AP Photo

When an art student at the University of Washington wanted to bring her vision of a futuristic animal to life last semester, she didn't draw, paint, or sculpt it. She printed it—in three dimensions—using a machine that rendered her design from powdered bone.

The student, Juliana Meira do Valle, has since printed 3-D replicas of mouse skulls and is designing an experimental wedding veil that looks like it's growing out of the wearer's head, all with a machine that was once only used by engineering students.