News: Use an Old Kitchen Timer For Panning Time Lapse Video
Clever little cinematography hack. Flickr user rtadlock mods an old kitchen timer into a panning timelapse motor controller.
Clever little cinematography hack. Flickr user rtadlock mods an old kitchen timer into a panning timelapse motor controller.
Jim Moyer builds tiny engines, with as much attention to detail and craftsmanship as some of our other favorite hobbyists (check out obsessive model airplanes and teeny tiny weapons). The engine demonstrated in the first video below is supposedly the smallest V-8 engine in the world, a 1/6 scale model of the 327 cubic inch motor in a 1964 Chevrolet Corvette. More images and info at Jim's site. Previously, Obsessively Authentic LEGO V-8.
Barnum, a woodturning instructor at State University of New York in Purchase, shows off the powerful motors on these lathes, which offer high torque at low speeds -- ideal for turning big-diameter or off-balance work. He also demonstrates how the heft, speed control, and outboard turning capabilities make these lathes ideal for just about any turning project. Pick the right lathes for turning big bowls.
To decrease the possibility of breaking your glass dinner plates while moving into a new home, stack them vertically inside a box like vinyl records instead of horizontally like a stack of pancakes.
Flickr user MR38 has posted a set of photos of bumper cars made street legal, as displayed at the annual Cruisin’ Grand festival in Escondido, California. This mini cars were retrofitted with 750 cc Kawasaki motors. Cool auto mod.
Todbot offers instructions for making your own Arduino shifty-googly Halloween eyeballs. Perfect to pop inside a pumpkin or skull.
China is a hot mess of traffic and is stereotyped for spawning some of the craziest drivers in the world. The traffic jams are known to be so bad, drivers have been gridlocked for 9 straight days.
ATTENTION COLLISION REPAIR INDUSTRYHave you ever put your stud in your stud gun to repair a dent and the stud falls out before it reaches the panel? Sure it has, it has happened to all of us. However, the new Magna-Spot eliminates this problem with their exclusive (MPS), which secures the pins in the electrode. You can read the press release below to learn more of the benefits.ENTER AND WIN THE NEW MAGNA-SPOT STUD GUNDetails to this contest are going to be revealed in layers as follows:
R/C car manufacturer Losi just recently released the LOSI 1/10 TEN-T TRUGGY RTR, which is apparently the world's most advanced radio controlled car.
The Kinect is sure to swarm the homes of Xbox 360 gamers this holiday season. Even though some of us are amazed at the hands-free gaming capabilities it offers, others feel it to be frustratingly limited. Adafruit Industries is one of them.
(a jeff dahlin came to wonderhowto offices... hand delivered 26 written prank ideas.... and a motorized File cabinet from hell.)
Check out this cinematography tutorial video that provides a basic introduction on how to build a vibrating 35mm depth of field adapter. You will need only 8 parts for the basic version of the vibrating DoF adapter:
You've seen the felt mouse, which made computer clicking comfortable and chic, now brace yourself for something a little more interactive—DataBot.
Ever wonder what your brain looks like on video games? Below, Matt Richtel of the New York Times lies in a $3 million M.R.I. scanning tube while playing a simple driving game, as researchers sit by and observe the real-time images inside Richtel's brain.
It took him a year to build and about $30,000 in parts, but Steve Hassenplug has created a truly magnificent robotic chess set, inspired by the magical chessboard in the first Harry Potter movie. Quite a task, but Hassenplug did an incredible job!
How can a small curtain cover a window three to four times its own size? With a motor and a robot brain, that's how!
The race to the driverless finish line just got more challenging as Apple seems to have joined the pack. Friday, the global superpower secured a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles that allows them to test autonomous cars in the state.
The electric air freshener is one of those devices that seems like it could only have one possible function, but can actually be repurposed in a few different ways. If you're looking for a practical use, you can turn it into a bug killer, but it's also perfect for pranks.
Bonafide How-It's-Done (not exactly a HowTo) on remote-controlling your car via iPhone and Power Wheels. Brought to you by some crazy Texans, over at Waterloo Labs.
I have personally done this and its tons of fun so I thought I would share it with all you guys. Simply go to the thrift store or garage sale that has power wheels (kids grow out of them all the time) and then take out the battery and motor. Then set up a race going down a steep hill and race each other. Its ok the first time just normally but then add a even steeper hill and the rolls that gift raps come on and its a whole new level of fun.
Definition Declare is a card game played by 3 or more people. If 4 people are playing the game, then one pack of 52 cards (without the jokers) is sufficient. For 4 to 8 people, two packs of cards are required, without jokers.
