How to build a superhero in 5 easy steps | Michelle Dickinson | TEDxWanaka

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Ever since she was young, Dr Michelle Dickinson dreamed of being a superhero. To follow her dreams Michelle has spent her career researching new technologies to help her strive towards engineering a superhero suit which pushes the boundaries of what we thought was possible. Imagine if you could stick to the walls like Spiderman, wear an invisibility cloak or carry a shield light and strong enough to withstand major impact.

When she was a little girl, Michelle Dickinson wanted to be a superhero. When she found out that was not a viable career option, she studied Fracture Mechanics at university instead. She emerged with a PhD in biomedical materials engineering, and now is a senior lecturer in Engineering at the University of Auckland as well as running New Zealand's only nanomechanical testing laboratory. Simply put, she makes and breaks little things (really little things—a nanemetre is a billionth of a metre), studying the mechanical properties, chemistry and structure of nano-materials, biological materials and thin films, as well as the problem of why things behave differently when they are very small. She gives frequent talks on all things nano, as well as the ways science can be used for good and not evil. A self-confessed adrenaline junkie, she enjoys kitesurfing, cycling, running, paddle boarding and martial arts, and makes videos as her superhero-like alter ego, Nanogirl.

www.medickinson.com
www.twitter.com/medickinson
www.tedxwanaka.com
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