If there’s one corner of the internet I find myself constantly visiting, it’s the LEGO Ideas website just to see what unique stuff people are building. You usually see a healthy mix of submissions – architecture, cartoon characters, historic monuments, culture, and every once in a while, a working LEGO version of a real-life product, like a Turing machine or a lawn mower.

This ambitious set, crafted with 1,316 meticulously chosen pieces, turns mere bricks into a fairly functional microscope that you can peer through and examine samples under. Standing tall at 16.5 inches, this MOC (My Own Creation) from Peter_Designs is more functional than you’d expect. With a revolving nosepiece, working eyepiece, and adjustable sharpness controls, this creation promises not just to look good but to work like a charm, inspiring curiosity in everyone who assembles or uses it.

Designer: Peter_Designs

The LEGO Ideas Functional Microscope moves, adjusts, illuminates, and even magnifies. Three lenses in a revolving nosepiece let you simulate different magnification levels, complete with tiny bacteria models to examine. A press-activated light brings your samples to life, while fine and coarse sharpness controls let you dial in clarity. Every mechanism feels purposeful, engineered to transform assembly into interaction.

The model also carries the weight of history in its design. Microscopes have transformed how we see the world, from Galileo’s earliest designs to today’s electron microscopes that reveal the invisible. For Peter_Designs, this MOC hopes to celebrate the piece of equipment and all the achievements it’s aided. “My motivation for this set was twofold,” he says. “The first aim is to show that science can be fun! If approached right, it is not a limitation but an opportunity[…] The second motivation was to show an appreciation for people who dedicate their life to science – many hours of research and determined work, so that all of us can have better lives.”

The magnification settings, represented by LEGO-constructed bacteria samples, invite users to explore the microcosm in a tangible, imaginative way. The illumination light, coarse and fine adjustment knobs, and even a sprung sample clip make this as interactive as it is educational. The model offers a tactile understanding of how microscopes work, all while delivering the unmatched joy of building something extraordinary from tiny, interlocking bricks. Right above the rotating lenses lies a disc that features 2D representations of bacteria. Rotate the eyepiece and you see a zoomed-in or zoomed-out version of the bacteria, just through clever LEGO building.

LEGO veterans will relish the intricacy of its construction. Advanced building techniques mimic the angles, gears, and connections of a real microscope, making every step of assembly a journey in engineering. There’s a kind of alchemy here: ordinary bricks transforming into something extraordinary, a process that’s as rewarding as the finished product itself.

The entire kit stands at a fairly impressive 42cm (16.5 inches) tall, featuring a 1,316-build construction that includes both regular as well as LEGO Technic bricks to give it a reliable, functional construction. The design combines elements from beautiful, antique microscopes with those taken straight from modern, more sophisticated machines.

For now, the Functional Microscope is a submission on the LEGO Ideas website, gathering votes from the broader LEGO global community. With 5,960 votes, it’s well on its way to hitting the 10,000 vote mark, following which the submission will be reviewed by LEGO’s internal team and hopefully converted into a box-set that all us enthusiasts can buy. If you consider yourself such an enthusiast, you can vote for the LEGO Ideas Functional Microscope on LEGO’s website here.

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We’ve seen many striking lamp designs inspired by beautiful things in the world. Most of them get their cues from nature, taking inspiration from the moon, trees, or even mushrooms. While that in itself is a form of art, it takes more creativity and skill to turn something uninspiring or unsettling into a stunning and elegant design. This desk lamp, for example, looks soothing and calming in the dark, and you’ll probably never guess that it was made by repurposing an existing object that is associated not with beauty or elegance but with blood, pain, and wounds.

Designer: Kairi Eguchi

You might not be familiar with its name, but the pus tray is a common sight in hospitals, operating rooms, and TV shows depicting such scenes. Often made of stainless steel or even plastic, the kidney-shaped vessel is often used to collect pus but is sometimes depicted to hold bloody cotton, surgical tools, bullets, and other things that might come out from a body during surgery. Even the name alone carries a very negative connotation, and one can hardly imagine such a medical device being used for something less disturbing.

POND, however, proves that presumption wrong. It is part of a project that attempts to give new meaning to existing products, transforming them for a completely different and almost opposite purpose. In this particular case, a white-coated tray serves as the base for a cylindrical lighting element that’s placed not in the middle but near the edge of the tray. In daytime or in bright light, the lamp already looks interesting because of its unique shape, but the real magic happens when it becomes the only light source in a dark room.

The bowl virtually becomes a literal pond of light, using the natural contours of the tray to create an enchanting play of light and shadow. Unlike other lamps, the outward-facing surface of the pus tray is completely devoid of illumination, creating an effect not unlike the dark side of the moon. The curves and gently diffused light work together to create a soothing effect, the complete opposite of the proper medical use of the pus tray.

Given its bowl shape, POND can also be used as a container of sorts for small items. Of course, those objects will interfere and interact with the light, but that, in turn, could create an even more interesting visual, like fish swimming in a mystical pond of light.

