Month: January 2010

Plug n’ play hospital

Over at Boing Boing, MAKE bud Xeni Jardin has an interview with MSF (aka “Doctors without Borders”) Logistics Supervisor Laurent Dedieu in New York, and Hocine Bouhabib in Haiti, about the inflatable hospitals they’re setting up in Port-au-Prince. How do you create a surgery center in a disaster zone in the shortest amount of time […]

Beautiful ‘silk frost’ fibrous ice formations

Beautiful ‘silk frost’ fibrous ice formations

Dr. James Carter is a professor in the Department of Geography-Geology at the University of Illinois. One of his many interesting pages collects photos and other reports (dating back to 1884) of so-called “hair ice,” “haareis,” or (my fav) “silk frost.” The fibrous ice crystals seem to be caused by the pore structure of certain woods, and only forms where the bark has been removed. Reportedly, the phenomenon is reproducible: if you find a piece of wood growing hair ice, you can warm it up, then re-freeze it, and it will grow hair ice again. [via Neatorama]

Flat-pack cubicle

Flat-pack cubicle

I have no idea what need there is for a folding workstation, especially one that looks profoundly uncomfortable. Still, it’s a fun idea that might spawn an idea or two. Design firm Kapteinbolt explains: We like to introduce FLKS (flex), a flexible workplace. Just open the panels unfold the table and the chair and put […]