nothing more than the protein connections produced by the E.coli bacteria.
3D-printing microbial ink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
“Many bioink designs have already been explored, none so far have fully leveraged the genetic programmability of microbes to rationally control the mechanical properties of the bioink.”
Attempts to print living microbial structures have been attempted with inkjet printing, contact printing, screen printing, and lithographic techniques, but so far, it’s extrusion, or 3D-printing that has allowed the field to truly advance.
Various forms of printed microbial structures have been experimented with before now, but all of these required some sort of additional polymer. Instead, the team has developed a type of bioink that is completely derived from proteins produced by E.coli cells. It is by then injecting other, genetically modified E.coli cells, that the living structures are formed to allow for drug release and toxin absorption.
The genetically modified E.coli produces this ink by fusing positively and negatively charged protein modules, which attach to one another and lock to create crosslinked fibers. After this, the team filtered the resulting product to further concentrate the bacteria in order to create a compound of the suitable viscosity and elasticity needed for printing.
The result? A gel that can be piped to produce threads half a millimeter wide: that’s half the size of a pencil tip! This thread is strong enough to hold up even when stretched 16 milliliters apart, a giant distance for something so thin. This proved that their new technique for making bioink worked, and that they could get away with creating a bioink from nothing more than the protein connections produced by the E.coli bacteria.
Microbial ink to living bioink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
Once the researchers knew that their new microbial ink worked, they introduced genetically engineered microbes to the mixture. This produced 3D-printed living functional architectures: living material capable of carrying out a massive range of therapeutic applications.
By seeding this new bioink with a cancer-fighting drug called azurin, the researchers discovered that they could ensure the bioink released azurin whenever it detected a chemical called IPTG. These tests showed that the bioink could respond to its environment, actively producing the anticancer drug only when it needed to. This meant that the bioink could be further engineered to effectively control and/or induce cell growth and death, depending on the need of a patient.
Their next step was to see if their new biofilm could be taught to absorb something harmful. For this, the team chose the harmful chemical BPA (bisphenol A), an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1950s despite being shown to cause harmful effects.
The researchers added new modified cells that, via the same interlinking feature they used to connect to one another, could connect and trap particles of BPA: almost a full 30 percent of the toxin in the text liquid within just 24 hours.
Microbial ink to living bioink Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
Once the researchers knew that their new microbial ink worked, they introduced genetically engineered microbes to the mixture. This produced 3D-printed living functional architectures: living material capable of carrying out a massive range of therapeutic applications.
By seeding this new bioink with a cancer-fighting drug called azurin, the researchers discovered that they could ensure the bioink released azurin whenever it detected a chemical called IPTG. These tests showed that the bioink could respond to its environment, actively producing the anticancer drug only when it needed to. This meant that the bioink could be further engineered to effectively control and/or induce cell growth and death, depending on the need of a patient.
Their next step was to see if their new biofilm could be taught to absorb something harmful. For this, the team chose the harmful chemical BPA (bisphenol A), an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1950s despite being shown to cause harmful effects.
The researchers added new modified cells that, via the same interlinking feature they used to connect to one another, could connect and trap particles of BPA: almost a full 30 percent of the toxin in the text liquid within just 24 hours.
The future of medical science: 3D-printed living therapy! Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
The science is complex, but the outcome is simple and beautiful. Future bioinks will be able to respond to the environment they are inside: such as a human body. There, they can automatically release lifesaving drugs directly to the source of serious conditions.
These new bioinks will also be able to tackle toxins in a patient’s body by binding to those toxins (using part of the same bonding mechanism that holds the bioink together). They will then be able to thereby capture those toxins and remove them from the body.
Best of all, this new 3D-printing process is cost-effective, fast, and incredibly stable when compared to previous methods that have been used. It pushes the boundaries of what such technology can do and, while you probably won’t be able to 3D-print your own anti-cancer therapy any time soon, there might be a day in the not-so-distant future when some of our worst illnesses are combated from by genetically-engineered living structures that defend us from within.
The future of medical science: 3D-printed living therapy! Duraj-Thatte et al.; Nature Communications
The science is complex, but the outcome is simple and beautiful. Future bioinks will be able to respond to the environment they are inside: such as a human body. There, they can automatically release lifesaving drugs directly to the source of serious conditions.
