More about at home fabrication. I read about this story on Boing Boing, which was a blog post from this guy, who originally read about this machine on treehugger a few years ago. Wacky Internet.

Anyway, this machine will take flat pieces of shape remembering plastics, or Shape Memory Polymers, and mold the pieces of plastic into plates, bowls, and cups for your dining pleasure. The technology benefits us all by saving cupboard space. The manufacturers claim that this device will also reduce waste because people will not be going to the store to replace the dishes that they no longer want. When a design is no longer suitable, people will download a new pattern or shape for their dishes and press them on demand. The dishes can be reused up to 100 times according to lab tests. However, I have a set of dishes that have been in use since the mid-70's. - I guarantee that they have each been used way more than 100 times. That having been said, I think that the home fabrication machines have some real merit and a genuine future - it just needs to grow some legs, somehow.

Shape memory Polymers are the most interesting current material in this video. Shape Memory Polymers are plastics that are manufactured with a specific shape. The plastics can then be shaped or molded. Given a certain stimulus, such as heat or pressure, the plastic will return to the original shape. These materials were first developed in 1984 in Japan. There is a commercially available variety called Veriflex which can be purchased from CRG

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