Genomes: Not Just for Biology Anymore

This blog has explored many of the applications of Materials Science and Engineering, and it’s just barely scratched the surface of what there is to offer.  Materials are everywhere, and no field could move forward without them. So, as a country which prides itself on its scientific developments and progress, it makes sense that research funding should go toward this field.

 

One program which serves exactly this purpose is the Materials Genome Initiative.  This agency relies on the fact that, while many new materials are discovered each year, it can take up to 20 years for a material to reach industry.  By creating a searchable database of materials, companies can find what they’re looking for with the click of a button, rather than years of trial and error.

 

The initiative has seven listed objectives, ranging from national security and clean energy to experimental tools and digital data.  These goals are achieved through interagency cooperation from NASA, the NSF, the DOE, and other government agencies.  Interdisciplinarity has been one of the trademarks of recent scientific development, and it’s promising to see that agencies are acting in a similar manner.  The best discoveries are made when bright minds work together.

 

While, in recent years, computer simulations have dictated new experiments for materials, the direct way in which the composition of materials affects their properties is still unknown.  A database like this one could help to find the answers.  When applications call for a certain set of properties, it would make material selection simpler if a new material could easily be produced with exactly those specifications.

 

Perhaps the best part of the Materials Genome Initiative is the potential return on investment.  The program began in 2011, and even in these first few years we can see the progress. As more and more data is computerized, and more properties are reported, the world will get closer to an overarching theory about why materials work the way they do.  The potential of materials science is limitless, and with a database like this, we could see a wealth of amazing discoveries in our lifetime. It’s exciting to consider the possibilities.

 

Until next time,

 

Natalie Cummings

MATSE in Medicine?

When you think about Materials Science and Engineering, you probably think about polymers or metals, and even then about broad, unspecific usages like “buildings” or “plastics”.  These classifications are’t wrong, but this field is also so much more.  In every aspect of your life, there is some material that is integral to that task.  Literally everything we touch is a material of some kind, so the field’s omnipresence is logical.

 

One often overlooked facet of the field that is still growing is materials for biological or medicinal purposes.  These range from biocompatible materials for applications such as artificial hips or skull plates to biosensing applications, like the one I’m going to explain here today.  The sensors I’ve been learning about are plasmonic metamaterials.

Before last week, I had never heard of plasmonic metamaterials.  Quite frankly, I’m still not sure exactly what it means, but I need to learn.  These materials are the subject of the summer research I’m going to be performing at Cornell University with Dr. Gennady Shvets.  All that aside, why are these crazy things important? To the best of my ability, I’m going to try to explain it here.

 

Plasmonic metamaterials are special because they can focus light on a really small scale, and can be tuned to specific wavelengths.  So if there’s a molecule that vibrates at 900 micrometers, for example, we could tune our material to 900 micrometers, and be able to use it as a sensor for that molecule.  This could be useful especially for medical applications, where the identification of certain molecules could aid a diagnosis. This type of material would also be compatible with the best biosensing technologies we have, boosting their power rather than starting over from square one.

 

When biological proteins interact, they do bind with one another, but first they have to adjust their orientation.  Traditional biosensing methods could recognize the binding portion of these reactions, but there is much more to gain in being able to visualize the entire process.  We do have technologies that can see these reactions, such as Raman and Infrared spectroscopies, but these methods are not compatible with other tools that would be necessary.  Plasmonic metasurfaces can see both binding and orientation changes, opening up a whole new set of possibilities.

So, why aren’t we using these technologies already?  The field of plasmonic metamaterials is quite new, and crucial developments are still being made.  Initially, it was believed that a larger material with these special optical properties could be produced easily.  What has been learned, however, is that building a surface combining many individual metamaterials on a small scale can be incredibly efficient.  It seems to be that within the next few years, significant progress will be made in this field, and I’m excited to be around to see it.

 

Until next time,

 

Natalie

Sci-Fi Come to Life

For decades, science fiction in books and movies have captivated audiences worldwide, imagining new worlds and impossible scenarios, and perhaps most interestingly, new technologies.  From Star Wars to Back to the Future, our culture has become obsessed with these fantastical stories.  We may not have lightsabers to fight our battles, or DeLoreans which can take us back in time, but some technologies from these and other sci fi stories have been developed since their release.  That’s the great thing about scientists, if we really want something (especially something nerdy), we’ll do whatever it takes to get it, even developing new materials.  Today, let’s rev our engines up to 88 miles an hour and head to a galaxy far, far away.  It’s time for the newest edition of Materials Mash-Up.

