Greg Babic sent us a link to his excellent plans for building geodesic domes out of paper (or plastic). When I was a teen, I worshiped Buckminster Fuller and geodesic structures. In my attic, I still have the "Tensegrity Modeling Kit" that I bought with my allowance money (think: hippie Tinker Toys). Looking at these PDFs, the "great circles" call to me.
The Bridechamber site offers a pretty sweet little collection of synthesizer PCBs and component kits. Including incarnations of the elusive Wogglebug, Yusynth, and a nice collection of chaos circuits from Ian Fritz. They're also selling some hard-to-find components & hardware at good prices. - The Bridechamber
"5-in-5 is a group event based on the New York University ITP resident researchers' project "7 in Seven" that took place the second week of June 2008. The premise goes something like this: Do a creative project every day for five straight days, starting Monday, July 28th 2008 Projects must be completed in a day, so they need to be as compact as they are creative. Each project needs a name and documentation posted by the end of the day. It should be a stand-alone accomplishment."
The original event has been enhanced with Guest Stars, daily meetings and snacks. I'll be blogging about each day here and on my own site.
From Left to Right: Armanda, Vikram, Andy, Adam, Corey, Josh, Christian, Kristin and Rob. My head is poking up behind Corey's shoulder.
Days: 1 2 3 4 5
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The "Solar Module" from electroKraft is a combination 8-bit synth and MIDI controller utilizing photocell sensor input. We've seen quite a few light-controlled analog synths but using that input to control MIDI results in some pretty interesting audio - (skip ahead to 1m50s to hear it in action)
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Developed by students at the University of Ulm in Germany, the Timbap DJing interface uses an acoustic timecode signal from a vinyl record to allow a user to select skip tracks, scratch and otherwise manipulate digital audio from the familiar turntablist perspective. But instead of being limited to one LP the user's entire music library is navigable -
The rotation of the turntable serves as a means for scrolling through the music collection automatically. The user stays in control though and can always intervene manually - for example by holding the record or winding it back. In order to provide goal-oriented search, we also support a direct absolute positioning using the tone arm. […] There are several visual cue types available. They are always combined with a sorting method. In the first picture you see the standard type which is an alphabetic index of artist names. The display size of the initial characters is proportional to the number of contained mp3s. When the projected size of the whole cue has been calibrated to go from the first groove to the last groove of the record, the index will be surprisingly precise. This way, you will only need a few needle resets to find the track you are looking for within hundreds of mp3s.
- Timbap Read more | Permalink | Comments | Read more articles in Music | Digg this!
Here's an Instructable on how to replace the button cell battery on a Nike+ receiver for as little as the CR2032 battery costs you. To get a replacement receiver costs $20.
The other day, Gareth pointed to Kevin Kelly's review of our Chemistry book "The Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments," and we've been watching the popularity of the book rise as more people find out about it. Of course, we're happy that people are buying the book, but we're thrilled that people are so interested in making their own home chemistry labs.
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Jeff Keyzer recently started doing surface-mounted soldering and wanted a way to keep the solder paste fresh (which needs to remain between 32-50°F). So he took an old Peltier cooler found in the trash and added a PID Controller. The results, a low-cost solder paste fridge for the shop.
BARCODE PLANTAGE transforms a simple product bar code into a unique tree in the garden of globalisation. One can find it on almost all products: the bar code. Everyone knows that the bar code is used to facilitate the cashing and recording of goods in stores. But which information is actually encoded within the bar code? A simple answer to this question can be found at one of the product databases on the Internet, which are basically huge networks of national code databases. Keying in the 8, 12 or 13 digit figures of a bar code into an international code database, returns information on the manufacturer and the country of origin of the product. Moreover, each bar code is assigned to only one product worldwide; but these individual details are hardly visible to the naked eye.
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The problem, though, is the price. A standard 60-watt incandescent usually costs less than $1. An equivalent compact fluorescent is about $2. But in Europe this September, Philips, the Dutch company dealing in consumer electronics, health care machines and lighting, is to introduce the Ledino, its first L.E.D. replacement for a standard incandescent. Priced at $107 a bulb, it are unlikely to have more than a few takers...
