RSSArchives: January 2008
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January 16, 2008
The tingle-tron
Read all the warnings, don't do this unless you know what you're doing... And if you know what you're doing you won't want to do this -
The tingle-tron was the result of a discussion between electricians about the effects of various levels of current through the body. Being electricians we are no strangers to the odd electric shock now and then, so for fun we decided to see what sort of current could be handled comfortably. The unit was built and then used on everyone in the team to ascertain who could handle the most current. Obviously for macho reasons we all eventually took it to the "max" (8mA) despite it being a rather intense experience! (4mA was quite nice though)The tingle-tron - Link.Current flow through a human body has an effect that is proportional to the level of current flowing, and the area of flesh it is flowing through. This means that for a specific current a larger person will get less of a shock than a smaller person. In general a current range of 1mA to 8mA is detectable as a tingling that affects a single finger at 1mA to most of an arm at 8mA.
Although the level of current required to cause adverse effects in an average adult is 30mA (where the diaphram contracts and prevents breathing), the current limit I chose for this circuit is 8mA which should pose a low hazard while providing plenty of tingle-tastic fun (or pain!).
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 11:00 AM
DIY Projects, Electronics |
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The minimalistic no-cost iBook sleeve (it's an envelope too)
Mark made his own version of the Macbook Air's "envelope sleeve", for an iBook... Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 10:00 AM
Computers |
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HOW TO - Build a beer keg radio
Here's how to build a beer keg radio from Popular Science 1938 -
NOVEL as well as serviceable, the beer-keg radio described on these pages will make a useful addition to the furnishings in your game room. It can be used either as an end table or as a refreshment stand, and, since it is an entirely self-contained unit, operated by dry batteries, it can be carried onto a porch or even into the yard when warm summer days and evenings make this desirable. If you build this five-tube set carefully, it will give excellent reception from stations 1,000 miles or more away.HOW TO - Build a beer keg radio - Link.The unusual cabinet that houses the chassis, speaker, and batteries of the powerful superheterodyne circuit, is nothing more than an inexpensive ten to fifteen-gallon wine barrel, which can be purchased from any mail-order house. Making the barrel resemble a beer keg requires simple, inexpensive treatment which will be described later...
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 09:00 AM
DIY Projects, Modern Mechanix, Retro, Wireless |
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Otto project amplifies hidden sounds
"Otto" which means "ear" in Greek, is a device that amplifies hidden sounds in the environment using suction cups and magnets. Used as multiple units, the project can produce a layered sonic experience through emitting ambient sounds. Pretty interesting idea for creating a musical performance of sorts, we just wonder exactly how melodic the resulting sound could be or if it would just result in a lot of white noise.
Madsounds / Otto - Link, [via]
Posted by Jonah Brucker-Cohen |
Jan 16, 2008 08:00 AM
Music |
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Fan chair shakes your booty
Some inventive Makers in London built this "Fan Chair" out of discarded and repurposed old fan parts. The idea was to make something that could keep you cool in the summer and circulate the heat in the winter. Watch the video to see a sped up version of how they made it and check out the link for more details.
The Fan Chair - Link
Posted by Jonah Brucker-Cohen |
Jan 16, 2008 07:00 AM
Made On Earth |
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Driving down the musical highway
Next time you are driving down the road you might have to turn down the stereo in order to listen to the soundtrack. Some engineers at the Hokkaido Industrial Research Institute in Japan have developed "Melody Roads" that use cars as tuning forks to play music as they pass over them. The concept uses grooves that are cut into the cement at specific intervals in the road surface. Playing off the regular sounds you hear when driving over a speed bump, the grooves are cut in such a way that driving over them creates an audible note. Now, if we can just figure out how to hook up "Rock Band" to this?
