Let's say you really want to impress your boss, because he is coming to your house for dinner (he's a really nice guy).
Eveything is set, but something seems missing.
Hmmmmm. What could it be?
OH!
I FORGOT THE LASER ETCHED JELLO!
Quickly, you run to the fridge and pull out the LEJ, a special treat, by which using lasers, a 3D picture is created inside, just like the glass cubes, only edible! (of coyrse, this one has a picture of your boss).
He walks in the door, picks up a jello cube, and bites his own head off.-- DesertFox, Nov 30 2004 Laserfurterator What [half] might be alluding to. [jutta, Nov 30 2004] [bathsheba]'s etchings. http://www.bathsheba.com/crystal/I wonder how hard it would be to convince the people who make those to throw a block of Jell-O into their rig and tell us what happens... and do we really want to know? [jutta, Nov 30 2004] Make your own animal cell, using fruit and Jello. http://www.enchante...animals/cell/jello/It's edible, and boy it sure looks delicious. [Amos Kito, Nov 30 2004] Plotting a mathematical formula in 3D, in clear Jello. http://www.chem.yal.../xray/diffract.htmlSearch for the word "jello" on that page, for a very brief suggestion about the procedure. [Amos Kito, Nov 30 2004] Etched Pizza - Shamless self promotion http://www.halfbake...t_2c_20Thin_20Crust[Letsbuildafort] [Letsbuildafort, Nov 30 2004] Using a LASER to create images in food? What kind of bonehead would come up with an idea like that? (+)-- half, Nov 30 2004 Do those cube etching gizmos use multiple beams from different directions or something? How else would they achieve the necessary intensity at a point inside the cube without frying everything along the path? Probably simpler than I think.
(Correct, jutta)-- half, Nov 30 2004 There's some information about that at bathsheba's site. (Click on "How do they get in there?") Hers use a conical beam that focuses on the site of the point.
Two problems you'd have with Jello: It's got little bubbles and impurities inside that deflect the laser, and it has a refractory index != that of air. (In other words, I wouldn't drive while wearing Jello glasses.) But, you know, with a strong enough laser...-- jutta, Nov 30 2004 Just don't serve the boss the gel ant farm by mistake.-- FarmerJohn, Nov 30 2004 If you boil an internal point of solid jello (to form a small "fracture"), what prevents the fracture from collapsing (and becoming invisible) when you remove the laser heat source? I wonder if you'd see any pattern inside the block when you're done.
There are ways you could form bubbles inside a solid block of jello (or implant bits of fruit), to produce a 3-D shape. The laser may produce dots too small to be practical for this medium.-- Amos Kito, Nov 30 2004 Serve a large block of Jell-O on a silver tray. When it has stopped quivering (of fright), give the boss a 44 Magnum to shoot an appealing hole through its center.-- FarmerJohn, Nov 30 2004 Hey, why is this jello category under the "halfbakery" top level category?-- krelnik, Nov 30 2004 Hey, why is this bug report in an idea where it won't necessarily be noticed by the moderators and will stay around even after the problem is fixed?-- jutta, Nov 30 2004 Hey, whats krelnik talking about?-- po, Nov 30 2004 I think this should go further than just an image in the jello. Done correctly you should be able to pull it apart to create a 3-D jello sculpture.-- Worldgineer, Nov 30 2004 Might be able to use one of those stereolithography machines.-- RayfordSteele, Dec 01 2004 When you can see what is etched inside the chocolate, Grasshopper, then the halfbakery has nothing more to teach you....-- ConsulFlaminicus, Dec 01 2004 random, halfbakery