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!
Zachary Rukstela of Kinetic Steamworks considers himself the steward of the pieces of vintage steam technology he owns. He operates a steam powered vehicle at Maker Faire Bay Area 2011, and explains his background in steam, from growing up on a farm, to working on a WWII era steam powered destroyer.
Our own inimitable Laura Cochrane spotted this clever trick over at The Craft Patch. It may not be glamorous or sexy, but I love insanely simple stuff like this born of paying careful attention to what’s right there in front of you.
This is the “Hello World” of biotech. You will make cells that glow! Adding jellyfish genes to bacteria might sound like it’s complicated, but it’s easy!
Being someone who already suffers from a debilitating form of arthritis, and spends most days and nights tap dancing on a keyboard, I’m amazed that I haven’t developed some form of RSI (repetitive strain injury), the catch-all term for the cumulative chronic “micro-injuries” associated with repetitive movements and work fatigue. I don’t have chronic RSI, but I do get intense wrist pain sometimes, associated with my arthritis, and occasionally, little shooting nerve pains (which always make me wonder if RSI has finally befallen me). But for the last 14 years I’ve employed a faithful tool in helping me avoid aches and pains in my hands: Handeze Therapeutic Support Gloves.
MAKE has covered Berlin-based artist Benoît Maubrey prior work on Audio Ballerinas. Now he has created a similar, but stationary sculpture using over 1000 repurposed speakers. It’s called “Speakers Wall” and in the center is a genuine piece of the Berlin Wall. It has become something of a speaker’s corner for remote museum attendees who can call in and talk through a set of the speakers for 3 minutes. As an added bonus, the speakers are used as a PA system for DJs during concerts – I can only imagine what that would sound like.
Here is a seven-piece arch in the shape of a catenary, similar to the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. If you have access to a 3D printer, you can make the pieces using the files available here.
YouTuber HouseholdHacker shows just how simple a glycerin-based fog machine really is, in principle, and how easy is it is to improvise a pretty fair substitute with some food-grade glycerin, a candle, and a couple other odds ‘n’ ends.
