Last month I wrote about Adafuit's Drawdio kit, an electronic pencil that lets you make music while you draw.

Later, I got an email from JJJ Silver, who invented the Drawdio, and I asked him to tell me how he came up with it. Here's what he said:

Imagine you could draw musical instruments on normal paper with any pencil (cheap circuit thumb-tacked on) and then play them with your finger. The Drawdio circuit-craft lets you MacGyver your everyday objects into musical instruments: paintbrushes, macaroni, trees, grandpa, even the kitchen sink...

One day I bought a "harmonium" kit at the street market in Bangalore. I hacksawed the keyboard off to make the first ever Drawdio circuit. We played with it at a local school in the slums using plants, water, our foreheads, etc. My friend told me graphite would work too. Meditating on it, I realized the Drawdio circuit should be literally attached to a pencil to "draw audio," and that's where the name came from: Draw + Audio.

Link, Discuss. An appropriate happy-fun chaser for an eight-year-long bad trip. This would go great in my living room with some Franklin Mint Barack Obama Golden Victory Coins. You are welcome. (Art of Obama, thanks, cavalaxis)

RobGoldsmith writes "The TAAS Company have released details on their new Orbital Space Plane. The new design has many attributes to set it apart from its rivals. One highlight is the integrated Safety System; this is where an escape vehicle can eject from the main body of the craft then fly home safely. They claim: 'With the system's performance capability, economical first stage tow and independence from ground launch facilities, it can offer the lowest price. It also offers the safest flight.' Could this spaceship rival Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo?" Reader wooferhound points out related news from XCOR Aerospace (which we've discussed previously), that they're beginning to take orders for seats on their own suborbital flights, with test runs planned for 2010. Seats will be going for around $95,000 each, less than half the cost of the first tickets for SpaceShipTwo.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Are you an iPhone user who talks (types) like a sailor and it annoys you when the device autocorrects a perfectly good insult to read "Duck you!" Over at Boing Boing Gadgets, Brownlee has a good tip on how to quickly teach bad words to your iPhone. Discussion too.
"Teach your iPhone to swear"

This video makes me want to put an accelorometer in my hat!

This is what happens when you take the device that makes the Wii controller work, and wire it into and an ABB industrial robot.

Strangely, no word on what happens if boss shows up ;)

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While NBC Universal has done a decent job with Hulu, the video streaming site it partially owns, the company still seems to be pretty tone deaf to where the market is heading. Reporter Laura Holson told NBC Universal's president of research, Alan Wurtzel that she had ditched her TV and now watches TV solely via her computer, and his response indicates an unwillingness to believe that such things really happen:

"I hear about people like you," he said, a hint of skepticism in his voice. "But the notion that people have forsaken watching cable and network television is an urban myth."

Then he hissed what sounded vaguely like an insult.

"You probably read."

Yet, it is happening more and more often as it becomes easier than ever to watch TV online. And, that trend is only going to continue, thanks to new technologies and services such as Boxee.

In the end, this is something of an Innovator's Dilemma issue. Yes, the number of folks watching TV via their computers is still quite small, it's getting easier and easier to do so, and the offerings are getting better and better. At some point, the line of "good enough" is crossed, and people start flooding to that offering, and away from the older, more expensive offering. NBC Universal may be brushing off the early adopters as something to sneer at, but it's making a huge mistake if it thinks such things will remain on the fringe.

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darkwing_bmf writes "The NFL broadcast a live game to theaters in 3-D for the first time on Thursday night. The technology demonstration was mostly successful but they still have some issues to work out. 'Some scenes clearly captured the benefits of 3-D broadcasts, however, such as an interception by Chargers linebacker Stephen Cooper as players crisscrossed the field, and a long touchdown catch by San Diego's Vincent Jackson with the arc of the ball caught on camera all the way. Viewers were encouraged to text in their reaction to the viewing. One of the first comments, according to the commentators: "More cheerleaders."'"

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Not quite sure if the constantly changing face of this single digit LED clock would be irritating (ok, probably), but it's an interesting and perhaps rebellious take on the ubiquitous 7-segment project. Economical and initially befuddling to friends/enemies! - Single Digit LED Clock Kit

Of course would likely save a lot of dough when building a nixie version -

More:


LED Micro-Readerboard Kit

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Harry writes "I can't remember another time when there were so many Web browsers in prerelease form — 2009 should be a really, really good year for final browser versions. I have posted a quick recap of the state of the upcoming versions of Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari." It is nice to see a healthy market of competition driving innovation in a market that has been largely stagnant in recent history. What do other folks see on the scorecard?

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Every time I think we're finally reaching the point where these types of stories aren't necessary any more, because we've shown so many different musicians give away their music for free and make more money because of the additional business models they put in place, we see someone making a statement like: "but, if they give music away for free, they don't make any money and won't keep producing music." So, apparently, the message still isn't getting through. Just because you give away your music for free, it doesn't mean that you don't make money. You just need to put in place a business model where the free music increases the value of some other scarcity.