 

You probably remember the iconic scene from Star Wars in which Darth Vader chops off Luke’s hand with a lightsaber.  It’s an intense moment, and later Luke is fitted with a bionic hand, which allows him to carry on with his normal life, fighting the dark side and whatnot.  In the time of the release of the Star Wars films, prosthetics’ capabilities were limited, but in the time since then, the field of artificial limbs has improved drastically.  The advent of 3D printing allows for extreme personalization of prosthetics, and new technologies can even connect to the brain to control the prosthesis.  These models are called “Luke Arms.”

Luke’s bionic hand from the films

The “Luke Arm” developed by Mobius, a new frontier in prosthetics

Another SciFi favorite is Back to the Future, which in its second movie traveled to 2015.  We recently passed that year, and many fans were excited to see if the technological developments had met the movie’s predictions.  One of the most notable inventions from the series was the flying cars, and these are actually in development.  The biggest challenge in matching ideas from the movie is VTOL, or Vertical Take Off and Landing.  This process requires a 1:1 weight to thrust ratio, so it is very impractical for cars.  Engine blocks need to be made with thermodynamically stable materials, which are almost always heavy, and while lightweight materials like aluminum can be used for car frames and exteriors, other materials are needed as well, and the weight requirements make these types of cars simply unsustainable.

The Back to the Future DeLorean engaging in VTOL

As Marty McFly, hero of Back to the Future, is exploring the 2015 town, he sees a holographic shark as a movie advertisement.  This was something that seemed truly unreasonable to replicate in the real world.  Today, however, we’re much closer to this end goal than many would ever have anticipated.  Holograms with which we can interact are under development (although right now they’re no bigger than a pencil eraser).  In addition, 3D viewing without glasses has been researched for years.  Maybe you remember the Nintendo 3DS?  This technology is able to work because there are a limited number of viewing angles, as well as a small screen.  The difficulties only increase as viewing positions and size of image increase.  In a crowded square such as that where Marty is standing in the film, the number of potential viewing angles would be huge, and thus the 3D viewing technologies would be extremely difficult to implement.  One company based in Austria, though, has developed 3D billboards which, if not viewed at the correct angle, simply appear two dimensional, an easy fix to a huge problem.

3D billboard concept art from the Austrian country

Science Fiction has allowed us to express our hopes and dreams for the future and our wildest fantasies, our proudest ideas and cleverest solutions, years or even decades before they could be possible in the real world.  It’s because of people who weren’t afraid to dream and innovate that we have some of these amazing technologies today.  Keep on dreaming, and may the force be with you.

 

Until next time,

 

Natalie Cummings

 

A Study in Contradictions

Materials Science and Engineering is an interesting field because at times it seems to contradict itself.  It combines science, a theoretical field, and engineering, which is all about application.  Materials range from aerogels, the lightest material ever made, to graphene, a single atom-thick sheet of which is 200 times stronger than steel.  The new materials we make allow mankind to travel to the deepest abysses in the oceans and to the furthest reaches of our atmosphere and beyond.  We design products to withstand incredible heat and blistering cold.  Humans have been utilizing metallurgical techniques for millennia, yet we are still making new discoveries every day.  One man who understood and embraced this contradiction was Gustave Eiffel.

Gustave Eiffel

If you’ve ever heard of a little town called Paris, you’ve probably heard of Eiffel and his tower there.  It was intended to be the centerpiece for the 1889 World’s Fair, and to remain assembled for just 20 years.  It would serve as a demonstration of France’s position on the forefront of engineering, of modern architecture, and of course on the cutting edge of culture.  Eiffel himself was a surprising combination: a gifted engineer and a visionary modern architect.

“Are we to believe that because one is an engineer, one is not preoccupied by beauty in one’s constructions, or that one does not seek to create elegance as well as solidity and durability? Is it not true that the very conditions which give strength also conform to the hidden rules of harmony?” –Gustave Eiffel

The Eiffel Tower

His vision for this tower was something unexpected, something entirely new in the realm of architecture, focusing on form rather than function.  To make this tower a truly monumental structure, Eiffel planned for it to be more than 1000 feet high.  Mathematicians of his era told him that after 780 feet, the tower would surely collapse.  With some materials savvy, though, Eiffel was able to avoid this fate, and create a structure that is still standing today.

