The Blog at Inside Dental Technology

Virtually Teleport Yourself

March 30, 2016

The Holoportation app unveiled this week uses specialized 3-D cameras to capture the surrounding environment and then reconstruct it in a VR headset. When you wear the headset, you see the virtually projected people (and objects) as if they are in the same room with you. And the people can see you.

Dental technicians could use this software to teleport themselves into dentist offices around the country. 

The First FDA Approved 3D Printed Drug is Now Available

March 25, 2016

Being diagnosed with epilepsy can be hard to swallow. However, thanks to a new 3D printed wonder drug, its medication need not be. Aprecia Pharmaceuticals recently announced the immediate availability of Spirtam, a seizure treatment manufactured using 3D printing technology. In August 2015, the drug became the first 3D printed medicine to receive FDA approval. 

What Happens When Our Computers are Smarter Than We Are?

March 21, 2016

Ted Talk: Artificial intelligence is getting smarter by leaps and bounds - within this century, research suggests, a computer Al could be as "smart" as a human being. And then, says Nick Bostrom, it will overtake us : "Machine interlligence is the last invention that humanity will ever need to make." A philosopher and technologist, Bostrom asks us to think hard about the world we're building right now, driven by thinking machines. Will our smart machines help to preserve humanity and our values - or will the have values of their own? 

12 Habits of the Most Productive People

March 16, 2016

You know those super-productive people who manage to get more done than the rest of us? Here are their serets. 

A Student 3D Prints His Own Teeth Aligners

March 15, 2016

Amos Dudley, an undergraduate student from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, always felt a bit self-conscious when he smiled because of a couple crooked teeth in his mouth. No longer wanting to impede his own happiness, Dudley set out to straighten out his smile, but found that he could not afford exorbitant orthodontic procedural costs. His solution? To 3D scan his own mouth, and 3D print his own set of teeth aligners.

3 Ways in Which a 3D Printer May Save Your Life

March 11, 2016

Re-imaging medical imaging, replacing tissues and organs, and designing human-centered medicines are just three ways in which 3D printing may save lives.

Why the Best Hire Might Not Have the Best Resume

March 4, 2016

Ted Talk: Given the choice between a job candidate with a perfect resume and one who has fought through difficulty, human resources executive Regina Hartley always gives the "Scrapper" a chance. As someone who grew up with adversity, Hartley knows that those who flourish in the darkest of spaces are empowered with the grit to persist in an ever-changing workplace. "Choose the underestimated contender, whose secret weapons are passion and purpose," she says. "Hire the Scrapper."

3D Analysis and CAD/CAM Techniques Lead to New Advances in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

March 1, 2016

Three-dimensional analysis, virtual surgical planning, and computer-aided design and manufacturing techniques are leading to new and refined approaches to reconstructive surgery of the skull, face, and jaw, according to a special topic article.