14 DAY TRIAL // The idea of sticking antennas into the human body is an old one, but adding one of those metal rods to someone's flesh or bones never did provide people with the ability to tap into radio waves, unlike in comics.
Still, where there's a will there's a way, and some researchers led by Michael McAlpine, an assistant engineering professor at Princeton, have the way.
Long story short, they've invented an artificial ear that can presumably pick up radio waves.
The ear was printed out of cartilage, rather than grafted. It allowed the scientists to build the antenna directly into it.
A hydrogel seeded with calf cells was used for the structure, while layers of silver nanoparticles created the antenna.
The end of the antenna is connected to a system that simulates the cochlea, which allows us to perceive sounds.