Year: 2006

Make your own “Shrinky Dinks” with #6 Plastic

Make your own “Shrinky Dinks” with #6 Plastic

Plastic
Who didn’t spend hours as a kid playing with Shrinky Dinks? I was always in awe in front of the oven with the light on watching my creations shrink down into a hard piece of plastic. Now you can make your own! Just get yourself some #6 plastic. Most plastic containers you get from many bakeries and restaurants for food items “to go” are #6. You can make anything from jewelry, key chains, magnets,and push pins. The beauty of it all is watching them shrink! Link.

Learn all about Nanotechnology…

Learn all about Nanotechnology…

Jig4Ken writes “I work for a group at the University of Wisconsin that designs experiments in nanotechnology. While created with high school and/or college students in mind, the experiments may be interesting to your readers. Nanotechnology is a bit of a buzzword right now, and many people are surprised to learn that they can easily make things like nickel nanowires and organic light emitting diodes. The site includes materials lists and safety precautions. Full use of the site does require Quicktime.” Link.

Homemade Electrocardiograph

Homemade Electrocardiograph

SmallecgRaphael writes in with a follow up to our post about an ECG kit “I was feeling faint and had to wait two days for a doctors appointment, and I got a weird idea in my head that I needed to have a look at my heartbeat. Paranoiac imaginings were driving me crazy. What would the maker’s natural reaction be? To google search “make own EKG”. I was greeted with this wonderful website! Charmingly written and very informative, it can get you looking at a satisfying wiggly line that means you are indeed alive. Within a day! “ Link.

The Hidden Gems of Macworld

ThumbKevin writes in with a great video he shot at Macworld with some of the more strange things we covered here on MAKE“In this video entitled “The Hidden Gems of Macworld”, you can see the G5 Bling and MBridge in action. The G5 Bling from Wiebetech lets you hack your own CPU stat display, while the MCopy & MBridge device which let’s you transfer or upload media between USB devices and the Internet without the need for a computer!” Link.

HOW TO – Using a Stereo as Computer Speakers

HOW TO – Using a Stereo as Computer Speakers

Stereo LogoAaron writes “Most of us cannot afford fancy 7.1 surround sound systems or feel that we do not utilize the computer’s audio functions enough to reap the benefit of one. However, most of us have stereos. That and a few cables is all you need to enjoy a nice audio system without damaging your bank account. In this article, I will show you an easy way to use your stereo as computer speakers for a nice sound system at a very low cost.” Thanks Star! Link.

HF Radio powered email…

HF Radio powered email…

Graph“Bushmail is worldwide Email that works via HF Radio anywhere in Africa. It allows 100-KB Excel and Word attachments and is powered by just a 12-Volt battery, with an antenna that can be suspended from a tree. It requires an HF Radio, HF Modem and an antenna, which can all be installed on an easy Do-It-Yourself basis. Bushmail can also be used in a vehicle, with a Laptop PC being powered and charged from the cigarette lighter plug. It is extremely robust and even works during cyclones and with baboons swinging from the antenna. Bushmail does not allow browsing the Internet, as it is purely just a highly economical Email system. The HF Radio does allow Voice communication as well.” [via] Link.

HOW TO – Make boffer swords…

HOW TO – Make boffer swords…

BofferJakob writes “I saw the article on Boffer weapons you ran. I’ve made an even more detailed description of both a simple and advanced sword with blow-by-blow documentation. I don’t play live role acting, or similar games. But I had to make Boffer weapons with my scouts and I figured I might as well document the process so you could benefit from it as well. The description is both in danish and english.” Link.