Kinect Self-Awareness Hack
http://www.collegehumor.com/moogaloop/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=6452454&use_node_id=true&fullscreen=1 For the sake of humanity, Kinect hackers, please exercise caution! [via Dangerous Prototypes]
Gadgets
Circuitry, Anatomy, and Repair Tips for Common CFL Lamps
I don’t know about you, but I’m so used to the paradigm established by old-style incandescent bulbs that when one of my CFL’s “blows out,” it doesn’t even occur to me that I might be able to repair it in the garage. Or at least, it didn’t until I saw this page from Pavel Ruzicka, which does a good job of explaining the general principles of operation of CFL lamps and gives great details about their most common failure modes. Apparently, replacing a single capacitor will often do the trick. [via Hack a Day]
Giant Machete-Shooting Slingshot
I love Cory Doctorow’s droll description of this creation almost as much as I love the thing itself:
This handy gentleman has built an (arguably ill-conceived, but nevertheless impressive) rifle-cum-slingshot that fires machetes, should you find yourself with the need to fire machetes.
The handy gentleman in question is YouTuber Jörg Sprave, slingshot enthusiast par excellence. He blogs about it here. [via Boing Boing]
A Clock That Eats Flies
This prototype clock from UK designers James Auger and Jimmy Loizeau is powered by a microbial fuel cell. It features a conveyor belt of flypaper that attracts flies and drops their bodies into the fuel cell. Depending on the available fly supply, the process can generate enough power to sustain itself and power a digital clock, as well. [via Boing Boing]
Smarter iPad 2 Smart Cover
Check out this super sleek wooden roll top cover for the iPad 2 from Dutch case manufacturer Miniot. Made from a single piece of cherrywood, the case fits snug to the tablet using internal magnets. The design differs from the stock Apple Smart Cover with its rigid rolling arch, smooth organic lines, and its lack of hinge. Though I have yet to hold one in my hand, from what I’ve seen in the video demonstration it appears to offer superior support when used as a stand to prop up the device.
Steady Stylus
Dutch maker Ivo Beckers (shapedad) created this capacitive stylus for folks with limited mobility and is based on customer feedback. Capacitive touch devices like the iPad are useful tools for Assistive and Augmentative Communication (AAC) and Speech and Language Therapy (SLT). Check out Ivo’s wears here.
How-To: Set Up a Basement PCB Fab & Use It To Make a POV Business Card
This Instructable from Jared Foster doesn’t just show you how to make his cool persistence-of-vision business card. It takes you through the construction of a circulating etch tank, the modification of a laminating machine to make a stencil applicator, the assembly of a controller to turn a toaster into a reflow oven, and the cobbling-together of a vacuum pickup tool for SMT components. And then you get some practice using all that cool stuff making a POV business card. It even comes with obligatory American Psycho allusions.
