Most of the Barbots and their teams are returnees from previous years, but as with the DARPA Grand Challenges, the…ah… bar raises very quickly from one event to the next as the innovations pour forth. This year’s bots were all beautiful, with gracious interfaces.
I don’t see kids adding skills they’ve earned to their social networking profiles yet, I mostly see check-ins, bands, movies and status updates. While historic groups like the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts are sometimes associated with camping and selling cookies for many – I think there might be something new ahead. A peer to peer way of sharing and celebrating skills using the internet (think Khan Academy) and I think the scouts will ultimately go this way too, becoming “Scouts 2.0”.
I love this pair of “interviews” that hacker legends Mitch Altman and Emmanuel Goldstein gave to the Media Show. When someone says they are a hacker, what do they mean? Are they just big computer geeks? Are they doing illegal criminal things, breaking in and stealing passwords? Mitch Altman, inventor of the TV-B-Gone, tells us […]
If you want to see 3D printers, tool lending, laser cutters, skill building, entrepreneurial classes and hackspace-like activities visit the NYPL “Join the Conversation” page and send in your comments. You can also email: yourlibrary@nypl.org
Neat idea from NY architect John Locke, who designed this slot-together plywood shelf unit to hang over the standard public telephone kiosk without fasteners or other alterations to the existing public property. The phone, if present, can still be used normally. So far, John has tested two prototypes, and in both cases passers-by were confused […]
Sculptor Tony Cragg created this dice-covered sculptures for Paris’s FIAC art show, which took place in October. Love to see this style with d20s! [via Colossal; photo courtesy of Daniel Milliner]
As I spent the days and nights shipping, I thought it would be interesting to consider how we could transform and evolve the postal system. I think makers, hackers and entrepreneurs have unique ways of looking at things and I’d like to share some of the ideas I had. Most of all, I’d like your ideas. Together we could start some conversations on how we could utilize this national logistical treasure. That’s this week Soapbox, “How Makers, Hackers And Entrepreneurs Can Save The US Postal Service”…
