In a Snowglobe
Advertising agency BBH will create one bespoke snowglobe a day until December 21st through its “Home for Christmas” project, which raises money for the children’s charity Barnardo’s as well as combats homelessness. Each day, a different donor is chosen to receive a snowglobe containing a 3D printed version of their own house with images drawn from Google Maps. Donors also have the option to provide their own pictures. Creative Review – Anna Richardson Taylor

3D Printing for the Masses
Almost 100 million people have downloaded 3D scanning smartphone applications. The apps allow users to scan objects and create digital designs from those scans. Some of the most popular apps are 123D Catch by Autodesk, iScan3D by Digiteyezer and MakerBot by Trimensional. Sydney Morning Herald – Mahesh Sharma

My Kingdom for a 3D Printer!
A miniature version of the Blue Boar Inn, a medieval inn where English royal King Richard III once stayed , is being 3D printed. Richard died at the Battle of Bosworth Field the morning after his night at the Inn. The model is based off sketches of the inn found in a 19th century architect’s notebook. Live Science – Jeremy Hsu

3D Printing: Saving the World?
There have been more fun applications of 3D printing than can be reasonably listed here, but the technology can also be used to do some serious good. The U.S. military’s Expeditionary Lab is a mobile unit where 3D printers and engineers are utilized to provide quick solutions to equipment malfunctions. 3D printing also drastically reduces the cost of custom solutions, speeds up the R&D process, and reduces energy use. AlertNet – Caitlin Werrell and Francesco Femia

Print Your Cancer Medicine
The nanotech firm Parabon recently received a grant from the National Science Foundation to engineer 3D-printable cancer medications. The company owns a design studio, InSequio, that allows drug designers to test molecular structures of medication to predict how they will behave in real environment. This technology could one day allow patients to receive custom treatments, maximizing the drugs’ effectiveness. Extreme Tech – John Hewitt