So, here's yet another example, this one sent in by Mark Rosedale, about musician Derek Webb, who also started NoiseTrade, yet another in an increasingly long list of sites that help bands connect with fans. Webb gave away his last album as a free download, requesting a little info in exchange. The results were that he ended up making a lot more money, rather than not making any money:

"In three month's time Webb gave away over 80,000 full downloads of his record and collected valuable information for as many new fans. In addition, Derek has since seen many sold out shows and increased merchandise and record sales, including a curious spike in sales of the very record that was given for free."

Indeed. That said, there are a few questionable things about NoiseTrade (having the entire site in Flash, for one thing, is a bit annoying). As Mark notes, the service seems to have an odd feature where you have an option of spamming your friends instead of paying, which seems a bit annoying. But, the main point remains: giving away your music can make a musician more money. Of course, now we'll see a bunch of comments explaining why this is an exception. Yet, at this point, we've seen so many exceptions that it's difficult to see why it's not the rule.

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Photos of "dying leaf" and "decomposing leaf" katydids. Unbelievable. (Via Evil Mad Science Laboratories)

MojoKid writes to tell us that Hawaii is planning on implementing a statewide electric car charging network. While the initiative seems to highlight the lower carbon footprint, Hawaii doesn't exactly seem like the ideal candidate for this initiative. One reader pointed out that perhaps a Solar or Wind power generation initiative might be a little better suited for the island state. "We have tons of wind and sun here that could be harnessed for electricity, but Hawaiian Electric Company has enough control over the government to block most wind and solar projects, and they make more money burning oil and diesel because the PUC lets them pass the fuel costs directly on to the consumer. Gov Lingle is taking all the credit, but if she actually wants to make a difference in oil consumption in the islands she needs to get large scale wind and solar projects pushed through first."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Charles has been messing about with scooters. This is his second crack at it with the more modestly named RazEr. At least some of the work has been done at Miters in Cambridge.

The business end. The relevant power transmission implement - there is only 1 - is housed completely in the rear wheel. It is a 80mm diameter custom-built 3-phase brushless DC motor, conveniently hidden within the confines of a 125mm scooter wheel. Maximum power on it is probably about 1000 watts. I have yet to properly meter it.
Even with no torque advantage (as a direct drive motor), the acceleration is pretty absurd. It's not quite the neck-snapping and rider-launching takeoff of Snuffles 1, but I do need to hang on pretty hard. It is, however, a controllable launch, and will be even more so when a proper spring-loaded thumb throttle is installed (you know, so I don't have to hang on with one hand and one leg while twiddling a knob on a stick with the other hand)

Obviously, the project is not at a completed phase, but shows promise as a working prototype and proof of concept.

Have you got an old scooter hanging around your shed/garage/basement/bedroom? Do you have electric motors, speed controllers and or batteries that could be combined in some clever way? What could you do if you had the time, inclination and a few tools? Have you tried a project like this? What troubles did you encounter? Do you have photos, videos or descriptions of your adventures with two, three or four wheeled electrified transport? Add your comments below or park your photos and video in the Make Flickr pool!

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Interrobang Letterpress posted some lovely and illuminating photos of their letterpress printing process to the MAKE Flickr pool. I was trained as a printing and ran a shop for years (in the late '70s). Trained in offset lithography, and ever-the-futurist, I turned my nose up at quaint tech like letterpress. Oh how times and aesthetics change. Now I'm utterly charmed by letterpress and would kill for one of the presses, the type drawers, and all the trappings of this dying art.

Interrobang Letterpress site

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Said to be the world's largest instrument - the Luray Caverns' Great Stalacpipe Organ plays the earth itself! -

Located deep in the Luray Caverns in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley is the Great Stalacpipe Organ, the worlds largest musical instrument.

Stalactites covering 3 1/2 acres of the surrounding caverns produce tones of symphonic quality when electronically tapped by rubber-tipped mallets.

The solenoid-actuated instrument was built in 1954 by mathemetician and scientist Leland W. Sprinkle. Any visitors recall hearing this 'rock music' in person? - The Stalacpipe Organ [Thanks, Michael!]

More:
The tones of ancient stones

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NIMBY, a DIY space for artists and makers in West Oakland is re-locating and needs help to defray moving expenses and the cost of a security deposit. They are trying to raise $17,000 by December 15. Spaces like NIMBY are so important to creating the distinctive local culture in the Bay Area and other cities. They also establish a collaborative environment for all kinds of creative people to make things and share them with others. These spaces always struggle to make ends meet but they almost always survive, just barely. I've made a contribution on behalf of Make and Maker Faire, and I hope you'll join me in supporting NIMBY.

