It's just as mediocre and uneven as you might expect from that description, but the Internet acts like it's amazing as a joke or something I guess? Like the Star Wars prequels.
JFC just give it an LCD screen head that makes emojis and knock this uncanny valley shit off. I'd rather have Codsworth or R2D2 than this homunculus or some latex-faced simulacrum.
This is both really cool, and really unsettling. I wonder if this research might help in the other direction as well, such as with transplants and grafts
That was my first thought too; would this improve treatment for serious burn victims and such. Sounds like what they've made is better overall for sticking to applied surfaces and moving without tearing. Heck, maybe this could even lead to prosthetics that allow physical sensation
This was mentioned in the Discussion part of their paper:
The activity of facial muscles involved in forming expressions such as smiles is closely linked to the development of wrinkles. One significant next step in this research is to leverage this model to enhance our understanding of the mechanisms underlying wrinkle formation. Moreover, applying this knowledge to recreate such expressions on a chip could find applications in the cosmetics industry and the orthopedic surgery industry. Additionally, this study performed actuation on a dermis equivalent by controlling mechanical actuators positioned beneath the dermis equivalent. Substituting this mechanical actuator with cultured muscle tissue presents an intriguing prospect in the realization of a higher degree of biomimetics. Examining the correlation between facial muscle contractions and resulting facial expression can offer insights into the physiological aspects of emotion, leading to new exploration in the treatment of diseases, such as facial paralysis surgery.
Looks and feels real? I’m sorry but if i’m getting a cyberpunk upgrade it will be gold, chrome, or matte neon plastic. There are no other options ya gonk.
Cultured skin, as they put it, can heal itself, carry biological sensors like our own to provide sensitive touch, and could also have benefits in medical or human interaction contexts.
The self-repairable part is odd to me.You need to keep feeding, oxygenating it and to prevent infections, otherwise it will rot :S Besides, on humans the healing relies on blood for platelets and crusts to form and a whole immune system...it needs too much babysitting to be called "self-healing".
If that skin is just copy/pasted without nourishment it'll rotten away, decaying in a sea of pus and putrid, gangrenic tissue, festering away as maggots feast on it.
So if these scientists are half-serious about their grants then they should consider a way to feed the skin.