The ability to print a 3-D object may sound like science fiction, but it has been around in some form since the 1980s. Also called rapid prototyping or additive manufacturing, the idea is to take a design from a computer file and forge it into an object, often in flat cross-sections that can be assembled into a larger whole. While the printer on your desk uses ink on paper, these printers usually take powder or plastic that they mold into thin layers of material. Colleges and universities are finding more and more uses for 3-D-printing technology, which has grown in sophistication and fallen in price in recent years. Some proponents argue that nearly every discipline could benefit from the ability to easily create objects from customized designs. Professors around the country are developing open-source designs for 3-D printers, in the hope of further lowering the cost. In some cases, their efforts have sparked fights with manufacturers, who argue that their patents are being violated by the professors' creations. Even so, Mark Ganter, a professor of mechanical engineering at Washington, says 3-D printers will continue to proliferate, and to go beyond college campuses. In this article, the author discusses how 3-D printers spread from engineering departments to designs across disciplines.