For the past five years NIMBY has been a space where artists, craftsmen and tinkerers can create the new, the impossible, and the never seen before. Many of the pieces at Burning Man, Coachella, the Maker Faire and The Crucible's Fire Arts Festival are created and stored at NIMBY. NIMBY not only offers space to create, but supports its artists with resources, assistance in sourcing re-purposed material, as well as logistical and technical guidance. Snook, the founder of NIMBY, is known in the community as the one to call when technical or logistical issues seem insurmountable. This supportive culture shared by all members of the NIMBY community is at the root of the amazing art that emerges from its doors. NIMBY has been the birthplace of Dance Dance Immolation, the Steam Punk Tree House, Colossus, The Kinetic SteamWorks Steam Ship, Norville Parchment's Angel Series, and so much more. Fire Artists such as Therm, Interpretive Arson, Department of Spontaneous Combustion, Exotherm, Ryon Gesink, and Orion Fredericks have all created their pieces at NIMBY. At the new NIMBY we are working to create a 30,000 square foot event/ gallery space with permanent installations of works such as Michael Christian's IT, The Steam Punk Tree House, Colossus and the Big Rig Jig. The City of Oakland has been very supportive of our transition and is working with us closely. Trucking, architectural drawings, contractors, and materials are all lined-up to move in and build-out the new space. We also have 5 years of heart, gumption and making it work behind us - but we need your support of a financial contribution so that NIMBY can continue to serve the local arts community.

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The saga of UK law firm Davenport Lyons, and its ongoing efforts to extract money from people for a promise not to sue them, for copyright infringement continues. The BBC is the latest publication to pick up on the story, noting an awful lot of upset people are pissed off at bogus claims from Davenport Lyons about downloading porn films which they insist they had nothing to do with. Since Atari backed out of its deal with Davenport Lyons following the negative publicity, it seems that the law firm is focusing on its porn clients -- the same ones that apparently encouraged middleman DigiProtect to upload their content widely, to make sure more people were "pirating" it.

But the really interesting claim comes buried at the end of the article. The BBC contacted the porn company, Evil Angel, which hired DigiProtect, to get their thoughts on the negative reaction to the whole campaign, and the guy in charge claims that DigiProtect misrepresented the details to him, and he believed the pre-settlement demands were much lower than the £500 that is in the pre-settlement letter:

"It's not my understanding that they ask for anything near that. I think the amount was $50 or €50. I would be very surprised and I wouldn't be happy because it would mean it was completely misrepresented to me."

Of course, this probably means that Evil Angel is only getting $50 (or maybe even less) per "settlement" leaving somewhere in the range of $700 (depends on the exchange rate) for Davenport Lyons and DigiProtect to split. For doing what? Getting some IP addresses and sending out auto-generated form letters. Nice margins, but sort of proves that these settlements have nothing to do with compensating the content creator.

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Dig this real-life Mario Kart insanity! Video and discussion over at Boing Boing Offworld. "Video: Real-life Mario Kart"

holy_calamity writes "New Scientist reports that the first working superconducting transistor has been created, by researchers at the University of Geneva. Field effect transistors with zero electrical resistance would allow much faster operations. Only drawback is they need to be supercooled, something that may be addressed by improving the materials used."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Brad Robideau of NPR says:

I thought your readers might be interested in Marketplace’s latest “The Marketplace Whiteboard” video making the financial crisis easier to understand.

Mortgages aren't the only financial instruments that get turned into securities. In this video, Marketplace Senior Editor Paddy Hirsch explains how companies make money by buying credit card debt and bundling it.

All of “The Marketplace Whiteboard” videos can be accessed at www.marketplace.org and are part of "Fallout: America's Financial Crisis," Marketplace's comprehensive coverage of the current financial crisis.

Bill Gurstelle says: "Recently, I've become aware of what I call "ghost pigeons, " the imprint a pigeon makes on a glass window of a building when it unwittingly flies into it. They are spooky and depressing and kind of pretty all at the same time."

Ghost pigeons

Jesse Thorn of The Sound of Young America says

On the Hour is the funniest thing I've ever heard on the radio, and I just learned (accidentally) that it's in iTunes. It is the predecessor to "The Day Today" and "Brass Eye," which are two of the funniest things I've ever seen on TV. All three projects were spearheaded by the British satirist Chris Morris, who in my book might be the great comedy genius of our time. It predates The Daily Show, and is (imo) funnier.

Seasons one and two are on sale in iTunes now for $11.99 each:

And there's a podcast of short (~90 second) excerpts as well:

I swear to God this is the funniest, most amazing thing in history.

Trying to model an upcoming project in CAD or Solidworks? McMaster-Carr has 3D files for many of the things they sell. It's way easier to use a pre-built bolt model than to try to make it yourself! I'm not sure about the terms of use on these files, but they'll at least help if you're working on a personal project.

