At the end of February DUS Architects organised a fundraising party for the RoomMaker, the world’s first large-scale and mobile 3D printer. The RoomMaker can print complete spaces of 3 x 3 x 2.4 metres.

"From niche phenomenon for enterprising and bored nerds, DIY, in its eco and techno versions, is increasingly becoming a subject of interest shared by the entire production chain. The Italian makers movement is strengthened by the legacy of its industrial and manufacturing districts and their excellence, often niche productions, envied throughout the world. "

"Hydrocolloid Printing: A Novel Platform for Customized Food Production"

"So what would happen is, just like an inkjet printer you have at home, instead of putting down droplets of ink, I’m putting down droplets of food.? But I control every single pixel.? I can use a laser to cook a pixel of food and get it exactly as warm as I want, cooked as slow or as fast as I want. … I think by comparison, what has been done in cooking is Neanderthal, it’s very primitive.?"

"Today we are coming a bit closer. We now can print objects in plastics, metal, ceramics and glas. Bioplotters are available for printing tissue and maybe even organs in the future. "

"Put your hand up if you know how to use a CAD package," Harouni asks the audience. A few brave hands go up, but most of the audience look like they're not entirely sure what CAD even stands for. "That's why. If I gave you a 3D printer, you wouldn't be able to use it."

Harouni wants to fix that, with her company Digital Forming. "Tools have emerged that are democratising design and make it possible for this technology to reach the public.

"...chiefly due to developments that allow modern 3-D printers to turn out finished objects in media ranging from the high-grade titanium alloys necessary for aircraft construction to glass, plastics, concrete, and even frosting. Printing finished parts saves on production costs because there is dramatically less waste (especially in the case of airframe components, which can leave up to 90 percent of a block of pricey titanium on the machine shop floor) and it allows manufacturers to tweak designs or customize parts at a fraction of the cost of re-tooling a machining process."

"These 3-D printers, some already costing less than a computer did in 1999, can print objects by spraying layers of plastic, metal or ceramics into shapes. People can download plans for an object, hit print, and a few minutes later have it in their hands."

"Engineers from the Bristol wing of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) have announced the development of the first bicycle using Additive Layer Manufacturing (ALM) technology. The manufacturing process involves "growing" the components from a fine nylon powder, similar in concept to 3D printing."

"Using a technique called contour crafting, they propose sending robots to seed the surface of the moon with the basic infrastructure for a moon base (landing pads, roads, hangars, etc.). Once the construction is completed, human crew could lift off and move into their new home." 3D printing of concrete on the moon.

"Testing the initial appeal and actual usage of a potential new product by simulating its core experience with the smallest possible investment of time and money."

"There are many different types of tools available to developers, from low-tech stencil kits to high-tech collaborative software. So I’ve rounded up a few of the more popular ones people are using specifically for iPhone development. It’s far from being the definitive list, but it’s definitely a good place to start." useful pointers to iPhone proto tools