Breaking: Vegemite May Power The Electronics Of The Future

Ok, not really, but this is pretty cool. Vegemite is a disgusting yeast paste beloved by far too many people. While I wouldn’t recommend actively eating it, Professor Marc in het Panhuis at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science figured out that you can 3D print the paste and use it to carry current, effectively creating Vegemite bio-wires. What does this mean? Soon you can run electricity through your food.

“The iconic Australian Vegemite is ideal for 3D printing edible electronics,” said the professor. “It contains water so it’s not a solid and can easily be extruded using a 3D printer. Also, it’s salty, so it conducts electricity.”

In terms of proof-of-concept the team has run current through a 3D-printed skein of Vegemite wires and it seems to work just fine. The group at ARC was trying to find a conductive, soft material for biorobotics. While there is no obvious practical application right now I can imagine a future full of Vegemite-infused robots that bleed yeast paste. The future, as they say, is already here. It’s just not evenly spread on bread.

via 3Dprint