We promise to write more frequently about awesome medical equipment with lasers

From an email sent in by Alexander, a scientist:

Why doesn't Boing Boing Gadgets ever cover the awesome technology used in the biotech research industry?

I mean, flow cytometers shoot LASERS at a moving stream of moving cells (and lines the cells up one cell at a time using hydrodynamic focusing and measures something like 6,000 cells/minute) and get information about them from how the lasers bounce off of the cells! I list them as being for cool scientists only because the cheap ones cost $30,000 and as such only Big Scientists have their own. Everyone else has to share them.

As Joel recently indicated, promoting international understanding of lase as a transitive verb is part of our mission, so we appreciate your thoughts. We promise to cover this bad-ass shit in greater detail, Alexander. Thank you!

Best Regards,
Boing Boing Gadgets

Photo: University of Toronto

Update: Why stop there? – Joel

Photo: HMDS HK

Photo: Gene2Drug.com

Photo: Dartmouth CellLab

Photo: EPFL.ch

Photo: Cornell

Photo: NC State University

[#1 posted by nixiebunny , February 2, 2009 10:50 PM]

Lasin' on a sunny afternoon... in the summer time.

[#2 posted by Wally B , February 2, 2009 10:55 PM]

If I ever need a case-in-point about why I love BoingBoing, I'm linking back here.

[#3 posted by Anonymous , February 3, 2009 12:50 AM]

And a flow cytometer will also classify each cell using 2 'LASERS', decide what it is, then a little spoon (disclaimer, NOT a spooon) shoots in and picks out cells and sorts them. At 6000 cells per minute. Cells are small. Very Very small.

This is how sperm can be separated into boy and girl sperm (based on weight).

As P Daniels used to say "that's magic"

Laser Capture Microdissection is also V cool. Worth getting a post about that.

[#4 posted by schmod , February 3, 2009 12:54 AM]

It's not medical-related, but you can't talk about enormous lasers without mentioning the NIF.

Why settle for one of the world's largest lasers when you can build 192 of them, and then focus them all onto a single target?

There's something truly staggering about that photo of the guy rappelling down into the target chamber.

[#5 posted by Bugs , February 3, 2009 1:05 AM]

Thia article needs some z-stacks from a confocal microscope.

Every time I turn ours on it's a real effort not to cry "ACTIVATE THE LASERS!!ONE!"

[#6 posted by strider_mt2k , February 3, 2009 3:36 AM]

Something you are forgetting:

All that precision and control makes for some hard-partying lab ladies.

Something about a professional woman and lasers...

[#7 posted by Duffong , February 3, 2009 7:07 AM]

Yeah... BB could sure talk a little more about things like the subculture of the rubber manufacturers who make inflatable seals. We can inflate a FKM seal that has only a 1/32" wall, and is used in a chemical reactor, at a rate of 100k cycles per day at over 25psi. Or the inflatable seals also made of FKM that go into a fluid bed dryer and can withstand nearly 2ksi of burst pressure explosion!! I could go on and on... but there's no love for the rubber manufacturer these days. Not anymore, not like there used to be. Now the only thing anyone wants are cheap, thin, lubricated rubbers.

[#8 posted by RedShirt77 , February 3, 2009 7:28 AM]

The science cred of that first lady kind of makes her hot.