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John Ptak, dealer in rare science books says:

This letter, written in 1957 by Colonel Leslie S. Moore of the U.S. Biological Weapons Program at Fort Detrick, Maryland, to a member (whose name I've removed) of the A.S. "(Atmospheric Sciences") division, was basically a get-out-of-hell-free card for its bearer in the case of devastating nuclear attack.

"In the event of a mass destruction attack on Fort Detrick with the resulting loss of Biological Warfare physical facilities, it is anticipated that it will be necessary to re-establish the BW activities at some other location."

"In order to accomplish this in the most expeditious manner, the availability of certain designated personnel...is deemed essential."

The "letter serves as notification that you have been selected as a member of this group which is to be evacuated" to get the biological weapons program up and running again. As you can read in the clickable version of the document, there are directions about what top do and when to do it. There is no mention of family. My read is that this is Endgame stuff, end of civilization as we know it, and that this was the Darwinian sweep of necessary people. Or is it Dr. Strangeloveian? I get the two confused.

Suffice to say that Fort Detrick, which had been established in 1943 (constructing and delivering anthrax bombs by 1944) as Camp Detrick, already had a fairly full career before it was up-named to "Fort" in 1956. It was the recognized home/collecting node for the American Chemical and Biological Weapons programs until Richard Nixon, of all people, disbanded that capacity at Detrick in 1969.

Read the rest at John's blog. <p Two Minutes to Doomsday: "Get out of Hell Free" Card, 1957. Armageddon and All That...

Los Angeles's Furious Theatre Company is known for its edgy, intense, and experimental plays. Last year, I posted about their staging of "Canned Peaches In Syrup," a post-apocalyptic comedy whose cast included my brother, Robert Pescovitz. Furious's current production is "The Night Before Christmas," a holiday comedy for adults. Anthony Nellson wrote the play and my brother directed it. "The Night Before Christmas" runs until December 20 at the Pasadena Playhouse. Yesterday, the Los Angeles Times gave the production a glowing review, describing it as a "a notably smart adult-oriented standout." From the play description:

In the Los Angeles premiere of this “adults-only” Christmas comedy, two cockney thugs discover what could be a real-life elf during the night shift at a London warehouse on Christmas Eve. A hooker with a (somewhat) heart of gold also shows up expecting to collect the coveted toy of the season, which was promised to her in exchange for sexual favors. Together, the three try to sort out if the elf is real and may just stumble upon the true meaning of Christmas.

The Night Before Christmas (Furious Theatre Company), "Review: Furious Theatre Company's 'The Night Before Christmas'" (LA Times)

Ryan Heshka has a few of his pieces in exhibitions this week:

December 4th: Mark Murphy's KNOW exhibition, taking place in Miami, Florida, during the week of Art Basel. My piece, "Doctors Stories", is no longer available, but there are many incredible artists taking part in this exhibition.

December 6th: The third "Don't Wake Daddy" show at the Feinkunst-Kruger gallery in Hamburg.

This installment of Disagree Mail highlights a man's concern about illegal cloning in the Hollywood community, a guy who is sick of US imperialism and his low karma, and an example of the kind of people you don't want as roommates in college. Read below to find out just how crazy, angry and irresponsible it gets.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Oh, what a week we had in Boing Boing television.

? MONDAY: Our Weekly Update featured Dale Dougherty speaking with us about why he believes television news (specifically CNN) is having a hard time covering the economic crisis. We spoke to Julie Amero, the substitute teacher in Connecticut whose life became an extended living hell because of pop-up porn on a computer in her classroom, and the stupidity of overeager prosecutors, lying IT "experts," and corrupt, buck-passing bureaucrats who don't know jack about technology (an extended audio interview with Amero is coming up on Boing Boing, soon). We viewed snapshots of the tragedy in Mumbai, a city known and loved by editors and commenters alike, here at Boing Boing. WATCH IT. Here's a direct MP4 Link.

? TUESDAY: In our weekly Boing Boing Gadgets Video feature, Joel Johnson did not show us his junk. But he did give us a naked shower review of an underwater MP3 player. He did not like the device, but many of our commenters rather liked seeing him make a lovable oaf of himself in the buff. WATCH IT. Here's a direct MP4 link.

? WEDNESDAY: We enjoyed a fantastic new Bill Barminski music video, an ode to the joy of vinyl and surf musique. WATCH IT. Here's a Direct MP4 Link.

? THURSDAY: Joi Ito invited Silicon Valley's Web 2.0 elite to Tokyo for a tour of the otaku district, led by Danny Choo in Stormtrooper finery. Danny is a big internet celebrity in Japan, and he is also the son of legendary shoe designer Jimmy Choo. This is already one of my all-time BBtv favorites. WATCH IT. Here's a Direct MP4 Link.

? And we end this week in BBtv with a Friday Unicorn Chaser: John Hodgman Spamasterpiece Theater Bloopers . They've been authenticated as The Real Thing. WATCH IT. Here's a Direct MP4 Link.