Hokkaido Industrial Research Institute - Link, [via]
Posted by Jonah Brucker-Cohen |
Jan 16, 2008 06:00 AM
Music |
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UV Panel project - recycled LCD monitors
Jared writes -
So there is no hiding the fact that I have been interested in ultraviolet light lately. I also have a few dead LCD monitors laying around I have been experimenting with. It was only natural that I would combine the two to help show off my fluorescing rock collection. This is a really easy build and cheap as well if you have a dead monitor laying around. The best part is the older the monitor the worse the viewing angle, and that works out real well for us making the light highly directional.UV Panel Project - Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 05:00 AM
Computers, DIY Projects, Electronics |
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Fire alarm bell alarm clock
I could use one of these to wake me up in the morning! Alan at Hacked Gadgets made a nice tutorial video on how to hack a cheap alarm clock to ring a fire alarm bell, don't-cha-know. - [via] Link.
Posted by Becky Stern |
Jan 16, 2008 05:00 AM
DIY Projects, Electronics |
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Knitted frog dissection
Etsy seller CraftyHedgehog made a great knitted frog... dissected!-
Wow your scientist friends and colleagues with the coolness of this piece of knitted art. The frog is hand knit from a silk/wool blend, and his little innards were needle-felted by hand out of 100% wool. He comes pinned into his black wood 8 x 10 inch frame, but he is not glued down, so you can take him out and cuddle him if you wish.- Etsy :: Knitting in Biology 101 - [via] Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 04:00 AM
Crafts |
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Fabaroni: a homemade 3D printer
Outstanding! -
The Fabaroni is a 3D printing machine that constructs 3D models with pasta dough. Fabaroni's gantry has a moving Z-stage and a head with pasta-extruder moving in the X-Y directions. Fabaroni takes STL files as input, processes them using Python, and prints to the machine via 6 printed circuit boards.Fabaroni: a homemade 3D printer - [via] Link.Fabaroni was created in the How to Make (Almost) Anything Class of Fall 2007. It is a WORK IN PROGRESS and documentation on this site is not entirely complete. Our sympathetic thoughts are with anyone who attempts to construct their own from our documentation.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 03:00 AM
DIY Projects |
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Kiosk - Sci-Fi tale of 3D printing, fabbing and more
Bruce Sterling's "Kiosk" is a tale ripped right out of the future. 3D printing, carbon nano-tubes and more... -
THE FABRIKATOR WAS UGLY, noisy, a fire hazard, and it smelled. Borislav got it for the kids in the neighborhood. One snowy morning, in his work gloves, long coat, and fur hat, he loudly power-sawed through the wall of his kiosk. He duct-taped and stapled the fabrikator into place. The neighborhood kids caught on instantly. His new venture was a big hit. The fabrikator made little plastic toys from 3-D computer models. After a week, the fab's dirt-cheap toys literally turned into dirt. The fabbed toys just crumbled away, into a waxy, non-toxic substance that the smaller kids tended to chew. Borislav had naturally figured that the brief lifetime of these toys might discourage the kids from buying them. This just wasn't so. This wasn't a bug: this was a feature. Every day after school, an eager gang of kids clustered around Borislav's green kiosk. They slapped down their tinny pocket change with mittened hands. Then they exulted, quarreled, and sometimes even punched each other over the shining fab-cards. The happy kid would stick the fab-card (adorned with some glossily fraudulent pic of the toy) into the fabrikator's slot. After a hot, deeply exciting moment of hissing, spraying, and stinking, the fab would burp up a freshly minted dinosaur, baby doll, or toy fireman.Kiosk - Sci-Fi tale of 3D printing, fabbing and more - [via] Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 01:00 AM
News from the Future |
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Darkest material ever
I'd like a coat made out of this stuff, but that's just me...