These new bioinks will also be able to tackle toxins in a patient’s body by binding to those toxins (using part of the same bonding mechanism that holds the bioink together). They will then be able to thereby capture those toxins and remove them from the body.
Best of all, this new 3D-printing process is cost-effective, fast, and incredibly stable when compared to previous methods that have been used. It pushes the boundaries of what such technology can do and, while you probably won’t be able to 3D-print your own anti-cancer therapy any time soon, there might be a day in the not-so-distant future when some of our worst illnesses are combated from by genetically-engineered living structures that defend us from within.
Odin Hartshorn Halvorson is a writer, geek, and hopeful futurist. A graduate from Stonecoast MFA, his work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He is the founder of Round Table Writers, an organization dedicated to “writers helping writers.” Odin’s love of Roddenberrian and Straczynskian ideals leads him to contemplate technology’s role in our evolving philosophic landscape, a line of inquiry threaded through both his fiction and non-fiction writing. Learn more at OdinHalvorson.com
Each week, check out my latest article for the new hit game or add-on released for free from the Epic Games Store! This week Epic has two awesome games up for free release: Dead by Daylight and while True: learn(). It would be hard to find two more totally different games, I think, which makes this a fun pack to explore for a wide range of gamers.
Dead by Daylight is a multiplayer (4vs1) horror game where one player takes on the role of the savage Killer, and the other four players play as Survivors, trying to escape the Killer and avoid being caught and killed.
In while True: learn() you play as a coder who accidentally found out that their cat is extremely good at coding, but not as good at speaking human language. Now this coder (it’s you!) must learn all there is to know about machine learning and use visual programming to build a cat-to-human speech recognition system.
The Epic Games Store has been around for a while, the lesser-known alternative to Steam, the nearly-ubiquitous platform for game purchases since it launched in 2003. But, where Steam originally existed and launched to promote Valve games, Epic Games Store launched in 2018 and quickly rose to success on the Fortnight franchise. At the time of Epic’s launch, Steam took a dramatic 30% cut from the sales of video games through their platform! This hurt both game designers and users, just wasn’t very nice. But the folks behind Epic realized something excellent: they could take a much lower cut and still have a profitable business. This led them to fast domination of the indie market, as small publishers flocked to the far better terms offered by Epic.
Mega Discounts
Epic Games Store offers some seriously incredible discounts on a regular basis, in addition to all the normal discounts one would expect on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the usual holidays. But the most exciting is their weekly free game or add-on, which simply harpoons all competitors.
When I first heard about this free game, I thought that can’t be real. They must only offer tiny indie games.Not at all, dear reader. Not. At. All. Epic frequently lists unbelievable A-lister games on their weekly deal, as well as sometimes offer two free games instead of one. In addition, just because a studio is smaller doesn’t mean the games it makes aren’t impressive. I’ve picked up some of my favorite new games, for free, from this platform, and most of them have been made by smaller studios (or as side-projects for teams from big studios).
Dead by Daylight is a multiplayer (4vs1) horror game where one player takes on the role of the savage Killer, and the other four players play as Survivors, trying to escape the Killer and avoid being caught and killed.
Have you ever wanted to live within a classic Slasher horror film? Well, now you can. As one of the four survivors you need to work together to find and repair power generators that allow them to escape from the nightmarish hunting grounds. For the killer, the goal is clear: hunt down the survivors before they can escape. But there are some fun twists, such as the limited 1st-person perspective for the killer, that make the game feel unique and adds to a great sense of horror themed tension.
Dead by Daylight has been out a few years now but it keeps releasing new content and manages to continue internal updates that keep things interesting. Random matches with other players aren’t always instantiates online, but there is a large enough playerbase to make it possible to find a party within a few minutes.
Watch the video:
Behaviour Interactive has developed and produced a number of games over the years, including Fallout: Shelter and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. While they mostly develop mobile and console games, they clearly understand how to create a game that works well across multiple platforms.
In this game, you play as a coder who accidentally found out that their cat is extremely good at coding, but not as good at speaking human language. Now this coder (it’s you!) must learn all there is to know about machine learning and use visual programming to build a cat-to-human speech recognition system.