The reason for this stability is the chosen material, puddled iron.  Eiffel wanted to utilize the new metallography techniques of his day to demonstrate the heightened strength of steel over stone, with less weight.  Puddled iron, which is no longer in use today, had a few amazing properties which come from its production.  All of its impurities are removed in a furnace, and then it is formed into balls.  These balls are then wrought into rods or other materials which are necessary for construction.  This unique process makes the surface of the puddled iron especially accepting of coatings, which has helped the tower to protect against its environment for more than 125 years.  It has been painted 18 times in its history, and is on a regular schedule to continue receiving this treatment to protect it from the elements.

A good view of the Eiffel Tower, formed from puddled iron

When the Eiffel Tower was first unveiled, almost all of Paris was in outrage, with critics describing it with such phrases as “this truly tragic street lamp” (Léon Bloy).  Over the years, though, it became a symbol of national pride, and the city truly embraced its landmark.  With the addition of a weather station on an upper landing and a radio transmitter at its top, the tower became functional as well as beautiful, and truly cemented itself as an integral part of the Paris landscape.

 

Au revoir,

Natalie

Materials Gone Wild

More than 953,000 species of animals have been described around the world.  From mammals to invertebrates, the characteristics displayed by these species are remarkably diverse.  These organisms often have interesting properties, which can inspire new materials.  Plants can inspire new materials as well, they often have interesting structural or adhesive properties.

Close-up view of Velcro

Maybe the most well-known example of this phenomenon is Velcro.  This handy tool for attachment was formulated by a Swiss man, George de Mestral, after he returned from a hike in the woods to find burrs stuck to his coat and his dog.  From this observation, de Mestral created Velcro, which has been a day-to-day staple for years.  Happy accidents like this one aren’t the only way in which bioinspired materials are created.  Another material began in the deep sea, with an organism called glass sponges.  These organisms’ skeletons are made of a type of glass which has a density one tenth of that of water, while still being incredibly strong.  The science behind this seeming contradiction comes from its wide range of structural sizes.  This sponge’s skeleton has structures on the nano, micro, and millimeter scales.  This allows an unprecedented level of structural integrity, which wouldn’t be possible with just a traditional structure.

Glass sponge skeleton

In order to stay in their desired habitat, mollusks utilize a super-strong adhesive to adhere to rocks.  This adhesive is a product of a few key amino acids, which have been recently isolated for human usage.  The advantages of a mollusk-inspired adhesive come from the challenges these organisms have to face in their environment.  Since these animals live in marine habitats, this adhesive is waterproof and quick-drying, which can be incredibly useful for numerous commercial applications.

Blue Morpho Butterfly

If you’ve ever seen the blue morpho butterfly, you know how brightly iridescent its coloring is.  Its wings are a bold, beautiful blue, and this intense coloration comes from its structure and its interaction with light, rather than from pigments.  This structure can be replicated with a printable mold, and this technology can be added to iridescent paint.  It also has the potential to be useful in anti-counterfeit devices.  This structural iridescence is something that would have taken years and years of development, but because of its presence in the animal kingdom, scientists could take a leap forward in their research of this fascinating property.

 

One of the biggest problems in hospitals today is the potential for infection.  Bacteria can travel throughout the hospital, putting lives at risk.  For a solution, materials scientists turned to some animals which almost never get sick- sharks.  The skin of sharks have a distinctive pattern, which can be replicated in plastic.  This pattern, for some reason, inhibits the survival of bacteria, and can reduce the potential for infection significantly.

A microscopic view of the shark skin inspired material

The fact of the matter is, ideas for new materials can come from anywhere.  Every new organism we discover has unlimited potential to change the world, we simply must be willing to take a closer look.  Whether from deep-sea creatures or everyday plants, nature can influence the field of materials science in ways many people never would have anticipated.

 

Until next time,

 

Natalie

The Sound of Music

If you’ve ever played a musical instrument for more than a few years, you’ve probably found yourself thinking about an upgrade.  ‘Imagine how good I would be,’ you think to yourself, ‘if only I had that platinum flute instead of this silver coated one.’  You scrimp and you save, maybe for years, and you finally get the flute, you play it, and you know you sound better than you ever have.  Or do you?

