The student innovation contest today at the UIST conference included many ingenious submissions. There were discerning desk drawers, dancing dracaena, disco dishwashers and many other diverse delights.
But my experience of the event was perhaps a little skewed by the fact that none of the snacks provided by the conference were anything I — or any of the other vegans present — would eat. So I ended up gravitating toward two projects in particular.
One of those projects was a modified toaster that could print custom patterns on a slice of bread, under computer control. The device could spell out messages, create images of cartoon characters, or print pretty much anything else you’d like to see on your breakfast toast.
The best part was that the students provided a handy jar of peanut butter. After you were done printing your custom slice of toast, you could spread peanut butter on it and walk away with a yummy snack. It was quite delicious.
The next project I visited used the kind of xyz stage you’d normally see in a 3D printer, repurposed to act as a jelly printer. Navigating as though playing a video game, you could steer a jelly-depositing “print head” over a slice of toast, painting on a pattern of your choice.
When you were all done with your jelly covered masterpiece, you could take the slice with you. I can happily report that it was very yummy. Between that and the previous demo, I ended up being happily fed.
Now if only those two groups of students could join forces, I’m sure they would take over the world.