ChurchHatesTucker was the first of a few readers to send in the news about a new website claiming to have set up an online system for selling "used" or secondhand MP3s. The whole idea, of course, is fairly ridiculous, which leads me (and CHT) to believe that this is more making a statement to show just how silly it is whenever recording industry types try to treat digital copies as if they were physical objects, or declare that "downloading an MP3 is no different than walking out of a shop with a CD you haven't paid for." If so, bravo for the satire. If, however, this actually is real, I imagine it will survive all of about a day, before it gets shut down.

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Over at the Make Blog, Gareth Branwyn has compiled a great list of robot gift ideas.

Maker Bundle #1
The Maker Shed has put together the first in a series of parts collections, called Maker Bundles. Maker Bundle #1 combines all of the electronic components to make four of the beginner-to-intermediate robot projects we've covered in MAKE magazine. For $20 off the cost of buying the parts separately, you get all of the components you need to make the iconic Mousey the Junkbot, two fundamental BEAMbots (a Trimet solar "top" and a SolarRoller), and Jerome Demers's awesome BeetleBot, a robot that uses only switches to create obstacle-avoiding behavior. My article on how to build Mousey can be found in MAKE, Volume 02. I covered the basics of BEAM and how to build the Trimet and SolaRoller in MAKE Volume 06. Jerome's BeetleBot article can be found in MAKE, Volume 12. You can also get my three project articles in The Best of MAKE collection.
Price: $55.00

Holiday Gift Guide: Robots!

Check out this "moving forest" installation in Amsterdam:

'Moving Forest' is NL Architects' answer to the lack of green in contemporary urban environments. One might occasionally find a carefully designed patch of plants or shrubbery there, but nothing like the majestic parks and shady trees that can be found in historical city centres. So they designed a park on wheels, with trees in shopping carts. Around a small street bench, the public can rearrange their own little park and thus create a nice green view and a bit of shade.

Via Matt Mechtley, who writes, "I see high potential for something like this combined with a flash mob. Move the whole forest across town!"

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My friend John Law is a legend of San Francisco's underground culture. He's perhaps best known publicly as the co-founder of Burning Man, but he's done much more during his thirty years of high weirdness in the Bay Area. In 1977, he co-founded the Suicide Club, a Dadaist group of urban explorers and adventurers that eventually evolved into the Cacophony Society (and Burning Man). These days, he's involved with Laughing Squid, Survival Research Laboratories, and other more covert prankster activities. John is also a writer of short stories, and Furnace Press has just published the first collection of his tales. Titled The Space Between, it's a short compilation of three stories inspired by John's fascination with bridges. An excerpt is available online. I can't wait to read the whole thing! Congratulations, John! From the book description (photo by Scott Beale/Laughing Squid):

An avid urban adventurer and bridge historian, the author shares his passion for these engineering marvels while delving into their potential to fuel our dreams, fears, and nightmares. Part dreamscapes, part adventure tales, these narratives take the reader on an exploration of bridges to inspire their contemplation on a structural as well as metaphysical level.

John Law's The Space Between

Military contracting behemoth Kellogg, Brown & Root (KBR) has been in the news previously for allegations of widespread sexual harassment. Here they are again, committing more horrors.

A lawsuit against the company recently filed in Houston federal court accuses its workers of exposing military and non-military personnel in Iraq to contaminated food, contaminated water, and improperly incinerated human remains. Yeah, that's right. Human remains. Joshua Eller, the principal plaintiff, says he witnessed a wild dog running around base one day carrying a human arm in its mouth.

KBR Sued Again, Featuring Dogs Running Around With Human Arms In Their Mouths (Houston Press, thanks Martha Clayton)

NPR's Adam Burke has produced an amazing audio tour of the subterranean storm drains in Vegas, which some people (hmmm, Hodgmanic mole men?) call home.

It would be easy to go a whole weekend on the Las Vegas Strip without spotting a sign of a crisis. Never mind that more than 14,000 people are living on the streets — and that Nevada ranks second in the nation in homeless population per capita.

Seeing evidence of this is a matter of knowing — or perhaps choosing — where to look.

One might begin with the slot machines on a busy casino floor — tourists, blackjack tables, cocktail waitresses in impossibly tiny outfits. And if one were willing to pay the price of admission, an elevator could transport the seeker to more vice and excess upstairs — rooftop pools and lavish suites. But the homeless still wouldn't be found.

But what if there were an elevator that went downward? Let's say that you could descend below the sunken lounges, past kitchens and utility closets, through layers of concrete. It is here that Las Vegas' truly gritty underbelly can be found; a hidden matrix of tunnels beneath the Strip, another version of the city born out of storm drains.