"L.E.D. performance is there, but the price is not," said Kevin Dowling, a Philips Lighting vice president and past chairman of the Next Generation Lighting Industry Alliance, an industry group that works with the Department of Energy. "Even at $10 to $15, consumers won't buy L.E.D. bulbs," Mr. Dowling said.
While compact fluorescents are beginning to replace standard light bulbs in many homes, lighting executives see those as an interim technology. They say the large size of the bulbs, the inability to dim many of them, the unpleasant color of the light and the five milligrams of mercury in each bulb will limit their appeal.
Philips is working to decrease the penetration of compact fluorescent bulbs. "We are not spending one dollar on research and development for compact fluorescents," said Kaj den Daas, chairman and chief executive of Philips Lighting. Instead, the bulk of its R.& D. budget, which is 5.2 percent of the company's global lighting revenue, is for L.E.D. research. Philips is betting the store on the L.E.D. bulbs, which it expects to represent 20 percent of its professional lighting revenue in two years.
Pictured here, "The full spectrum of color, design and programming available for the Times Square ball. Photo: Ian Hardy". Wow, this should be the blinkiest New Years yet!
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I thought this was a cool story that didn't get wide pickup. I like #9 especially: IBM SELECTRIC TYPEWRITER... Because the Selectric coupled a motor to a mechanical assembly, pressing different keys caused the motor to draw different amounts of current specific to each key. By closely measuring the current used by the typewriter, it was possible to determine what was being typed on the machine. To prevent such measurements, State Department Selectric typewriters were equipped with parts that masked the messages being typed.
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This setup allows you to make high quality voice recoding on the go. In fact, it may be a great setup for anyone that needs to record voiceovers and doesn't have a lot of space. This would be great to use while documenting your next project!
A decent laptop, an audio interface, and a microphone allow you to record and deliver voice tracks from almost anywhere. And with high-speed Internet readily available there's no reason to miss sessions and auditions because you are on location or vacation, unless you choose to.
What do you get when you combine LED throwies with a gaucho snaring weapon? This clever contraption, dubbed the E-bola by creator Tetranitrate on instructables. Using the LEDs and batteries as weights, this throwing weapon lets your prey know you're coming. Oh, and also makes for some nice long-exposure photography. This is probably dangerous to use inside and around others, so be careful (and never use it on your smaller siblings).
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Pink Tentacle points us to this amazing looking sea bream robot.
Tai-robot-kun's creator, professor Ikuo Yamamoto, says the robot can easily be mass-produced, outfitted with various cameras and sensors, and released into the sea to perform a wide range of oceanographic survey tasks. He adds that because the robot swims silently and looks like a real fish, it would be able to gather data without alarming the creatures it encounters.
I'm one of those people who has mixed feelings when I see altered books (and chairs made of books!) - I love the creativity, but I hate seeing books full of information destroyed. If you have a book you've found at a yard sale that you want to fix up, or a favorite book that you've read to pieces, I found this great online book repair manual.
I was looking for a good and easy way to put up a torrent of a video. When you want to move a 500mb video file around it seems that eventually someone is going to need to pay a lot in bandwidth, some video services like Vimeo use Amazon's S3 but at some point if a video is popular (and high quality) it could end up costing someone thousands of dollars. This is where BitTorrent could come in, if something gets popular the burden of the download is shifted to the collection of downloaders. The problem torrents at the moment is that a lot of torrent sites are associated with copyright infringement, so LegalTorrents is a nice alternative that allows you to put your content up. It will be interesting to see what happens with video services in the next couple years.
The first Ignite NYC is going to happen 7/29 at M1-5. We are going to feature 16 speakers. Each speaker will get 20 slides that auto-advance after 15 seconds for a total of five-minutes. Ignite is free and open to the public -- you're on your own for drinks. We're also going to be joined by Ignite co-creator, Bre Pettis. Bre is going to lead us in a creative soldering contest. RSVP at Upcoming or Facebook to let us know you are coming. The night will begin with:
7:00PM - Doors Open
7:30PM - NYC Soldering Championship:
With solder irons blazing, and the power of molten metal at their finger tips, New York City's electricity enthusiasts and hardware hackers will connect components to complete circuits for the glory of being the fastest soldering gun in NYC.
