App for That!

Here are some rendered or stereo 3D apps that are turning heads:

• 3D Cell World. Enter the mysterious world of the cell. Travel through translucent blue cytoplasm and feel the hypnotic movement of the cell walls. Discover the details of each element of the cell by navigating in game-like fashion to the Nucleus, Mitochondria, Ribosomes, and more. Become immersed in this amazing microcosm of nature and click to explore how this stunning and miraculous powerhouse generates energy for the entire human body.  (This app runs on your computer as well as an android device) http://view-university.com/apps/cellworld/ and http://view-university.com/apps/cellworld/CellWorld_Web.html

• Molecular Magic. Molecules, a free app for the iPad and iPhone, lets students view rendered 3D models of molecules and manipulate them using their fingers. Students can rotate the molecules by moving their finger across the display, zoom in or out by using two-finger pinch gestures or pan the molecule by moving two fingers across the screen at once. Students can view the structures in both ball-and-stick and space-filling visualization modes. They can also download new molecules from the Research Collaboratory for Structural Bioinformatics’ (RCSB) Protein Data Bank or the National Center for Biotechnology Information’s (NCBI) PubChem. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/molecules/id284943090

• ZCOOLY 3D math apps. Offered at  http://www.zcooly.se/

• Structure Sensor. Essentially a 3D scanner for mobile devices, Sensor attaches to your mobile device and effectively works to create a 3D image of anything you can view through the device’s camera. See http://structure.io/