Sucked Into The Tunnels Beneath Las Vegas (NPR, image: Danny Mollohan)

SpaceAdmiral notes the news that scientists have succeeded in convincing experiment subjects that a mannequin's body is their own, and even feeling at home in the body of someone of the opposite sex. The effect could prove useful in virtual reality applications and in robot technology. Here's the paper on PLoS ONE.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Bright bike I posted about yesterday is just one of a plethora of Make-tastic projects Eyebeam has at their party next week:

Eyebeam's beloved, annual Holiday Hackshop!

Sat., Dec. 13, 1PM - 5PM workshops | 6PM: Holiday party (think spiked eggnog, cider and holiday treats!)

LOCATION: 540 W. 21st St., NYC

COST: Free to visit; minor materials costs for select workshops.

If you haven't yet experienced everyone's favorite holiday gift-making event, here's the scoop: For one day, and one day only, Eyebeam becomes an all-ages, multi-workshop electronic craft-making fair, with entertainment, decorations and plenty of holiday spirit.

The majority of the workshops are artist-led, with small fees for material costs, and you'll leave with gifts that will far surpass lopsided clay mugs of years past!

All in all: A fun, thrifty, edutainment alternative to the trance-and occasionally rage-inducing department-store crawl.

Workshops:

Extreme Weather Snowglobes made of recycled materials
Led by resident Andrea Polli and collaborators Heidi Neilsen and Chuck Varga
Fee: $5/For all ages
1 - 5PM (Jump in any time; information sessions at 1PM, 2PM, 3PM, 4PM)

Bright Bike!
Led by senior fellow Michael Mandiberg
Just in time for the holidays: an opportunity to wrap up your bike with retro-reflective material to make biking NYC far safer.
Fee for materials: Whole bike: $30; material to wrap selected parts of bike: $10
You must bring your own bike to participate!
Recommended for ages 12 years and older.
Session 1: 1 - 3PM: (can accommodate 15 bikes)
Session 2: 3:30 - 5:30PM: (can accommodate 15 bikes)
5:30 - 6PM: Bike Ride/parade with workshop participants to document the effectiveness of the Bright Bike wrapping!

Frankenstein your iPod!
Led by resident Hans-Christoph Steiner and Chris "the Widget" DiMauro
Turn you iPod (or one of the stash we'll have on hand) into something you never imagined possible.
Fee: Free (We recommend you bring your own iPod, though we will have some on hand.) Recommended for ages 12 years and older, unless accompanied by an adult.

Session 1: 1 - 3PM: Frankensteining 101: Hacking your iPod
Session 2: 4 - 6PM: Install iPodLinux for making music with PD or Rockbox for playing Doon on your iPod video (can accommodate 10).

We'll have a stash of old iPods on-hand for harvesting parts, but those interested are advised to bring their trusty iPods with the battery, software or hardware failures.

Bend it, Shake it Workshop
Led by resident Christina Kral with collaborators Jamie O'Shea, Drayton Hiers and Dan Ribaudo
In this two-part workshop we invite you to hack and bend discarded plastic, battery-run toys to turn them into a potpourri of instruments. As the "Petit Finale", we'll be play a score with the hacked instruments inside the Video Womb, a video installation/experience by Christina Kral, Drayton Hiers and Dan Ribaudo.
Fee: $5 Recommended for all ages, those under 12 years must be accompanied by an adult.

1 - 5PM: Workshop
5PM: performance in the video womb

Demonstration: A Reenactment of The Battle of the Pyramids
Led by resident Adrianne Wortzell
Come witness the assembly of Resident Adrianne Wortzell's latest project, A Reenactment of The Battle of the Pyramids. Wortzell and her team of interns and volunteers will hack 30+ "Talking Elmo" toys to allow them to move in unison. The team will be hacking away-assembly-line style, but on-hand to discuss the project and answer any questions.

Fee: Free, all ages welcome
1 - 5PM

Here's Bend it, Shake it:

And the Video Womb in action:

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My friend Jimmie Rodgers (creator of the Arduino-powered Open Heart kit) turned me on to these awesome self-color-changing RGB LEDs you can pick up on eBay real cheap. I took 45 of them and made a strand of lights for a small artificial tree and the lights are truly trippy. Check out the Instructable for this. It's cheap and easy to make these (it cost me no more than $50 including the tree).

Color-changing RGB Christmas Tree Lights Instructable

In the Maker Shed:


The Best of Instructables Volume I
Instructables.com has become one of the most popular magnets for makers and DIY enthusiasts of all stripes. Now, with more than 10,000 projects to choose from, the Instructables staff, editors of MAKE: Magazine, and the Instructables community itself have put together a collection of technology how-to's from the site. The Best of Instructables Volume 1 includes plenty of clear, full-color photographs, complete step-by-step instructions, and tips, tricks, and new build techniques you won't find anywhere else. Over 300 pages!

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Earlier this week, we skipped on writing about the rather silly release of a Firefox user script that would add links to popular torrent trackers for unauthorized downloads of products as you surfed Amazon.com. The whole thing just seemed likely to get folks (on all sides of the debate) riled up. In fact, if anything, I thought the rather amusing response was a separate user script that did the reverse. If you were surfing torrent sites, it would link to Amazon for purchase.