On stage and under hot lights, contestants will complete an electronics kit in the shortest time possible while still maintaining the integrity of the circuit. Who will be New York City's soldering champion? You'll need to be there to find out!
To solder you'll have to pre-register, but anyone can come enjoy the opening contest. After the contest, there will be:
8:00PM - Ignite Talks
Jessica Bruder (author, journalist-at-large) - How to be an Undercover Hooker (reprising her talk on taking an NYPD course)
Dustyn Roberts (NYU's ITP, Honeybee Robotics) - Flying High with Engineers Without Borders (on building a Kite Aerial Photography rig for mapping in Kenya)
Nate Westheimer (Rose Tech Ventures) - The Charisma Economy: Success in the age of authenticity
Peter Kirn (Created Digitial Motion) - 20 Stupidly-Simple Code Sketches: Say Hello, World Visually
Limor Fried (ladyada) & Phillip Torrone (Make & Citizen Engineer) - Open source hardware, hacking SIM cards, modding a payphone for fun and for profit.
There may be a few spots left open on the day for drop-ins [...] If you're soldering, make sure to show up between 6:30 and 7:00 to get your iron warmed up!
This week: The Pocket Art Studio, The Portative Organ, Robot Fish, Eye Glasses: Always Keep Your Eyes Open, The Air-Conditioned Shirt, Automatic Dessert Making Machine, Otona no Kagaku Synth, USB-Powered CD Fan, Always Make the Shot - Wastebasket Three-Pointer Hack, Gakken Announces 8mm Movie Camera, and Bamboo-Copter Slow-Mo.
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This curtain was made from hundreds of old aluminum soda cans strung together with metal wires. We just wonder if the maker of this project actually drank all of this soda.
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With the exception of Brad Litwin's piece entitled Extra-Universal Movement, I don't know if I've seen such an elaborate hand-cranked wooden machine. This gentleman has constructed an amazing device using only wood and glue -- no nails, no screws or ball bearings. It is quite an achievement. It is my sincere hope I'm doing things like this at 70 years old. Bravo!
The Idea Vending Machine gives you more than just ideas! For just 50¢ you get (1) idea, a map if travel is involved, (1) toy, (1) quarter, and (1) lucky penny. Sounds like a bargain to me! If you are wondering why you get a quarter back? Well, the vending machine will only work if (2) quarters are inserted and artist thought that was too much money to charge, so he returns (1) quarter back to you. In the end it only costs 24¢. Don't forget about the lucky penny!
If you are unlucky enough to have rolled over in your kayak like I have, then you will really appreciate this project. The goal was to install a bilge pump that was operated by you feet. This allows you hands to be free for paddling and stabilizing your boat. It's a well thought out build that would make a nice addition to any sea kayak.
Apparently ChapStick is the new Altoids. I really like this little LED flashlight that "BCat" stuffed into a ChapStick container. It uses an A23 (12V) battery that fits nicely inside. Why a 12V battery? "BCat" was able to buy 2 for $2 as opposed to the more expensive coin cells.
I collect patches for my travel pack, and they're great for conversation starters while traveling. This patch can help you meet fellow nerds along your way, and let them take away a little digital something (website, email addy, favorite recipe) by snapping a phonepic. Here's a sample use-case from the p8t.ch website:
THEM: "Hey, what happened to your leg?"
YOU: "Oh, I broke it in a highly harebrained, yet thoroughly entertaining way. Here, scan my p8tch and you can watch the video!"
THEM: [scans the p8tch: BEEP!] "OH DEAR GOD YOU IDIOT wow ha ha, let me buy you a beer."
YOU: [enjoys beer]
When you have one, you can change what it points to through the website's database, so I'm sure with a little scripting it could even reflect your twitter feed. If you have silkscreen and serging capabilities, though, I'm sure you could make your own! Via Core77.
