Weekend Project: Make an Explosion Engine
Make a DIY internal combustion engine that explodes into action just like the real thing! See the misfires and final test results!
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!
Weekend Project: Make a Lensless Microscope
Turn a video camera into a lensless miscroscope and record what you see! Fun and easy project. Credit for the original project goes to Tom Zimmerman. From Make Magazine Volume 14.
Weekend Project: Making Biodiesel
Make your own backyard biodiesel. It’s easy to make a small batch that will work in any diesel engine. You won’t need any special equipment–an old juice bottle will serve as the “reactor” vessel–and on such a small scale, you can quickly refine your technique and perform further experiments.
Backyard Brains on Make: Live ep13
Greg Gage from Backyard Brains demonstrates their SpikerBox kit, which lets you experiment with cockroach neurons. Becky and Greg surgically remove a cockroach leg and listen to the neurons firing. This is an archived clip from Make: Live, which was originally broadcasted on 7/29/11. Go to https://makezine.com/live/ for information about the show, chat transcripts, and details on the next show.
Solar and Wave Powered Autonomous Submersible: Liquid Robotics Waveglider
Liquid Robotics’ Waveglider is an autonomous submersible that explores the ocean using the power of the sun and waves. As Roger Hine explains at Bay Area Maker Faire 2011, the Waveglider can either traverse the waters on its own, converting the up-and-down motion of the waves into forward propulsion, or can be controlled remotely by a user with a GPS satellite link.
http://liquidr.com/
Rainwater catchment basics
Here’s a useful primer on whole-house rainwater catchment systems: In many areas of the country, a water-conserving household can provide for all its water needs from what it can catch off its roof. If the graywater and potentially the blackwater/humanure is also recycled for landscaping, each home can become an independent and sustainable part of […]
Wine cask hotel
This is truly aggressive upcycling: The De Vrouwe van Stavoren Hotel in the Netherlands salvaged four wine casks from Switzerland and converted them into rooms. Formerly filled with 14,500 liters of Beaujolais wine from the French chateau, each now holds a modest two-person room with standard amenities and even an attached bathroom and sitting room. […]