I absolutely adore games that allow you to do explore something real. Sometimes, that means engaging with a storyline that stirs the soul, other times it means learning a new skill or coming to understand the world in a new way. Ludeon.io (the studio behind while True: learn() desires to make games that help people learn about the world, all while being deliriously fun.
In this, they succeed in high degree. Their games all work to help players understand the world, learn skills from cooperation and teamwork, to actual coding, and they are constantly pushing the envelope of what games can be in the modern age.
Watch the video:
Luden.io makes games that serve as learning enablers. They believe in a future where education is focused on helping people find their true passion and their games are here to let players have fun, learn by experimenting with different topics, and deep dive if they feel interested.
This game got popularized recently, in part because of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez streaming herself playing it for hours on end! If you like the fun and danger of not knowing who the killer is, this game will absolutely provide that—and it will do so without the over-the-top violence of Dead by Daylight (but still with a wee bit of gruesome death).
SHENZHEN I/O
Another great logic game with a bit of a silly theme, SHENSHEN I.O features a wide variety of puzzles and uses the Assembly language to help you understand actual coding! Build circuits using a variety of components from different manufacturers, like microcontrollers, memory, logic gates, and LCD screens. Write code in a compact and powerful assembly language where every instruction can be conditionally executed.
Microsoft has released Windows 11, and while it comes with some strange drawbacks, there are plenty of reasons to update your PC.
Updating your PC to the newest version of Windows is simple. We’ll walk you through the process right here, while stopping along the way to point out where you can update your current version of Windows, if that’s what you’re looking to do instead.
Once on your Updates & Security page, you’ll see several things.
First, you’ll be able to check if your current version of Windows has any updates. If you’re not looking to update to the newest version of Windows, and would rather just update your current version (if there’s one available), you can do so right here. As you can see on the image above, my current version of Windows does not need an update.
If you’re looking to update to a new version of Windows, check out step 3!
If you’re looking to update your version of Windows to the newest version, you’ll see an option to do so on the right side of your Updates & Security, as pictured above.
Please Note: Make sure your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows. You should see a note that tells you if your PC is compatible, but ff you’re still unsure, you’ll see a link that says ‘Check device specifications’ that you can click on. Clicking this link takes you to a page where you can check if your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows based on your PC’s CPU. I highly recommend this step if you have any questions about your PC’s compatibility.
If you’re ready to move forward, click ‘See if it’s ready to install.’
At this point you’ll see a message telling you whether or not the new version of Windows is available for you to download and install. As you can see, my PC is ready!
Click download and install, and your PC will automatically begin the process of updating your Windows version. You’ll still be able to do things on your PC while the process takes place, but you will be prompted to restart your PC once the new version of Windows has been downloaded and installed.
Once your PC is restarted, you’ll have the new version of Windows on your PC!
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
Microsoft has released Windows 11, and while it comes with some strange drawbacks, there are plenty of reasons to update your PC.
Updating your PC to the newest version of Windows is simple. We’ll walk you through the process right here, while stopping along the way to point out where you can update your current version of Windows, if that’s what you’re looking to do instead.
Once on your Updates & Security page, you’ll see several things.
First, you’ll be able to check if your current version of Windows has any updates. If you’re not looking to update to the newest version of Windows, and would rather just update your current version (if there’s one available), you can do so right here. As you can see on the image above, my current version of Windows does not need an update.
If you’re looking to update to a new version of Windows, check out step 3!
If you’re looking to update your version of Windows to the newest version, you’ll see an option to do so on the right side of your Updates & Security, as pictured above.
Please Note: Make sure your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows. You should see a note that tells you if your PC is compatible, but ff you’re still unsure, you’ll see a link that says ‘Check device specifications’ that you can click on. Clicking this link takes you to a page where you can check if your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows based on your PC’s CPU. I highly recommend this step if you have any questions about your PC’s compatibility.
If you’re ready to move forward, click ‘See if it’s ready to install.’
At this point you’ll see a message telling you whether or not the new version of Windows is available for you to download and install. As you can see, my PC is ready!
