Design, experiment, and simulation of different morphing pasta shapes before and after cooking. (A) Pasta shapes with zero Gaussian curvatures consisting of groups of straight parallel lines. (B) Pasta shapes with zero Gaussian curvatures consisting of groups of straight radial lines. (C) Pasta shapes with nonzero Gaussian curvatures consisting of straight parallel lines that are on the opposite side of the substrate and overlap one another. Scale bars, 10 mm. Source: Science Advances
Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University have figured out how to turn flat pasta into 3-dimensional (and edible) pasta in less than 10 minutes. In Morphing pasta and beyond, researchers explain the technology behind how they were able to transform flat-packed pasta into three-dimensional shapes.
You may be reading this and thinking "isn't flat pasta also known as a lasagna noodle?" Prepare to have your mind blown because this isn't your mother's lasagna, it's a full-on flat-packed rigatoni noodle that springs to life when introduced into water.
Developed with funding support from the U.S. National Science Foundation and the Carnegie Mellon University Manufacturing Futures Initiative, the team studying the morphing pasta found the benefits of such a product could improve manufacturing efficiencies as well as create a more sustainable packaging alternative to pasta noodles.
Read the science behind the morphing pasta on the Science Advances website.