In the iconic movie This is Spinal Tap, lead guitarist Nigel Tufnel said of his band's black album cover, "It's like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black." He was wrong. A scientist at Rice University has created the darkest material known to man, a carpet of carbon nanotubes that reflects only 0.045 percent of all light shined upon it. That's four times darker than the previously darkest known substance...Rice researchers make a dark discovery - Link.As it absorbs nearly all light, Ajayan said it could be useful in the collection and storage of solar energy. Also, as it minimizes the scatter of stray light, it could improve optical instruments such as telescopes.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 16, 2008 12:00 AM
Science |
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| Comments (10)
January 15, 2008
MakePhilly - Sunday, January 20th
Josh writes in with the infoz for the next MakePhilly meeting -
The next meeting of MakePhilly (http://www.makephilly.com) will feature guest speaker Don Miller (also known as NO CARRIER) who creates fast paced, colorful visuals for live music events and interactive art installations by hacking 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) consoles with custom programmed cartridges.MakePhilly.com - Link.Don will share his DIY approach to programming the PPU (Picture Processing Unit) of NES consoles. He will demonstrate that you that you don't need to know much math or have prior programming experience to explore the graphics of old NES games, hack and edit NES ROM images, and even create simple graphics programs.
Don is an educator, programmer, and live visualist living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He recently performed at Blip Festival 2007, an international gathering of forty musicians and visualists from around the world. In 2007 he designed and programmed the first NES album ever to be released on cartridges, for chiptune musicians Alex Mauer and Phlogiston. In 2008 his work will be displayed at Colgate University for their Creative Solutions for Sustainable Futures exhibition that explores environmental issues and sustainability across natural, built, and digital environments.
Don will be supported by Dino Lionetti (aka Cheap Dinosaurs) who is a synthesist living in Philadelphia with an affinity for portable sound gadgets. He will talk about the process of tracking, the hardware he uses, and the chiptune scene. Dino composes music using a Nintendo Gameboy and will join Don for a brief performance after the challenge.
Meeting Specs
Date: Sunday, January 20th
Time: ** 3PM SHARP **
Location: University of the Arts, 333 S. Broad Street, Anderson Hall, 4th Floor
Cost: $5 donation suggested
RSVP: Required for this meeting (email first & last name to makephilly@gmail)
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 15, 2008 07:00 PM
Announcements, Events |
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Poormaker's test probes
This poor bastard couldn't even afford seven bucks for a cheesy pair of DMM test probes, so he replaced his missing red one with a homemade jobbie made from little more than a 6-penny nail, a pen barrel, and some heat shrink. Should we take up a collection? I probably have that much change in the cracks of my sofa.
Replacing Multimeter Test Lead - Link
Posted by Gareth Branwyn |
Jan 15, 2008 06:00 PM
DIY Projects, Instructables |
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| Comments (4)
Pleo taken apart, dissected, gutted
The cute little robo-dinosaur taken apart and photographed for your pleasure, today turned out to be "take apart Tuesday" - [via] Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 15, 2008 05:00 PM
Electronics |
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Paper cuts that smart in a good way
Mind-blowing paper cut art from Brooklyn-based artist Kako Ueda.
Kako Euda, Artist - [Thanks, Patti!] Link
Related:
- Plasma-cut lace art - Link
Posted by Gareth Branwyn |
Jan 15, 2008 05:00 PM
Arts, Crafts, Paper Crafts |
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| Comments (5)
OLPC XO dissection and massive electronics teardown roundup
Notebookreview took apart the OLPC (one laptop per child) click on through fort he gore - Link.
Related:
iPod sport teardown - Link.
Pure Digital camera dissection - flip video F130W - Link.
Nike+iPod dissection & more - Link.
Tooth Tunes Musical Toothbrush dissection - Link.
Mighty Mouse Dissection - Link.
Roomba dissection - Link.
Wii-mote guts - Link.
Wii gutted - Link.
PS3 gutted - Link.
Zune gutted - Link.
PS3 (Playstation 3) controller & iPod shuffle 2.0 taken apart - Link.
Take apart a Nintendo DS in 13 minutes (video) - Link.
