Build Your Own Vacuum Chamber for Under $30
YouTuber Chris Notap builds a tabletop vacuum chamber from a discarded scroll compressor and common household items.
laboratory
How-To: Glass Klein Bottle
Dutch glass crasftman Ramon Vink runs a studio called Poelgeest Glass. Using modern lampworking techniques and tools, he makes scientific apparatus and artistic pieces like this Klein bottle, the forming of which he has documented in a series of five YouTube videos. The videos themselves are pretty raw, with minimal post-production and no narration, but taken altogether they do a good job of documenting not just the general process of forming a Klein bottle from stock glass tube, but the specific tools and skilled manipulations required for each operation.
December is Glass Month
With November behind us, we’re wrapping up our 2012 Year of Materials theme, this month, with a focus on glass. Glass, in the broadest sense of the term, does not imply any particular type of atomic or molecular composition, but rather a particular kind of ordering of atoms or molecules in space. Or rather, a lack thereof. In understanding this it is helpful to contrast glasses with crystals, in which atoms/molecules are arranged in repeating rows, columns, or other identifiable patterns, like cannonballs stacked on a courthouse lawn. Glasses, on the other hand, are more like dice poured haphazardly into a jar.
Maker Faire New York: How-To: DIY Anaerobic Chamber/Glove Box
Like a lot of professional-grade scientific equipment, purpose-made glove boxes are spendy, especially if you buy a new one. That’s why I think a lot of hobby, citizen, and just plain ol’ thrifty scientists will be excited about this DIY version from NYU ITP student Nelson Ramon.
Etching Metalized Plastic
I have been hacking on some cheap R/C cars, lately, and wanted to etch metal films off of a few of the bits. I knew that the usual strong acid and base suspects would remove it, but many folks don’t keep these substances around, for whatever reasons. I got curious about milder etchants, and did a simple test with some household chemicals.
Synthetic Bone Generation with LEGO
University of Cambridge students researching synthetic bone tissue use LEGO MINDSTORMS to automate the generation of new tissue samples. Repeatedly dipping a sample into various solutions builds up the compound to be tested, which is something perfectly suited to for automation.
Anodize Titanium with Common Ingredients
If you’d like to take a crack at anodizing your titanium camping gear, try submerging it in Coca-Cola and running 20v-100v through across it. This can be achieved using 9v batteries and a little patience. Depending on the voltage applied, you can transition between Bronze, Blue, Light blue, Yellowish, Purple, Cyan, and Green. [via hackaday]