 

Widholm, a researcher in Austria, set out to determine just this fact.  He assembled seven flutes of varying materials in the same model, and asked professional Viennese flautists to play on each of them.  Analyzing the sound waves, Widholm found that the material of the flute’s body made little to no difference on the practical sound of the instrument.  So, what we would normally perceive as a vast improvement in playing is really just a placebo effect as a result of having a new instrument that we perceive will make us better.

Flutes made of different materials which (objectively) have no real difference in quality

Sometimes, though, material does matter.  Consider the violin, one of the most famous instruments ever invented, championed by creators like Stradivari and Guarneri, revered as the heart of the orchestra.  Its full bodied sound and extensive range are in part because of the properties of the wood it is made of.  Similar to the study done with flutes, the type of wood isn’t as influential as one might think.  The real catch is with the wood itself.  Wood is an elastic anisotropic material, which means that along the grain, the vibrations can go for three times as long as across the grain.  This basic principle is what gives violins their characteristic shape, and of course their sound.  Violin artisans trying to make new violins from new materials face the issue of replicating this elastic anisotropy, and so are confined to certain materials, such as composites which can be chemically altered to contain such a microstructure.

A carbon fiber violin, which, thanks to its elastic anisotropy, sounds nearly the same as a wooden violin

With recent developments in 3-D printing technologies, even plastic can be used to make musical instruments, allowing anyone with a 3-D printer to construct their own musical instrument.  These instruments are still able to sound good often because of which part of the instrument is vibrating.  If it is a string or the player’s mouth that is vibrating rather than the instrument, nearly any material could be used.  For example, a metal trumpet and a wooden trumpet would sound nearly the same.  Some examples of this technology in use include a 3-D printable ukulele, as well as ocarinas, recorders, and even a full-sized guitar.

This 3-D printed guitar would be very difficult to print, but it shows the possibilities of future advancements

Music is around us all the time; stuck in our head, playing in the halls we walk, setting the scene in the movies we love.  It has been an integral part of the human experience for centuries, and it doesn’t show any sign of stopping now.  Whether or not materials make a difference in the instrument, the instruments make a difference in our lives.

 

Thanks for reading,

 

Natalie

Printers are a Girl’s Best Friend

Additive manufacturing these days is more of a buzzword than anything else.  Yes, everyone has heard of the 3-D printer, but to what extent does the general populace understand its complexities?  In today’s post, we’re going to outline one of the different types of 3-D printers available and under development, as well as the possible applications of additive manufacturing and how these machines came to be.

 

A chart of the numerous different kinds of additive manufacturing

Especially in recent years, types of 3-D printers have exploded, so we’ll just go through the most major type today.

 

The beginning of it all: plastic.  The first 3-D printers printed plastic because of its ready availability and relatively low melting point.  Printers didn’t need special tips or super heat-resilient bases, they could print layer upon layer of plastic with technology that almost anyone could assemble.  As plastic 3-D printers have advanced, their speed and accuracy have increased, augmenting the practicality of these machines.  There are two main types of plastic used in this type of printing: ABS and PLA.  ABS is better for outdoor applications, it is a sturdier plastic which requires a higher melting point.  PLA is suited for indoor projects which won’t be exposed to the elements, it is easier to work with, having a lower melting point, so is much preferred in many communities.  It all sounds so easy to talk about it now, but how did these machines actually begin?

 

In the 1980s, a man named Chuck Hull was fooling around with stereopolymers, liquid materials which turn to solid when exposed to UV light.  After a long troubleshooting process, Hull had his process, and patented stereolithography, the basis for modern 3-D printers.  He soon started his own company focusing on this new technology, and it is still going strong, innovating new types of printing at every turn.

Chuck Hull, inventor of 3-D printing

So, why are 3-D printers important to society?  Well, the reason they were invented was to find a new method of manufacturing, one that could produce parts more efficiently or more soundly.  Truly, 3-D printing has maintained this goal through the present day, as different printings can change microstructures for different types of strength, or even produce pieces that never would have been possible via traditional manufacturing methods.