Click download and install, and your PC will automatically begin the process of updating your Windows version. You’ll still be able to do things on your PC while the process takes place, but you will be prompted to restart your PC once the new version of Windows has been downloaded and installed.
Once your PC is restarted, you’ll have the new version of Windows on your PC!
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
Microsoft has released Windows 11, and while it comes with some strange drawbacks, there are plenty of reasons to update your PC.
Updating your PC to the newest version of Windows is simple. We’ll walk you through the process right here, while stopping along the way to point out where you can update your current version of Windows, if that’s what you’re looking to do instead.
Once on your Updates & Security page, you’ll see several things.
First, you’ll be able to check if your current version of Windows has any updates. If you’re not looking to update to the newest version of Windows, and would rather just update your current version (if there’s one available), you can do so right here. As you can see on the image above, my current version of Windows does not need an update.
If you’re looking to update to a new version of Windows, check out step 3!
If you’re looking to update your version of Windows to the newest version, you’ll see an option to do so on the right side of your Updates & Security, as pictured above.
Please Note: Make sure your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows. You should see a note that tells you if your PC is compatible, but ff you’re still unsure, you’ll see a link that says ‘Check device specifications’ that you can click on. Clicking this link takes you to a page where you can check if your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows based on your PC’s CPU. I highly recommend this step if you have any questions about your PC’s compatibility.
If you’re ready to move forward, click ‘See if it’s ready to install.’
At this point you’ll see a message telling you whether or not the new version of Windows is available for you to download and install. As you can see, my PC is ready!
Click download and install, and your PC will automatically begin the process of updating your Windows version. You’ll still be able to do things on your PC while the process takes place, but you will be prompted to restart your PC once the new version of Windows has been downloaded and installed.
Once your PC is restarted, you’ll have the new version of Windows on your PC!
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
Microsoft has released Windows 11, and while it comes with some strange drawbacks, there are plenty of reasons to update your PC.
Updating your PC to the newest version of Windows is simple. We’ll walk you through the process right here, while stopping along the way to point out where you can update your current version of Windows, if that’s what you’re looking to do instead.
Once on your Updates & Security page, you’ll see several things.
First, you’ll be able to check if your current version of Windows has any updates. If you’re not looking to update to the newest version of Windows, and would rather just update your current version (if there’s one available), you can do so right here. As you can see on the image above, my current version of Windows does not need an update.
If you’re looking to update to a new version of Windows, check out step 3!
Once on your Updates & Security page, you’ll see several things.
First, you’ll be able to check if your current version of Windows has any updates. If you’re not looking to update to the newest version of Windows, and would rather just update your current version (if there’s one available), you can do so right here. As you can see on the image above, my current version of Windows does not need an update.
If you’re looking to update to a new version of Windows, check out step 3!
If you’re looking to update your version of Windows to the newest version, you’ll see an option to do so on the right side of your Updates & Security, as pictured above.
Please Note: Make sure your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows. You should see a note that tells you if your PC is compatible, but ff you’re still unsure, you’ll see a link that says ‘Check device specifications’ that you can click on. Clicking this link takes you to a page where you can check if your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows based on your PC’s CPU. I highly recommend this step if you have any questions about your PC’s compatibility.
If you’re ready to move forward, click ‘See if it’s ready to install.’
If you’re looking to update your version of Windows to the newest version, you’ll see an option to do so on the right side of your Updates & Security, as pictured above.
Please Note: Make sure your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows. You should see a note that tells you if your PC is compatible, but ff you’re still unsure, you’ll see a link that says ‘Check device specifications’ that you can click on. Clicking this link takes you to a page where you can check if your PC is compatible with the newest version of Windows based on your PC’s CPU. I highly recommend this step if you have any questions about your PC’s compatibility.
If you’re ready to move forward, click ‘See if it’s ready to install.’
At this point you’ll see a message telling you whether or not the new version of Windows is available for you to download and install. As you can see, my PC is ready!
Click download and install, and your PC will automatically begin the process of updating your Windows version. You’ll still be able to do things on your PC while the process takes place, but you will be prompted to restart your PC once the new version of Windows has been downloaded and installed.
