Origami Science

mpark6288 writes: "Alright, so we all remember elementary school, and the endless paper cuts that we got from trying to learn some origami. Some how my crane was always a boat. But, as News Factor: Sci Tech states: 'The theorem is, you can make any shape, and there is an algorithm for folding the piece of paper,' stated MIT Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering Erik Demaine said. Referencing applications of origami in robotic arm manipulation, bioinformatics, protein folding and molecular biology, Demaine said there is a multitude of possibilities from origami principles as simple as folding a square piece of paper in half and making one calculated cut. So who knows, those annoying little shuriken (throwing stars) that you made to throw at girls (eww cooties) could have been a major scientific breakthrough!"

Comments

Origami and airbags, who knew?

[zapfie]

"They thought we might be able to adapt (origami-based) algorithms to solve their problem," Lang recalled. "Sure enough, it worked; now it's used to simulate airbags."

What wasn't mentioned was all the failed attempts to bring origami to airbags, including the infamous "1000-paper-cranes-exploding-in-your-face" airbag.

And I thought...

[AndrewRUK]

And I though origami was just for making fleets of boats when you're bored during lectures :-)

Re:Origami F-14

[3waygeek]

I have directions for folding an F-14 Tomcat from a square of paper. It flies great, and even has airfoils on the wings and control surfaces on the tail. You can see a picture of it here

So why are we paying millions of dollars for F-14s made of titanium?

Re:Origami F-14

[Eagle7]

I think it has something to do with that whole "combustion" thing. *shrug*