MAKE Visits the Open Source Ecology Project
Our special contributor, Jon Kalish, drives into Missouriโs corn and soybean country in search of the Open Source Ecology project.
Science
DIY science is the perfect way to use your creative skills and learn something new. With the right supplies, some determination, and a curious mind, you can create amazing experiments that open up a whole world of possibilities. At home-made laboratories or tech workshops, makers from all backgrounds can explore new ideas by finding ways to study their environment in novel ways – allowing them to make breathtaking discoveries!
Natural Slate Electrical Panels
We’ve already had some great reader suggestions for Natural Materials month. The first that caught my eye this morning is from MAKE pal and Flickr-pool-roundup regular John Honniball, aka anachrocomputer, who directs our attention to the use of natural slate panels as insulators in vintage electrical equipment. Above, a beautiful example from the Canada Science and Technology Museum…
Romanian Teenager Puts Space Shuttle Back in Space
On January 5, 2012, Raul Oaida posted the following update to his blog: “On the 31st of December I launched the Black Sky project payload with two HD cameras. I recovered the rig ~240km awaydownrange (320km on the highway) in excellent condition from a hill in a remote area.” About a month later, he posted the embedded video to YouTube. The entry on his blog from that date kinda says it all: “This was all done by me.”
Top 10: Natural Materials
When we say “natural materials,” the mind leaps immediately to wood, stone, leather, natural fibers. But there are lots of interesting and more “exotic” materials from the natural world that we don’t tend to think of, right away, and digging these up and showing them off is one of the things I’m most looking forward to in this month’s theme. To kick things off, here’s a sampler of some of my personal favorite unusual natural materials from our archives, arranged in highly unscientific how-much-does-Sean-like-it order. There’s cool stuff here made from antler, acorns, fish scales, insect parts – even shark’s teeth! Enjoy!
How-To: Extract Your DNA
It’s news to me that it’s possible to extract the DNA from your own cells with just a few household products such as bottled water, dish soap, food coloring, table salt, and isopropyl alcohol. You can learn how to see your own DNA in this fun video from PBS’s NOVA.
LittleBits, Backyard Brains, MakerBot at TED
At the TED2012 Conference with Ayah Bdeir of littleBits, Gregory Gage of Backyard Brains, and Bre Pettis of MakerBot Industries
Drone Sailboat Built by College Students
The Missus, a mini (2-meter) autonomous sailboat, will compete in the 6th International Robotic Sailboat Championships this June, in Vancouver, BC. We are a group of Memorial University students who are building an autonomous sailboat to compete in the Sailbot and World Robotic Sailing competition. The team is made up of students from all MUN […]
