Book making, Starbucks style

I've been doing some writing for The Chronicle of Higher Education lately, and readers of this blog might be particularly interested in today's piece: New Machines Reproduce Custom Books on Demand

Here's a taste:

If you wonder what the future of book publishing might look, smell, and sound like, head north to the University of Alberta's bookstore in Edmonton. There a $144,000 machine is churning out made-to-order paperbacks at a cost of a penny a page.

It's the Espresso Book Machine, which converts digital files into bound books, one order at a time, in under 15 minutes. The contraption smells like glue, looks like a couple of copy machines attached to a cabinet, and emits its share of clunking and thunking sounds, said Jacqui Wong, the machine's operator, who calls it her "baby."

In the article, I write about how professors and college students are using the machine, but surely there are fun uses for younger students too: Anthologies of high school poetry. How-to manuals to accompany science fair projects. Collections of digitized artwork by kindergarteners. Flipbooks to amuse teachers and kids alike (or simply help students prepare for computer animation courses). Any other ideas out there?