Got some mysterious white powder sitting in your coffee table? a brand new, suitcase-sized device can let you know whether you’ve dandruff, or anthrax. Developed by researchers at Cornell and the University of Albany, the detector uses a microfluidic chip (pictured at the left) to gather and purify the DNA on a given sample, before conducting a sequence of polymerase chain reactions — processes which could quickly identify biological materials. The machine, which have been inside the works for seven years, is robust enough to deliver test leads to only one hour (requiring a sample of only 40 microscopic spores), but is slim enough to slot in an airline’s overhead luggage bin. Scientists say their creation may be catered to select up on other pathogens, including salmonella, and should even pay dividends for crime scene investigators handling forensic evidence. No word yet on when the device could hit the market, but we can’t touch an oz. of sugar until it does.
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