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!

DIY DNA Explorer Kit

DIY DNA Explorer Kit

dna.jpgThis DNA kit is for kids, but might be fun for all ages (and for some potential projects). It says you can view and map real DNA, do experiments as well as extract DNA from vegetables. It comes with a Centrifuge, mixer, electrophoresis chamber and other parts to perform the tests. Some bad news for Canadians, two of the 10 experiments included in the kit require the “Lambda DNA” which does not ship to Canada. Link.

DIY Pioneer Aux Input (MP3 to Car)

DIY Pioneer Aux Input (MP3 to Car)

mp3car.jpgGreat project to add your MP3 player to your car (Cool MAKE Photo too!) “Over the past couple of years I have upgraded my Pioneer Car CD changer to meet my needs. I went from a 6CD to a 12CD and now I have a portable MP3 player I want to connect. Pioneer offers an auxiliary adapter (CDRB-10) for ~$40 or an iPod adapter (CD-IB100) for ~$130. The auxiliary adapter appears to be a simple input-to-RCA-out, so I decided to make an aux adapter myself for ~$6. A quick tally of the cost of the parts listed is ~$12 bucks but you’ll have plenty of wire for your future projects and an extra stereo jack“. Link.

The Science of Cooking

The Science of Cooking

bread.jpgExploratorium, the museum of science, art and human perception has a cool section called “The Science of Cooking” with all sorts of interesting things about food and cooking for Makers. Discover how a pinch of curiosity can improve your cooking! Explore recipes, activities, and Webcasts that will enhance your understanding of the science behind food and cooking. Link. Also check out Cooking for Engineers here.

White Box Robotics

White Box Robotics

whitebox.jpgIt looks like something is brewing over at White Box Robotics- they’re relaunching their site on May 10th with photos, documentation and prototypes of the 9 series. These might be what was shown off at RobonexusThe White Box 912. Tom was the brainchild of the 912, an affordable personal robot powered by an industry standard VIA Mini-ITX mainboard. This mainboard along with other hardware (hard drives, CD-Burners, DVD drives, web cams, etc.) are then installed in the White Box Robotics 912 mobile platform“. Link.

Pakistani Truck Art

Pakistani Truck Art

truck.jpgNeat history and photos of “art cars” in Pakistan. “This extraordinary tradition has it’s routes in the days of the Raj when craftsmen made glorious horse drawn carriages for the gentry. In the 1920’s the Kohistan bus company asked the local Michaelangelo, Ustad Elahi Buksh, a master craftsmen to decorate their buses to attract passengers. Buksh employed a community of artists from the Punjab town of Chiniot, who’s ancestors had worked on many great palaces and temples dating back to the Mogal Empire. It was not long before truck owners followed suite with their own designs”. Link.