Jamie Zawinski uses a command line to control his curtains.. ..How cool is that?
If you've ever used a font editing program to create a font, you know that one generally shapes the various forms by arranging points on a screen with a mouse. But what if those points were controlled by something other than fine motor skills? Andy Clymer of high profile type foundry Hoefler & Frere-Jones was interested in exploring alternative methods for how a typeface is developed; hence, "font-face" was born. Font-face employs facial recognition to control the design parameters of a font....
While most people go to great lengths to conceal their emotions, Japanese company Neurowear is offering a product that would reveal states of tension, excitement and relaxation—all by the up-and-down motion of a pair of cartoony cat ears. Necomimi is a "new communication tool that augments human’s body and ability." The device reads your brain waves and communicates your emotions before you even open your mouth:
Scientists have good and bad news for hard-driving people who boast they need only six hours of sleep a night. The good news is a few may be right: Researchers at the University of California-San Francisco have identified a family with a genetic mutation that causes members to require only six hours sleep a night. The bad news? The gene is vanishingly rare in humans, found in less than 3% of people.
Instructable user samsmith17's solution for riding in the dark is a lot snazzier than your typical bicycle light:
"A major hardware update to the masterlock cracking robot. Upgraded the previously non-working latch opening mechanism to be geared down 1:25, allowing it to open the shackle. I also revamped the motor mount to be sturdier, and the base of the unit to hold the lock better and also be easier to mount parts to.
When choosing a security system for the office, Billy Chasen decided to ditch the traditional lock & key barricade for something a little more 21st century. He hacked together a device that uses a web server, servo motor and some parts from Home Depot to enable locking & unlocking via text message. Chasen maintains a list which gives access to green lit office workers, who enter by simply texting "lock" or "unlock"... and voilà, open sesame.
Wish you could make the shift to electric or hybrid, but you can't afford it? If you've got more than a few free weekends on your hands, you may want to consider undertaking Benjamin Nelson's ambitious (to say the very least) car conversion project.
Arvind Gupta is an Indian educator and inventor who makes whimsical, elegant toys from simple and inexpensive materials. His site has hundreds of free project tutorials, with simply outlined instructions in the categories of science, math, astronomy and more. Below, peruse the video gallery and images for a selection of Gupta's inspiring work.
Japanese artist and visual designer Akira Nakayasu creates robotic plants that not only respond to human touch, but anticipate human touch.
In the market for a personal helicopter but anxious about increasing your carbon footprint? Pick up a peroxide-powered single-seater like Avimech International's Dragonfly and chop till you drop. WIRED's Autopia blog reports,
Indianapolis-based motor junkie Paul Stender and his team of vehicle modders called the Indy Boys Inc have created the ultimate anti-fuel economy: a school bus outfitted with a Phantom fighter jet engine, which clocks 367 mph and burns 150 gallons of fuel in just a quarter mile. Stender says:
PopSci breaks down how basic functions of R/C work. Once you've mastered it, the sky is the limit. You can remote control anything. Well, almost anything.
Kitschy kicks your thing? Try these self-lacing sneakers on for size. Inspired by the iconic Nike Air 2015s worn by Michael J. Fox's character in Back to the Future Part II, these shoes utilize an Arduino-powered force sensor and somewhat bulky pair of rear-mounted servo motors to pull themselves tight when offered a human foot. A switch reverses the process. Feeling ambitious? Head over to Instructables for complete instructions on how to build your own pair.
Seems just about anything can be constructed with LEGOs these days. You name it- a printer, an engine, an ATM, guns... even a house!
Well, not just chicks. A couple LEGO dudes, too. (Oh, and a horse). All I can say is, I'm head over heels in love. With a LEGO People operated, felt tip pen printer. B3ta forum member Squirrelfantasy spent about three weeks building his LEGO printer, which uses a felt-tip pen in place of an ink cartridge.
Sean Stiegemeier has captured absolutely beautiful timelapse footage documenting the eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland:
You'd think a Hummer couldn't get any more over-the-top (unless you're talking a horse-drawn Hummer or remote-controlled Hummer, of course), but Japanese tuner Calwing’s US division, 213 Motoring has come out with a Hummer boasting a whole extra set of wheels. I'm not quite sure why this is necessary, but nonetheless, Bornrich reports:
Ogre is a "Tank" built around a Zamor launching system nicknamed "Hailstorm". For more information, visit http://www.teamhassenplug.org/robots/...