Maker Education is such a valuable role. These stories will bring you the latest information and tales of maker educators who area spreading the maker mindset. Help others learn how to make things or how to think like a maker at makerspaces, schools, universities, and local communities. The importance of maker education can not be understated. We appreciate our educators.
The Erector 15 Model Set from the Maker Shed is just begging to be modified. It features 252 pieces, Cable Command movement and instructions to build 15 different models. Just add a couple of servos and an Arduino to bring this building set to life!
Explore the power of microbes with the MudWatt™ Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) Kit from the Maker Shed. Simply fill this kit with soil from your backyard (or someone else’s backyard), along with any biological matter you find in your refrigerator. Within days the attached LED light will start to blink using only the power produced by the electricity-generating microbes in your soil!
Editor’s Note: With summer in full swing, here at Make: Labs, our amazing engineering intern army just doubled in size from four to eight. Saul’s column from MAKE Volume 12 (November 2007) came to mind with its timeless pearls of wisdom. Enjoy! Why Summer Internships Are More Important Than Ever Before With the loss of […]
Old technology can be simply amazing. Centuries before Arduinos, servos, and electric motors, Japanese artisans came up with the mechanisms for the Karakuri Somersault Doll. The technology for this doll was reconstructed from original figurines by the kit builders at Gakken, so you can recreate one yourself! The kit includes everything you need to build the doll including the screwdriver.
Here’s the full Miles O’Brien piece that aired tonight on PBS NewsHour. Really well-done, neat little package exploring the DIY/maker movement in general, the Maker Faires, the critical state of STEM education and making as a potential answer to that, and more. Follows the DeRose family and some high schoolers building projects for the Faire and then presenting them there. Good stuff.
The idea behind Volkswagen’s The Fun Theory program is simple: reward socially useful behaviors by making them into opportunities for play. Or, to quote a great sage, “You find the fun and snap! The job’s a game.”
In this, the last installment of the third series of Bill Hammack’s wildly popular Engineer Guy videos, Bill exposes the wonders of fiber optics. He starts by demonstrating transmission of laser light through a fiber optic stereo cable, then explains total internal reflection with a really cool visual aid made from a bucket of antifreeze. There are details on the manufacture of the fibers themselves, the design of the first transatlantic fiber optic cable, and the signal processing used to encode data for transmission via fiber. All that, and more, in just five minutes and thirty seconds. Nice way to wound out series #3, Bill!