However, now there are reports that Amazon.com has sent its lawyers after the original. It's possible that they have a trademark claim, as the folks behind it used the name "Pirates of the Amazon," and the overly aggressive trademark lawyers will (incorrectly) claim that Amazon needs to send a cease and desist to protect its trademark. In reality, that's only true if the name is being used in a way that's likely to cause confusion, where people might actually think that Amazon supports this. That seems quite difficult to believe.

The end result, though, is that this silly little script is now getting extra attention, and is (of course) still widely available for download at a variety of other sites. If Amazon had just let it be, this would have probably been an amusing little bit of nothing. Sure, some hardcore file sharers would use it, but they're not going to pay for content anyway, so what difference does it make?

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VorlonFog writes "According to Information Week, IBM has introduced a line of business computers that avoid Microsoft's desktop environment in favor of open source software. IBM worked with Canonical and Virtual Bridges to create the platform, which IBM claims saves businesses $500 to $800 per user on software licenses and an additional $258 per user 'since there is no need to upgrade hardware to support Vista and Office.'"

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

If it's Friday, and, why, yes it is, it's time for a Unicorn Chaser on Boing Boing tv. Today: SPAMASTERPIECE THEATER bloopers, out-takes, and oblique lulz from the amazing John Hodgman, minor television personality and author of More Information Than You Require (Amazon link). Direct MP4 Link, if you prefer download.

Update: proof they are the REAL THING.

joe writes "Aram Harrow and colleagues have just published on the arXiv a quantum algorithm for solving systems of linear equations (paper, PDF). Until now, the only quantum algorithms of practical consequence have been Shor's algorithm for prime factoring, and Feynman-inspired quantum simulation algorithms. All other algorithms either solve problems with no known practical applications, or produce only a polynomial speedup versus classical algorithms. Harrow et. al.'s algorithm provides an exponential speedup over the best-known classical algorithms. Since solving linear equations is such a common task in computational science and engineering, this algorithm makes many more important problems that currently use thousands of hours of CPU time on supercomputers amenable to significant quantum speedup. Now we just need a large-scale quantum computer. Hurry up, guys!"

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The gentleman above is Michael Campbell in two mug shots taken five years apart. The photo at left depicts Campbell in 2003 and the right is from October. "Mug Shot Metamorphosis" (The Smoking Gun, thanks Gil Kaufman!)

New research suggests that the birth control pill can affect some women's taste in men. The reason is that the pill seems to shift a woman's preference toward men who share a particular group of genes with them. The genes, the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) gene family, are expressed in odor. From Scientific American:

Women who start or stop taking the pill, then, may be in for some relationship problems. A study published last year in Psychological Science found that women paired with MHC-similar men are less sexually satisfied and more likely to cheat on their partners than women paired with MHC-dissimilar men. So a woman on the pill, for example, might be more likely to start dating a MHC-similar man, but he could ultimately leave her less sexually satisfied. Then if she goes off the pill during the relationship, the accompanying hormonal changes will draw her even more strongly toward more MHC-dissimilar men. These immune genes may have a “powerful effect in terms of how well relationships are cemented,” says University of Liverpool psychologist Craig Roberts, co-author of the August paper.

"Birth Control Pills Affect Women's Taste in Men" (Thanks, Marina Gorbis!)

Following the incredibly tragic story of Abraham Biggs' live broadcasting his suicide, plenty of "web 2.0" critics such as Andrew Keen jumped on the chance to blast the "anomie, cruelty and narcissism that characterises much of the web." Of course, if you think social networks are evil, you're going to interpret events that way, but, of course, as has been pointed out before, communication tools don't discriminate over who can use them -- so of course there are some awful people who use them, just as there are many good people. Communication tools don't change that. And, for every tragic Abraham Biggs story out there, it seems likely that there are many, many stories like Ayelet Waldman, who talks about how her online community of friends saved her from committing suicide. Of course, those stories don't get nearly as much attention, so folks like Keen can pretend they don't exist and that social networking communication tools are mainly used for shallow, meaningless conversations.

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What was new in 1955... a modded bike for taking the family around town.

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turnkeylinux writes "TechCrunch is reporting that eBay is under fire from users because of a holiday giveaway contest gone awry. On Tuesday Nov. 25, eBay announced its $1 Holiday Doorbusters deals promotion, giving away 100 gifts on a daily basis, all for a $1 fixed price. The gifts ranged from jewelry, clothing, digital cameras, and GPS devices to a brand-new Chevrolet Corvette. The only catch is that there's no announcement on when these items are released or in which category they will be. But cheaters came up with a clever way of winning deals on an automated basis by continuously running scripts to bid on items for $1."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Hot Dog Launcher is a familiar sight at Philadelphia Phillies baseball games in Citizens Bank Park. The bazooka shoots frankfurters high into the stands in between innings. Ad agency Red Tettemer made a funny short documentary about the invention of the Hot Dog Launcher. It's a great bit of marketing for Hatfield Quality Meats, sponsors of the Launcher. Hatfield Hotdog Launcher Documentary

An atheist group placed this sign beside a Nativity scene at an Olympia, Washington government building, and some people aren't pleased. The Freedom From Religion Foundation previously posted a sign in Madison, Wisconsin that protestors have reportedly turned around so it can't be read and thrown acid on it. From CNN:

"Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds," the sign says in part.

