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!

Flashback: Solar-powered bike GPS

Flashback: Solar-powered bike GPS

“During the summertime, I’ll disappear for hours on long rides to nowhere and back. But I have to admit on some rides I’ve gotten so lost I have trouble finding my way home. Happily I was able to build a solar-powered GPS mapping machine, mostly from old computer parts and software I had sitting around my office.” Author Brian Nadels words in the introduction to his DIY Outdoors piece, “Solar-Powered Bike GPS,” from the pages of MAKE Volume 10, are further testament to the fact that necessity is the mother of invention.

Expedition scooter

Artist Jay Nelson modified this Honda Spree to serve as a tiny expedition vehicle. Outfitted with surfboard rack, roll-out canopy, and plenty of storage, I imagine filling it with gourmet provisions and heading to a remote beach for some exploration and relaxation. Nelson’s wonderful conceptual sketches lead me to believe he envisioned this as being […]

Bicycle pr0n

Bicycle pr0n

Boutique Cycles is a site out of Australia featuring user-submitted pics of tricked-out custom bicycles. Shown above, “Glowing Batavus” fixie by Netherlands user Kars, with an antique frame, Miche hubs, and custom-painted rims. The frame glows in the dark.

Living willow architecture

Living willow architecture

More arboreal architectural awesomeness, here brought to you by German architect Marcel Kalberer and the Sanfte Strukturen group. The first structure, called the Auerworld Palace, was constructed in 1998, in Aeurstedt, Germany, and was their first “willow palace” project, taking the efforts of 300 volunteers to build. Kalberer has gone on to… er… plant 70 […]