When Xerox Rules All
And now, a nerd-gasm moment.

This article from The New Scientist talks about the current drive in circuit board research to combine 3-D printers (i.e. machines that create 3-D objects buy spitting out molded layers that eventually stack up to create a 3-D object) with embedded electronics, where the material itself is capable of carrying a current in a directed fashion without the need to manually add copper wiring to its surface. The end result would be something like a printer that can spontaneously generate disposable light bulbs or remote controls. One of the scientists interviewed said he's really looking forward to printable robots.

My mind is suddenly filled with images of those old cartoons where characters would turn on a faucet and, instead of water, a car would pour out.