Awesome Research

VFX artists have been making actors look younger or older for a while, but the effect is costly and labor-intensive. Researchers from Disney, ETH Zurich, and UW-Madison are showing off an AI tech called Face Re-aging Network (FRAN), which can perform the feat in five seconds per frame. It seems better at aging than de-aging, though.

There’s software out there that can stylize images, but this technology makes images from real wood. Its algorithms compare greyscale levels between images and patterns in wood veneer, then instructs a CNC machine to cut out pieces that can be assembled to form a complete portrait. Two Minute Papers explains.

Engineer Allison Murray from the Purdue University Mechanical Engineering department shows us how their team used a customized inkjet printer to lay down a thin sheet of thermite, resulting in designs which explode into shapes when ignited. Learn more here.