In addition to being an online editor for MAKE Magazine, Michael Colombo works in fabrication, electronics, sound design, music production and performance (Yes. All that.) In the past he has also been a childrens' educator and entertainer, and holds a Masters degree from NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program.
When we post new content on MAKE, we love hearing from our readers. Whether the comments be intelligent, insightful, or funny, here are our favorites from the past week, from Makezine, our Facebook page, Google+ Community, and Twitter.
That was awesome! I make instruments also and I use mostly recycled and repurposed materials. It amazes me to see beauty come from trash. We throw away wonderful things every day- we just don’t see it. Recycling doesn’t stop at the plastic bin on your curb.
A friend of mine had a Jeep whose wheel would go out of balance at higher speeds and cause some serious tire hop. He took it to the shop and they balanced the wheel over and over again, and it seemed like the wheel would go out of balance immediately after balancing it. After a couple of wheel weights were put on and taken off, the frustrated tire balancer took the wheel off the machine and took the tire off the wheel he found a cheap 2 D Cell flashlight inside the tire. Apparently, the flashlight would slide inside the tire at low speeds, but when the vehicle started going faster, the centrifugal force caused the flashlight to grip the wall of the tire and wreaked havoc on the balance, but once the vehicle slowed down to a certain speed the flashlight would slide back down to the bottom again and all would be fine. My buddy kept the flashlight as a memento. I wasn’t there, but I don’t doubt the veracity of his story.
Just Awesome…to see a pro-active youth… every teen should be encouraged to take on their dreams. In our “American” world today we hold to many of them back from exploration and discovery, by treating them like children instead of the capable people they are!
So after several launches (and “landings”) in the snowy midwest, I learned that pointed paper nose cones in the air rocket template that MAKE provides are not all that great. They are hard to assemble, they are dead after one landing, and it’s impossible to really tape or water/snow proof them. So I then learned that a hemisphere/parabola are lower air drag anyway!
So I have 3 improvements/updatees to the overall air rocket assembly.
1. wad up some masking tape and mold into hemisphere for the nose cone
2. drill a hole in the tube base so you don’t have suction when pulling off your newly formed rockets
3. I just glues the two small pieces of 3/4 inch wood very close together so I can insert the glued fins and then fold over the two small flaps that connect them to the body. This gets the flaps folded quickly AND at exactly the same level.
Also, as I said before, use “zip dry” glue! It dries FAST (but not too fast) and its super strong! You can find it at michaels or other craft stores.
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In addition to being an online editor for MAKE Magazine, Michael Colombo works in fabrication, electronics, sound design, music production and performance (Yes. All that.) In the past he has also been a childrens' educator and entertainer, and holds a Masters degree from NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program.
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Escape to an island of imagination + innovation as Maker Faire Bay Area returns for its 16th iteration!
By Michael Colombo
Michael Colombo
In addition to being an online editor for MAKE Magazine, Michael Colombo works in fabrication, electronics, sound design, music production and performance (Yes. All that.) In the past he has also been a childrens' educator and entertainer, and holds a Masters degree from NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program.
View more articles by Michael ColomboWhen we post new content on MAKE, we love hearing from our readers. Whether the comments be intelligent, insightful, or funny, here are our favorites from the past week, from Makezine, our Facebook page, Google+ Community, and Twitter.
In the article Landfill Harmonic: Making Beautiful Music from Trash, chuck commented:
In the piece Tool Tales: The Case of the Rattling Awl, Cementtruck remarks:
On MAKE’s Facebook page, Rich Watrous responded to Teen Creates 3D-Printed, Brain-Powered Prosthetic Arm:
For our #MakeHaiku Contest on Twitter, we saw this entry:
In the article Cast Iron Skillet Map of the U.S., Will remarked:
On our Google+ Community, Justin Eltoft shared:
Like these comments? Be sure to sound off in the comments! You could be in next week’s column.