DIY science is the perfect way to use your creative skills and learn something new. With the right supplies, some determination, and a curious mind, you can create amazing experiments that open up a whole world of possibilities. At home-made laboratories or tech workshops, makers from all backgrounds can explore new ideas by finding ways to study their environment in novel ways – allowing them to make breathtaking discoveries!
Guido Burger is the CO2 Tech Guru. He has been working on all aspects of CO2 devices used indoors to give feedback on room ventilation. Last year, he wrote the cover story, CO2 Traffic Light, for Make: Germany and since then he’s continued improving the device. In this video, he explains why monitoring CO2 is important and shows us the components of a CO2 device and guides us through the hardware and software build.
When I saw the big emoji (old school – smiley) on Carter Nelson’s RGB Matrix Portal Room CO2 Monitor project on Adafruit, I knew he was on to something. I wished that I would begin seeing more such displays in places like restaurants and shops, not to mention school classrooms, offices and makerspaces in the coming months. In Carter’s Adafruit project, the CO2 monitoring device presents a concise public-health message.
Reusing isn’t new, but items deliberately made from reclaimed materials have become statement pieces. The “upcycling” movement and rising interest in eco-conscious wares has given value to the valueless. Decrepit and dangerous barns once left to decompose are now painstakingly picked for profit. Even shipping pallets have earned a place as sought-after sources of wood. […]
Copper Electroforming Kit $155–$250 enchantedleaves.com Electroforming with this kit is just cool! It feels like equal parts science and magic, combining chemistry and electricity and the decorative arts to transform pretty much any small design into copper metal. In my case, it’s also a fun learn-at-home activity that can satisfy both my robot-building son […]
Exploring distant planets such as Mars is an incredibly daunting task. We’ve seen, through experience, that even something as simple as traversing the landscape to collect data can present insurmountable challenges to our rovers. To that end, NASA and others are constantly innovating ways to be able to explore more of these surfaces. NASA JPL […]
The pandemic has been horrible; but it has created beautiful human stories. One such story recounts tens of thousands of persons self-organizing into unpaid teams to address the pandemic by successfully making and distributing personal protective equipment (PPE)
We need new tricks — quick — to decarbonize our stuff and the ways we manufacture it.
