Now you can 3D print hair

Researchers at the Carnegie Mellon University have 3D printed life-like 'hair' by a surprisingly easy method.

The process includes the printer squeezing out a small glob of molten plastic and then pulling away which stretches the material into a long strand. 

This is repeated over and over again, with the nozzle depositing each new glob in a tightly-spaced grid pattern. They look more natural when the hair is randomly placed, and by natural we mean the troll doll.

Printing a human head sized wig is definitely possible, but it won't happen in a jiffy. This is the downside, each hair has to be made individually. Printing very is slow, just 10 square millimetres of hair takes more than 20 minutes. That's smaller than the tip of your pinky finger.

After the painstakingly long wait, the final product is reportedly life-like and can be styled just like the real thing. The 3D printed hair can be cut, combed, curled  and even braided.

Depending on the positioning and how densely the fibres are packed, they can potentially be used in a variety of applications like hair extensions or toothbrush bristles.

The Carnegie Mellon team will present their research on November 11th at the UIST 2015 symposium in Charlotte, NC.

Watch how the hair is 3D printed.