Items like this would be very difficult, if not impossible, to produce via traditional manufacturing methods

3-D printers are also associated with the democratization of manufacturing.  The beauty of 3-D printing is that almost all of it is open source, especially with plastic.  Brands like Prusa sell kits online for small amounts of money, containing all the parts one needs to build their own printer.  I can vouch for the efficacy of these kits, I built my own printer last summer.  In addition, websites like Thingiverse share thousands if not millions of free patterns, both for fun and practical use, so that anyone can make things in their own home, using a technology that was, at one time, unimaginable.

 

Until next week,

 

Natalie

A Tale of Two Hobbies: Part 2

Please Note: This post is a continuation of last week’s entry, “A Tale of Two Hobbies: Part 1”.

 

One day, Samuel Kistler, a farmer, was spreading some jelly on his toast when he wondered what was holding that gel together.  It occupied a space somewhere between a solid and a liquid, and so Kistler hypothesized that by removing the liquid, he would see the solid framework that provided structure to the jelly.  Kistler consulted some scientists, and both agreed that by supercritically drying the gel, they would be able to isolate the solid structure within.  Some of the first tests were on egg whites and fruit jellies, and the material they discovered was aerogel.  This material has amazing properties; it is a powerful insulator, and the world’s lightest manmade material.  Its structure is pockmarked with holes, and looks something like this.

Aerogel microstructure

Diagram illustrating the principles behind aerogels’ insulative properties

 

Aerogels have recently been developed for numerous interesting applications.  In the 1980’s, a meteor shower was going to pass close to Earth, and scientists wanted to collect samples so as to better understand our universe.  Puzzled, they searched for a material that could withstand both the immense force and heat of collisions while also effectively collecting the material.  They found their answer with aerogels.  Because of their insulative properties and their many holes, particles could collide with the aerogel without harming it, and would remain in the aerogel for further analysis back on Earth.  This was called the Stardust mission, and it is because of that innovative usage of aerogels that we collected the first ever samples from a meteor shower.  Additionally, aerogels have been highly developed as insulation for houses, where they can be many times as effective as traditional insulation.  There are jackets whose linings are composed of aerogels.  The initial prototypes for these jackets were so effective that when they were worn climbing Mount Everest, climbers became too warm and had to unzip.

 

Aerogels can also be given properties traditionally associated with metals, such as shape memory.  At Missouri S&T, researchers have been working to improve this technology.  When these particular aerogels are deformed from their original shape, just a little bit of heat will return the material to its original position.  This technology’s applications include projects as monumental as biomimetic hands, which, due to the flexibility and versatility of aerogels, could be groundbreaking.

Time lapse photo of a shape memory aerogel returning to its original position after a deformation

A biomimetic hand utilizing shape memory aerogels

 

This diversity in the applications of aerogels are due largely to the wide range of compostitions they can have.  Aerogels range from silica, one of the first materials developed, to carbon, metal, and metal oxides.  Each type of aerogel has different properties, and open the pathway for new developments.

 

It is amazing to think that such important developments in the field of Materials Science and Engineering could come from such simple hobbies as canning and origami, but this is the case.  We never know where the next development will come from; it could feasibly be hypothesized from another hobby, perhaps even one of yours.  You never know.

 

Thank you so much for reading, and I look forward to presenting more intersections of history, MATSE, and anthropology in the future.

A Tale of Two Hobbies: Part 1

When you think of the future of materials science and engineering, you probably don’t think of origami or canning.  Neither would most people.  I, however, know something that most people don’t, the origin of two amazing materials: metamaterials and aerogels.  Due to space constraints, today’s post will just be about metamaterials, but don’t you worry, aerogels are coming right up in the next post.

 

The art of origami has been around for many centuries, and it has not only ingrained itself in Japanese culture, but it has also spread around the world as a hobby.  We’ve all folded a cootie catcher while bored in class, or folded a crane from a piece of scratch paper.  Origami is everywhere, because it is literally the art of folding paper.  Origami has served a symbolic purpose since its inception, but only recently has it become useful in STEM fields.  As maximizing storage space and efficiency become increasingly important, origami has become a welcome solution.  This answer comes via metamaterials.  

