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!

How-To: Watt-style mechanical governor

How-To: Watt-style mechanical governor

Adam Richard Cooper built this hand-cranked model of a classic mechanical governor–which, as MachinistBlog succinctly put it “regulates the speed of steam engines by acting as a negative feedback system”–and made the dimensional drawings and build notes freely available for download at his site. I like the idea of a hand-cranked governor model, particularly, because it provides tactile feedback of the device’s purpose: You crank it faster, it gets harder to crank.

Continue Reading Sean Michael Ragan6
Street Anatomy group show in Chicago

Street Anatomy group show in Chicago

Opening at the International Museum of Surgical Science in Chicago on Friday: STREET ANATOMY – a group exhibition focusing on representations of human anatomy in contemporary art and pop culture On view will be works that incorporate anatomical imagery in a variety of mediums, including painted skateboards, street art, and cast dark chocolate, by artists […]

Continue Reading Becky Stern
Garden trowel from hot-formed PVC pipe

Garden trowel from hot-formed PVC pipe

A trowel is such an inexpensive tool, it’s hard for me to imagine making my own for anything besides the experience of making and having made it myself. Still, I can see why someone might want to make this one described by Instructables “PVC whisperer” Thinkenstein: It starts from ubiquitous scrap material, looks good, and is made using an unusual process that involves softening PVC pipe under heat (a delicate trick, safety wise) and forming it by hand.

Continue Reading Sean Michael Ragan2

2000V washer launcher

Bob Davis, whom some of you may remember for his high-voltage can crusher, is back at it with this 2KV, 1600A, 1500 μF 10-capacitor discharge bank that can be used to crush cans and, most amusingly IMHO, launch washers high into the air with a sound that really has to be heard to be appreciated. Bob’s video might benefit from a bit of editing; clicking the embedded player above should take you right to the money shot around 4:35. There’s also a good can-crushing right around 5:50.

Continue Reading Sean Michael Ragan2