Five years ago book digitization was the domain of giants — Microsoft and Google. Commercial book scanners cost as much as a small car. Collectively, we tried to fix that. Here's how to build the Archivist — the VW Beetle of book scanners — cheap, durable, and tremendously effective. It’s open source (Raspberry Pi and Canon Hacks Development Kit) and made with simple materials like plywood, bungees, and skateboard bearings. As fast as you can turn the pages, the Archivist photographs them automatically and creates a zip file of the entire book, for conversion to the e-book format of your choice.
Oobleck is a delightful non-Newtonian fluid that exists as a liquid under low-stress situations, but becomes more viscous when agitated or vibrated. Named after a fictional green precipitation in a Dr. Seuss book, the substance is fun on its own, but you can add more awesome by making it glow (with highlighter dye, under a black light) and making it perform (by placing it on a speaker). Be amazed as it comes to life!
Make this fun mini projector just in time for Halloween. It throws a shadow image of a black cat — which then disappears, leaving only his spooky grin!
Bake a bloody thorax cake that oozes with every bite.
At 2012’s East Bay Mini Maker Faire at Park Day School in Oakland, one room became resplendent.
Glen A. Larson could be considered an American hero. He is the television producer responsible for bringing such gems as Battlestar Galactica and Knight Rider to the small screen. The Larson Scanner, named in his honor, can be used for your costume, bike, R/C car, case mod, or — as we did — the Cylon jack-o’-lantern.
A monster cutout in your window blocks some of the light behind it and casts a spooky shadow.
Here’s a classic toy reimagined for you to make just in time for Halloween candy-giving and party fun. It’s the Mad Monster Candy Snatch game, which combines the nerve-wracking dexterity of the old classic Operation game (BZZZZZT!) with a fun monster head–shaped candy dispenser. Make those little goblins earn their treats with this tricky game!
Scare the wits out of visitors with this pneumatic spook
Create your own custom spooky halloween skull treats using this configurable, parametric 3D printed mold form. Created in OpenSCAD by combining a scanned skull with a parametric box to create a food-safe silicone chocolate skull mold.
Tired of the same humdrum pumpkin carving routine year after year?
Build a simple light-sensing circuit that switches an LED on when the lights go out.
