Next time you go to the store to get pork, don’t eat it.
A group of Harvard scientists have found that if you treat pigskin properly, it has the ability to shoot out tiny laser beams and fulfill your childhood dreams of being a laser beam-wielding ninja. Hell. Yes.
It’s been known for several years that human cells can be used in the laser-making process. Basically they trap the cells between mirrors, inject them with dye, and pulse them with light. From there, the cells glow and emit laser beams.
However in this scenario, the research group, which was headed by Professor Seok-Hyun Yun, ditched the mirrors, and instead “used a tiny droplet of oil contained within the cells to focus the laser.”
The process is pretty spectacular. According to Munchies,
“Here’s where the pork comes in. Previously, Yun et al. had been using cervical cancer cells as the base of their laser. But the researchers realized that oils and fat were key. So they sought the fattiest tissue they could find. Here’s where the pigs stepped in. Oh traif, how beguiling you are.
‘We went to the grocery store and bought pig meat,” Yun told The Boston Globe.
Apparently lasers made out of living cells are not as strong as the ones made from semiconductors, but Yun said they could serve as homing devices that search for disease. Don’t ask us how, but the cells could send out a laser signal when they spot an intruder, like cancer.
‘It’s a beacon signal, to tell you where your targets are,’ Yun said.
This sounds absolutely amazing. Where can we sign up to get our hands on some laser-infused pork?
[H/T: Munchies]