 

Metamaterials are materials which get their properties from their structure, rather than their elemental composition.  Metamaterials are important because they can be used in a variety of different settings, as well as in a variety of different patterns.  One particular pattern that has proved particularly useful, especially for maximizing space, is the Miura-Ori.  The Miura-Ori is special because it has a negative Poisson’s ratio, which means that it behaves unlike traditional materials.  Where a sponge, when compressed on two opposite sides, would expand on the other two sides, a metamaterial would contract on all four sides.  Similarly, whereas a sponge, when expanded along the y axis, would contract along the x axis, a metamaterial expanded along the y axis would also expand along the x axis.  This property can be useful for a variety of projects, but perhaps one of the most interesting is a NASA mission.  On long space journeys, storage space is at a premium, and so a solar panel which could be used later in the journey could only be packed if it could be stored compactly.  Metamaterials, and specifically the Miura-Ori pattern, enabled the development of one such solar panel, paving the way for future journeys to the furthest corners of our universe.

NASA’s metamaterial solar panel model at its full size

NASA’s metamaterial solar panel model compressed to save space

 

Metamaterials have countless other applications as well.  Another benefit of the Miura-Ori pattern is that one can introduce reversible defects, which temporarily change properties such as compression strength or the way in which a material condenses.  Metamaterials have also been used by researchers at Harvard to create self-assembling robots, which is a great example of the potential that metamaterials have.  As these materials continue to be developed, we can be sure that they will continue to impact our lives.

 

Harvard’s metamaterial being inflated, expanding

Harvard’s metamaterial demonstrating its range of motion

Thank you so much for reading, and I look forward to presenting more intersections of history, MATSE, and anthropology in the future.

 

P.S. Don’t forget, today’s post will be continued next week in “A Tale of Two Hobbies: Part 2”.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

We drive on them, we walk on them, we even ride our bikes over them, and yet as we pass them on our daily commute they fade into the scenery like so many oak trees.  These valuable mechanisms have been around since the Mesopotamian society, and they provide the quickest means to get from one location to another in many places around the globe.  Cities like Venice and Pittsburgh are famous for these structures. Without them, crossing a body of water would be impossible without a boat.

 

The structures I am referring to, of course, are bridges.  Bridges can be made of numerous different materials; rope, wood, or stone, for example.  In this entry, however, I am going to discuss some bridges with one things in common: iron.

 

It all started with an Englishman named Abraham Darby.

Abraham Darby

 

Cast iron was difficult to produce, and the charcoal needed made the material cost prohibitive.  One day, Darby decided to try using coke (a byproduct of burning coal) instead, and an easy to produce, cost-efficient cast iron was born.  Darby’s contribution did not end there, however.  With economically feasible cast iron available, the architect Thomas Farnolls Pritchard decided that he would build a bridge across the Severns River, one of the most crowded rivers in England. Before he could see through the bridge’s construction, though, Pritchard died, and Darby’s grandson took over the project.  The bridge, simply called Iron Bridge, was the first of its kind, drawing visitors from all over the world.  Its great historical significance has protected it through the years, and today it is a UNESCO Heritage Site.

Darby’s Iron Bridge in England

 

Our next bridge takes us to Canada, to the home of Anne of Green Gables, Prince Edward Island (PEI).   As you may or may not know, the soil in Prince Edward Island contains a unique variety of chemicals which produce world-class potatoes, different than any other potatoes available on the market.  Their potato industry alone is worth a billion dollars annually.  

Special potatoes from PEI

 

The special element in their soil?  You guessed it: iron.  The only problem was that all that connected PEI to the mainland of Canada was a ferry, which naturally was not extremely practical for shipping potatoes.  The solution: a bridge of monumental proportions, the only one of its kind in the world, that would cross ice covered waters so that PEI would have a constant link to the mainland.  

The Confederation Bridge, stretching from PEI to mainland Canada

 

This bridge is called the Confederation Bridge, and its primary material was steel.  Which is composed mainly of (yes, you guessed it!) iron.  The bridge was a massive success, and after its opening in 1997 potato production and shipment have increased dramatically.

 

The fact of the matter is, bridges get you where you want to go.  Whether historical or modern, bridges can be analyzed by their chemical composition, the time in which they were built, or even by their reasons for being.  Materials science, history, and anthropology go hand in hand, because each of them is present in nearly everything any society does.  I look forward to bringing you future installments of this blog, because I really do think that this particular combination of fields is fascinating.

 

Thanks for reading and see you next time!

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