Hackaday Podcast

Ep 342: Poopless Prints, Radio in Your Fillings, and One Hyperspectral Pixel at a Time

Oct 17, 2025
Discover the fascinating world of multicolor 3D printing without the mess, thanks to a revolutionary hotend. Explore how a unique bellows hyperspectral camera captures images one pixel at a time. Delve into quirky anecdotes about dental work picking up radio signals, including a spy story featuring Lucille Ball. Learn how an air-powered robot could revolutionize soft robotics. Plus, find out if scrap radioisotopes can create X-ray-like images and uncover the secrets inside an old germanium transistor!
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ANECDOTE

Americium X-Ray Contact Prints From Smoke Detectors

  • Project 326 used americium-241 sources and dental x-ray film to image electronics, producing readable gamma
ADVICE

Handle Radioactive Sources With Extreme Caution

  • Exercise extreme caution with americium sources: avoid creating dust or inhaling material from smoke-detector pellets.
  • Prefer proper x-ray tubes or professional equipment for repeatable imaging and safety.
INSIGHT

Algol 68 Landed In GCC For Preservation

  • Algol 68 is being integrated into GCC, more for historical and preservation reasons than mainstream adoption.
  • The language is interesting to explore but unlikely to replace modern mainstream languages.
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