Engineers at Parker Hannifin Life Science Business Unit,, Hollis, N.H. (www.parker.com/lifesciences) have turned a syringe into a self-contained fluid dispenser with onboard memory, controls, and data storage. The Smart Syringe can dispense sub micro-liter amounts. It can, for example, serve as an automatic pipetting system handling liquids in genomics or blood chemistry instruments. The device needs no electrical or fluid connections, so it can be moved robotically and still work. The motor and gearbox in the syringe keeps delivery volumes to within +/-5%.