Lightbulb terraria
Our own Brookelynn spotted this awesome lightbulb terrarium over on Instructables. [via CRAFT]
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!
Biohacked bacteria possibly useful for landmine detection
Neat idea from students at the University of Edinburgh, who claim to have used Tom Knight’s BioBricks technology to produce a strain of bacteria that are bioluminescent in the presence of explosives or explosives residue. The notion is that liquid cultures of the bugs could be sprayed onto the ground in mined areas and would glow green wherever mines were to be found. I can think of lots of reasons why this might not work as well as one might hope, however, and because no technical details seem to be available, nor any peer-reviewed data, the news should probably be taken with a grain of salt. If anybody has any more info, please link us in the comments. [via Boing Boing]
3D renderings of the Mandelbrot set
A big Keanu “Whoa” over these gorgeous 3D renderings of fractals. The article offers a fascinating back story about the 20-year quest to adequately display a Mandelbulb, such a 3D analog rendering of a Mandelbrot set. The Unraveling of the Real 3D Mandelbrot
New in the Maker Shed: Microbe Motel kit
The MAKE Microbe Motel isn’t one of those toy science kits you use up and throw away, or that kids walk away from ten minutes after they open it. You can use the Microbe Motel to do scores of experiments and projects with microbes.
Putting together a microscope set
I’ve been working on microscope sets for Maker Shed. Until now, the only microscope set the Shed carried was the Thames & Kosmos TK2. That’s a decent set, at under $100, but it’s still a toy. We wanted some better sets, so I put together three, which we imaginatively named the Basic Microscope Set, Intermediate […]
Tiny solar-powered brass engine in a wineglass
This is the work of Szymon Klimek, whose work has been honored by the Internet Craftsmanship Museum. [via The Automata / Automaton Blog]
LHC tweets its first circulating beam of 2009
LHC tweets its first circulating beam of 2009, good luck finding the Higgs gang. Photos here…
