Dave writes “I came across this site while looking for crafts to do with all the acorns my 5 year old son collected at school and filled his pockets with. In true junior maker fashion he saw the acorns and knew there was *something* we could do with them. The acorn whistle on this page takes some practice but really is quite loud once you get the hang of it.” Link.
We’ve posted about Etsy before, but I wanted to throw another link their way as the site has changed a little since I last visited (lots of new ways to use the site). Etsy is a marketplace for handmade goods, from the creators of GetCrafty. Kinda eBay like, but prices are fixed (no auctions) and goods must be handmade. Insanely cool ways of browsing/finding the items up for sale, like shopping by color or time. Thanks Stewart!
Stefan sent in this Maker challenge, seems like there’s an opportunity to do something here…“in a dentist’s office waiting room [reading in a] copy of TIME, that a full-blown Avian Flu pandemic would seriously stress the nation’s supply of ventilators . . . those bellow-and-tube gadgets that keep your chest going up and down when you can’t breath on your own. This suggests a topic for a MAKE Challenge: A DIY ventilator! Only for use in serious, horrible, unthinkable circumstances, but [stuff] happens and it would make for an interesting project. Extra credit if it runs off of a 12 V battery. (Or maybe not…a possible design I’m thinking of right now would use a windshield wiper motor set to intermittent).
Robots have taken over! Knitted robots, that is. Jess Hutchison takes her love of knitting into realms of technology with these cute, cuddy and we think “friendly” robots. Perfect for pinics or just chillin’ on the sofa. Contact Jess if you want to purchase one or make one yourself. Link
Makers, everyone, welcome Natalie Zee to the MAKE blog! Natalie is an all around gadget geek and crafter. She will be posting here on the MAKE site as well as working on some fun projects with us, welcome Nat! Check out her personal site here, her Flickr photos and her del.icio.us links!
Gizmodo has a nice round up of what’s been shaking over at Treehugger, an excellent site devoted to Earth friendly things – indoor solar project, hand cranked iPod, power assist bikes and glass that can product electricity. And on that note, here’s the winner of the DIY Eco-tech Contest: the solar-powered hydrofoil sent in by Terrence Breitsameter and built by the Marquette Solar Energy Society. In addition to the solar backpack, MAKE is giving them a 2 year subscription to MAKE and our limited edition T-Shirt!
Wow, this BIG! The new iPods record in stereo! Voice recording settings: Low (22.05 KHz, mono) High (44.1 KHz, stereo). At least that’s what the spec page says. This is _great_ news for anyone who has wanted to use their iPod as a recorder, but didn’t like the idea of installing Podzilla, or recording at the crippled rate the older iPods are set at. Link.
