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Saturday, January 24, 2004

Seeing Infrared
Here are instructions on making a set of goggles that allow you to see in the infrared part of the spectrum, by blocking out all but infrared. Apparently things look very different. It looks to be simple and cheap to make.
SCIENCE HOBBYIST: Ten dollar Infrared Goggles
"After I became accustomed to the darkness inside the filters, I could see through them. Going outside on a sunny day was stunning. The sky was almost black, while the trees and shrubs where all frosty pink. The grass looked like fluorescent red cherry Koolaid powder. Different colors of human skin were always the same light grey. People's eyes looked very black, and certain dark clothing looked white.
...I couldn't see anything indoors though, and I could barely see anything during a cloudy day. This "IR vision" requires a sunny day in order to work."
via Science Hobbyist
posted at 1/24/2004 12:03:52 PM

The New Forest, created 1079
A website dedicated to an ancient British forest. It includes many photographs, maps and the history of the forest.
The New Forest: its scenery and history.
"The New Forest was created in 1079 by William I (known as William the Conqueror) as a hunting area, principally of deer. It is a unique area of historical, ecological and agricultural significance, and retains many of the rural practices conceded by the Crown in medieval times to local people. Principal of these is the pasturing of ponies, cattle, pigs and donkeys in the open Forest by local inhabitants known as Commoners. "
posted at 1/24/2004 10:33:42 AM

Sunday, January 18, 2004

The Internet is the new the 17th Century Coffehouse
This Economist article puts forth an interesting comparision between the internet and 1650's coffeehouses. You will also find a good description of coffeehouse life back then.
Economist.com | Coffee-houses
"WHERE do you go when you want to know the latest business news, follow commodity prices, keep up with political gossip, find out what others think of a new book, or stay abreast of the latest scientific and technological developments? Today, the answer is obvious: you log on to the internet. Three centuries ago, the answer was just as easy: you went to a coffee-house. "
posted at 1/18/2004 09:12:49 PM

Build a 3 Foot Tall Tornado Generator
Here are very detailed construction plans and usage notes for your own tornado generator.
How to construct a tornado generator, Geoff Egel
"Summer 1998 I went to Paris for a holiday. There I visited the La Cit? museum, where a 3 feet tall tornado generator was setup. I was fascinated by the beauty of the tornado vortex, and the open design of the generator: I could stick my hand right through the front of the generator box, and touch the misty vortex of the tornado.
A few weeks later, at home, I designed my own generator box and built the thing, this one too with open front. When I got the generator working, the tornado it produced was of the same beauty as that one in Paris."
posted at 1/18/2004 09:02:02 PM

Tuesday, January 06, 2004

Cloning the Segway™
This self professed silicon valley nerd built his own self balancing scooter from off the shelf parts and a bit of ingenuity. Using wheelchair motors, RC model car batteries and utility trailer wheels, he ended up with a very reasonable working facsimile of a Segway.
Building a Balancing Scooter
"Self-balancing scooters, like the Segway™ are often thought to be technological miracles, but it is not actually very hard to build one. I built the one described here in about a week using off-the-shelf parts. I spent another week tweaking the high-speed stability, improving the steering control, and writing about it."
posted at 1/6/2004 09:01:26 PM