General Information

Organ Printing is the name given to organs that have been created using 3D printing technology. It is a health issue and it is being researched and created to address the lack of available organs for people who need them. The idea is that if, for example, a person’s heart valve or liver were to fail then a new one can be created and put in place of the old one instead of having to wait on the organ transplant list to maybe never receive one.

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Technical and Historical Information

The first device capable of 3D printing a group of cell structures was patented by Thomas Boland in 2003. He was able to repurpose an inkjet printer to hold and distribute a bio-degradable gel that is in a liquid state when below 20⁰C and a solid state when above 32⁰C. This creation sparked an advancement in the field of bioprinting which has been advanced to include the idea of printing whole organs.

The organs that are currently able to be made, e.g. blood vessels, are being created using Thomas Boland’s creation, the modified inkjet printer method. This method creates the organs by using many droplets of the cellular material stuck together. Each drop sticks together until it forms a cohesive structure that can then be used in place of the patient’s original blood vessel. This method is relatively fast.

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Impact of Technology

This is an emerging technology due to the slow speed in which it is being advanced. It has been 16 years since the Thomas Boland patented the first a device capable of 3D printing cell structures and 3D printed organs are still not close to being widely available for areas outside of lab-use. More complex organs such as the pancreas and heart also have yet to be successfully reproduced using the technology in its current state. It should also be classified as emerging due to the fact that it has not replaced the current method of organ replacements which is through the use of organ donations by deceased bodies.

References

Bajaj, P., Schweller, R., Khademhosseini, A., West, J. and Bashir, R. (2014). 3D Biofabrication Strategies for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine. Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering, [online] 16(1), pp.247-276. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4131759/ [Accessed 28 Aug. 2019].

Cooper-White, M. (2019). How 3D Printing Could End The Deadly Shortage Of Donor Organs. [online] Huffingtonpost.com.au. Available at: https://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2015/03/01/3d-printed-organs-regenerative-medicine_n_6698606.html [Accessed 28 Aug. 2019].

Daniel, D. (2018). 3D printing implants and organs is the new reality. [online] Healthcare IT Australia. Available at: https://www.healthcareit.com.au/article/3d-printing-implants-and-organs-new-reality [Accessed 28 Aug. 2019].

Choi, C. (2003). Ink-jet printing creates tubes of living tissue. [online] New Scientist. Available at: https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3292-ink-jet-printing-creates-tubes-of-living-tissue/ [Accessed 28 Aug. 2019].

DonateLife. (2019). Facts and statistics. [online] Available at: https://donatelife.gov.au/about-donation/get-facts/facts-and-statistics [Accessed 28 Aug. 2019].

Below is a screenshot of my LinkedIn profile. When creating this profile, I decided to connect with the following Government departments: Australian Signals Directorate, Digital Transformation Agency, Department of Defence, and the Australian Federal Police. I decided to connect with these organisations as I would like to work there upon graduating or conduct an internship while still studying. I wish to work there because of the opportunities available in Cyber Security. All of these government agencies conduct internship rotations that allow students to gain experience in multiple areas of cyber security. They also all have graduate programs that would be a great entry point in the working world.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathew-fairgrieve-905832168/

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According to the Skills Assessment, the skills I have a strong ability and interest in is:

• Analysis
• Attention to Detail
• Computer Literacy
• Problem Solving
• Questioning/Investigation
• Written Communication.

These skills combined show that I have a logical and analytical mind. These skills will help me when working towards the position of Cyber Security Analyst as that position requires a person to be able to follow logical progressions, solve problems, and pay attention to minute details.

The skills that I am interested in but need to improve are:

• Technical Skills
• Working under Pressure
• Building Relationships
• Creativity/Innovation
• Self-Management
• Research.

While Technical skills and Research are ‘hard skills’, the other four are soft skills. This shows I need to work more on my ‘soft skills’ or ‘people skills’ so that I am capable of building efficient and lasting relationships with co-workers and clients. I also need to work on my technical skills, which means improving my understanding and skills in ethical hacking techniques such as network mapping, vulnerability scanning, and knowledge of how networks interact with each other. Improving my researching skills will also improve my technical skills as I will be able to research how to perform technical tasks.

My name is Mathew Fairgrieve. I am interested in a career in the field of Cyber Security. The specific role I am interested in has multiple titles ‘Cyber Security Analyst’, ‘Cyber Security Consultant’, ‘Ethical Hacker’, and ‘Penetration Tester’. The role of a Cyber Security Analyst is to assess a client’s network security and determine any vulnerabilities that could be exploited by someone with malicious intentions.