Sony Reader Internals 2.0 (pics!) - Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 15, 2008 03:00 PM
Computers, Electronics |
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| Comments (3)
Jake von Slatt's RV
MAKE pal Jake von Slatt gives us a video tour of his refurbished Thomas school bus, with much of the interior materials scrounged from the dump or scored through Freecycle or Craigslist.
Bus Tour - Link
Posted by Gareth Branwyn |
Jan 15, 2008 02:00 PM
Green, Transportation |
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| Comments (7)
Glass artist
For centuries the Hammesfahr family has been blowing rods of glass into objects of art, I wonder if they're still doing this? Looks like they had a book Mechanix Illustrated 1947-
THE place is a Brooklyn workshop, the year, 1947. George Hammesfahr blows gently into the hollow glass rod and a wine-red bubble puffs slowly outward from the middle of the hot, pliable glass. The bubble grows, the deep red mellows into a soft vermilion as it presents a larger surface to the light. Deep inside the bubble a vision starts to take shape, a mind’s eye vision which only George can see. The place is a workshop in old Bohemia, back in the middle ages. A gnarled craftsman heats a glass rod over a flame, blows into it and begins to mold fantastically tiny objects from the brilliantly-colored glass. He works swiftly, deftly, shaping little creatures with a deft flick of the wrist, a sharper breath. The flickering candle on the workbench lights his seamed face as admiring villagers stare through the frost-encrusted panes in the night outside. They nudge each other and whisper, “That’s old man Hammesfahr, the Glass Man. Well does he know his craft, better than any in old Bohemia. He is passing his secrets down to his children and his children’s children, so they too shall know. . . .”The vision fades. George works on.Modern Mechanix » Glass Artist - Link.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 15, 2008 01:00 PM
Arts, Retro |
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Wireless MidiTron
Eric released a new wireless MidiTron -
MidiTron™ Wireless is a wireless sensor-to-MIDI interface. It consists of a compact sensor interface/transmitter unit and a corresponding receiver/output unit which interfaces via USB or MIDI. It provides 20 inputs in any combination of up to 10 analog inputs and 20 digital inputs. Sensor inputs are converted and sent wirelessly to a receiver unit, which outputs MIDI messages.It is designed to be a small, flexible, robust, long-range solution for creating wireless sensor controllers for real-time use in performance, installations and other scenarios.
MidiTron™ Wireless Features
- Small transmitter (2 5/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2"); encloses internal antenna and 9v battery
- Can be worn on body
- 1000 foot range under ideal conditions; several hundred foot range possible even with obstructions
- Uses 900 MHz frequency band for less interference than the increasingly crowded 2.4 GHz band
- Uses highly reliable RF chip set proven in live performance situations
- Eight selectable channels allow eight units to be used simultaneously or channel switching if interference is encountered
- Continuous re-transmit of sensor values virtually eliminates drop-out or lost data
- Very low latency transmit (maximum 7 ms with all sensors enabled)
- Very low latency USB and MIDI output (actual latency system dependent)
- Normal (7-bit) and high (10-bit) resolution analog modes available
- Easily configured with menu-driven programming patch
- No network configuration required as with Bluetooth or WiFi
- Standard MIDI and USB-MIDI input/output ports
- With USB, appears on computer as a standard MIDI device with no special drivers required
- Once configured, can be used as a standalone MIDI device without a computer
- Several interchangeable styles of connector boards allow flexibility in making sensor connections
- Three-pin style connector board allows direct interfacing of popular sensors available from other manufacturers
Related:
MidiTron, Fully Assembled. MidiTron is a new MIDI to real-world interface designed to simplify the process of creating sensor- and robotics-based electronic art projects. It is easily user configurable and provides 20 terminals of digital and analog inputs and outputs in any combination. Get it at the Maker Store.
Posted by Phillip Torrone |
Jan 15, 2008 12:01 PM
DIY Projects, Electronics, Kits, Music |
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| Comments (1)
Page 16 of 26 << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 >>
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MADE in Japan - Part I.
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