• OpenDrop, an open-source digital microfluidics platform for research, was highlighted; it uses electro-wetting to manipulate tiny liquid droplets and is positioned as a low-cost, hackable alternative to commercial lab-on-a-chip systems.  
• Mesodyne’s 300 W “photonic crystal” portable generator was discussed: it burns fuel in micro-combustors, converts the emitted IR via photonic crystals, and then harvests the light with low-band-gap photovoltaic cells to achieve high energy density in near silence.  
• A direct Energy & Environmental Science paper (10.1039/C7EE00366H) was linked via Sci-Hub, providing the technical foundation for the above thermophotovoltaic approach.  
• The channel’s ongoing interest in open-source lab hardware was reinforced by the simultaneous mention of OpenDrop and Mesodyne, illustrating a trend toward democratizing both wet-lab and energy technologies for garage-scale research.