Once your PC is restarted, you’ll have the new version of Windows on your PC!
At this point you’ll see a message telling you whether or not the new version of Windows is available for you to download and install. As you can see, my PC is ready!
Click download and install, and your PC will automatically begin the process of updating your Windows version. You’ll still be able to do things on your PC while the process takes place, but you will be prompted to restart your PC once the new version of Windows has been downloaded and installed.
Once your PC is restarted, you’ll have the new version of Windows on your PC!
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
We all have our favorite browsers, but it’s becoming clear that Microsoft is less concerned with its users’ personal preferences and more focused on forcing people to use Edge.
Black Friday was made for big-ticket purchases like 3D printers! Expect huge discounts this year on many of your favorite 3D printer brands like Anycubic, Creality, and Prusa.
At Howchoo, we’re expecting the Black Friday sales to start early this year, as many shoppers are opting to stay home to do their holiday shopping. So there will be far fewer lines to get that half-price item this year, at the risk to lives! Most people buy their 3D printers online anyway, as most stores don’t carry large selections. So that’s even more reason to stay apprised of the best deals that are happening this Black Friday.
…we’re curating the best Black Friday 2021 3D printing sales right here at Howchoo!
When is Black Friday?
Black Friday technically falls on the Friday after Thanksgiving, which this year is Friday, November 26. However, with most shoppers preferring to stay home this year, online retailers will be offering major discounts throughout the entire month of November.
What is Black Friday?
Black Friday is the busiest shopping day of the year, both online and in-person. Retailers see it as the beginning of the holiday shopping season and encourage shoppers to do some gift-buying early with huge discounts on big-ticket items like computers and 3D printers. Shoppers see the day as a great time to buy early holiday gifts at great prices, particularly on bigger things. And a 3D printer is certainly a bigger thing!
What about Cyber Monday?
We’ll be keeping an even closer eye on Cyber Monday deals that usually occur on the Monday after Thanksgiving, which this year is Monday, November 29. Again, we expect that deals on electronics, computers, and certainly 3D printers will be happening throughout the month of November. But we will definitely be updating this page with any Cyber Monday deals for those interested in 3D printers.
Let us curate your 3D printing deals
We’re not going to advertise every single sale that’s happening with 3D printers, but we will be advertising the ones that we, ourselves, would be the most excited about. You’re not going to have to sift through a list of subpar 3D printers here because we won’t be sharing those.
A great gift this holiday season for a DIYer and/or maker
We would be thrilled to receive a 3D printer as a gift this holiday season, and we know that any DIYer or maker likely feels the same. Why not get one a huge discount this Black Friday to give as a gift. It would be the surprise of a lifetime and would likely bring countless hours of joy getting the 3D printer setup and running over the holiday. And check out some great Xmas and Holiday-themed 3D prints to get you started.
We’ll be updating this page right up until Cyber Monday, so check back often for the latest sales in 3D printers.
A huge discount! This 3D printer is included in our list of the best budget 3D printers. What we loved about it was that it was encased, came pre-assembled, and was at a great price. This printer uses PLA-type filament and uses auto bed leveling.
You should all know our feelings about the Ender 3 series of 3D printers by now. They are definitely the gold standard when the comes to budget 3D printers and even this small discount of $20 makes a good enough reason to invest in one of these right away. The Ender 3 Pro is the quieter, less wobbly version of its close cousins the Ender 3 and Ender 3 V2.
While it does require proprietary FEP film, this Anycubic Printer uses UV light to print, and has a printing speed 2.5x faster than a regular 3D printer!
Monoprice is one of the biggest names in budget 3D printers, and this price is really hard to beat for a good mini 3D printer. A nice bonus is that this 3D printer features auto-calibration to make it easier to calibrate your bed. This will be a nice bonus if you’re purchasing this for a young person.
The Anycubic Mega X is unique in that it is an excellent printer for both newbies and long-time 3D printer users. A nice feature is the high-strength extruder, leading to a reduced risk of nozzle clogging, as well as even output and stable rotation speed.
If you can’t seem to move in Blender, you might not be using the right technique. When it comes to free, open-source 3D-design tools, Blender is fairly flexible.