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One of the most common side effects on patients undergoing chemotherapy is the loss of hair. It may seem like not a big deal anymore these days because people are more “accepting” of baldness, but there is still of course an effect on self-esteem and self-image of the patient. They say that hair loss is one of the most traumatic parts for them when it comes to their cancer treatment. A new product that will help them prevent this chemotherapy side effect will soon be available for commercial purchase.

Designer: Luminate

Lily is a helmet created by cancer treatment tech startup Luminate. The basic idea for the device is that when worn during chemotherapy sessions, the helmet applies pressure across the scalp that stops the chemicals from getting into the patient’s hair follicles. The helmet is also made from soft materials so it’s still comfortable when worn and will not add to the common discomfort patients experience when having their chemotherapy session. Just think of the helmet as a compression garment for the head.

The wearable device looks like your typical helmet but with additional paddings on the cheek and under the chin. The way it’s built and designed is to bock off the capillaries to prevent the toxic chemo cocktail from affecting the patient’s hair. In their initial trials, 75% of the participants retained their hair while undergoing chemotherapy while wearing the Lily helmet. There will be another trial this November involving 85 patients across the U.S.

Luminate is also developing a glove and boot set called Lilac that will help prevent neuropathy, another side effect of chemotherapy. The company’s goal is to make cancer treatments more comfortable for patients by creating products that will address the side effects.

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Imagine the constant challenge of navigating everyday life without the natural flexibility of your feet. This is the reality for many amputees who rely on prosthetic feet that can feel clunky and restrictive. These prosthetics often lack the ability to adapt to uneven terrain or provide the natural push-off needed for a smooth gait. However, a groundbreaking design from the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) is poised to change the game for amputees everywhere. The SoftFoot Pro is a prototype prosthetic foot that is a literal and metaphorical leap forward in prosthetic design, mimicking the structure and movement of the human foot. Unlike conventional prosthetics that prioritize sturdiness or offer minimal flexibility, the SoftFoot Pro boasts an ingenious design that offers human-like foot flexibility and dexterity… without a single motor, servo, circuit board, or battery.

Designer: Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia

Shedding the weight and complexity of motors and electronics, the SoftFoot Pro achieves impressive functionality through a clever combination of mechanics and materials. At its core is a mobile arch mechanism, crafted from lightweight yet robust titanium or aluminum alloy. This arch connects to five parallel chains, made from high-strength plastic segments that replicate the metatarsal and phalange bones of the human foot. Elastic connectors, acting like tendons, link the segments within each chain.

The brilliance of the SoftFoot Pro lies in the details. Running through each chain is an internal steel cable that anchors to the prosthetic’s heel. This cable, along with the elastic connectors, mimics the plantar fascia – the band of tissue in the human foot that stores and releases energy with each step. This ingenious design allows the SoftFoot Pro to absorb impact, propel the user forward with a natural push-off, and even conform to uneven surfaces. This enhanced flexibility translates to greater stability and a more natural gait for users.

Weighing in at a mere 450 grams (1 pound), the SoftFoot Pro is incredibly lightweight despite its ability to support users weighing up to 100 kg (220 lbs). Initial trials conducted at Hannover Medical School and the Medical University of Vienna have yielded promising results. Amputees who participated in the trials experienced a significant improvement in their gait, with increased balance and a more natural walking experience on various terrains.

The applications of the SoftFoot Pro extend beyond human users. Researchers have also successfully tested the design on robots, including the Anymal quadruped robot and the HRP-4 humanoid robot. This versatility highlights the potential of this design to revolutionize not just prosthetics but also the field of robotics.

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According to my friends who are already parents, one of the most difficult things to get their young kids to do is to drink medicine. Aside from the fact that most of the pills actually taste bad and may be too big for their little throats, it’s also hard to convince them to do something if they don’t really understand why they need to do so. Some actually use rewards just to get the kids to take their meds but there should be better ways to get through this every time they need to do it.

Designer: Fengrui Wang

The Singing Bottle is a concept for a different kind of pill packaging and dispenser for kids ages 6-10 to help them take their meds a bit more easily. It is shaped like those ship in a bottle things that your dad or uncle probably displayed. But instead of a ship, you get personalized pills and a corresponding paper card strip with an NFC tag attached which is the secret to getting the kids to get the pills down. The dispenser also has a built-in speaker in which the cards, which contain music and stories, can be played.

The idea is that parents need to purchase the first pack of 14-21 personalized pills from the pharmacy and the dispenser. Turn the handle to dispense the first pill, separate the card strip and then insert it into the NFC reader. The first card is actually inspiring words to get the kids to take the pill and explain why they need to do so. Every two days, a new strip is unlocked and this can be a story or a piece of music to serve as their “reward” for taking the pill.

This is a pretty interesting way to encourage children to take their much needed medicine. This concept will work with Dozer, a start-up that specializes in 3D medicine printing which is able tp provide personalized medicine which should be less expensive and maybe also makes the taste a bit better, since that’s one of the major reasons why kids don’t want to take their pills.

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