Dan Barker, a former evangelical preacher who now heads up the atheist and agnostic Freedom From Religion Foundation, said it was important for atheists to see their viewpoints validated alongside everyone else's...

"It's not that we are trying to coerce anyone; in a way our sign is a signal of protest," Barker said. "If there can be a Nativity scene saying that we are all going to hell if we don't bow down to Jesus, we should be at the table to share our views."

He said if anything, it's the Nativity scene that is the intrusion.

"Most people think December is for Christians and view our signs as an intrusion, when actually it's the other way around," he said. "People have been celebrating the winter solstice long before Christmas. We see Christianity as the intruder, trying to steal the holiday from all of us humans."

Atheists take aim at Christmas (Thanks, Mark Pescovitz!)

Mark.J - ISPreview writes "The Number Resource Organization, which is made up of the five Regional Internet Registries, has revealed that the rate of new entrants into the IPv6 routing system has increased by 300% over the past two years. The news is important because IPv4 addresses (e.g. 123.23.56.98), which are assigned to your computer periodically, are running out. IPv6 addressing (e.g. 2ffe:1800:3525:3:200:f8ff:fe21:67cf) was invented as a longer and more secure replacement." IPv6 is still gaining ground slowly, particularly in the U.S.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

During the summer, we wrote about how Greg Odom, perhaps better known as The Patent Hawk for his patent consulting business, had sued Microsoft over a patent on user-configurable toolbars. Odom has been known to comment here, using a style all-too common among some of our critics: insult liberally while refusing to offer any actual points. Joe Mullin has turned up a lot more details on this particular case, including the fact that not only was Microsoft a former client of Odom, but as part of his contract he promised not to file for certain patents himsefl or file patent infringement lawsuits against the company. On top of that, while working for Microsoft, he had access to confidential Microsoft info, including the company's patent strategy.

Odom, not surprisingly, disputes Microsoft's version of the events -- and points out that whatever contracts he signed are no longer relevant, since he has not worked with Microsoft in years. However, there are some questions concerning when he filed this particular patent, and whether or not he disclosed that activity to Microsoft or the law firm that he worked for during some of this period. Interestingly, Odom also is perfectly happy to admit that he thinks Microsoft came up with their toolbar version totally independently (which, again, some of us believe should be proof of obviousness).

Even if we grant Odom's version of the story, you have to wonder if the long-term results of this case will come back to haunt him. Given the facts laid out here, I would think that an awful lot of companies that might use Odom's services as a patent researcher will now be rethinking him as a potential consultant.

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We recently got a copy of No Starch Press's The Manga Guide to Statistics, by Shin Takahashi - but I didn't get to look at it for a few days because my son snagged it pretty much as it came through the door. Which confirms my theory - if you want to introduce a subject that kids wouldn't normally be very interested in, give it an amusing storyline and wrap it in cartoons.

In The Manga Guide to Statistics, our heroine Rui is determined to learn about statistics to impress the dreamy Mr. Igarashi and begs her father for a tutor. Soon she's spending her Saturdays with geeky, bespectacled Mr. Yamamoto, who patiently teaches her all about the fundamentals of statistics: topics like data categorization, averages, graphing, and standard deviation.

Reluctant statistics students of all ages will enjoy learning along with Rui in this charming, easy-to-read guide, which uses real-world examples like teen magazine quizzes, bowling games, test scores, and ramen noodle prices. Examples, exercises, and answer keys help you follow along and check your work. An appendix showing how to perform statistics calculations in Microsoft Excel makes it easy to put Rui's lessons into practice.

Once I (finally!) had a chance to look at the book, I really liked it. I have to admit I wasn't wild about statistics in college; this book was a lot more fun than my statistics textbook. Each chapter starts with a cartoon that's followed by supplemental text, then exercises and a summary, so you have the material presented in several different ways, that helps you remember. The pace of the book is good; the chapters present the concepts in bite-sized pieces and the storyline was funny. I'm sure my son didn't completely learn everything that was presented, but someday, when he's faced with Cramer's coefficient and chi-square distributions (I know I can't protect him from these things forever), he'll have some familiarity with the ideas and they will be easier to learn and use.

No Starch is publishing The Manga Guide to Statistics as the first of a series of educational manga previously published in Japan. We're really looking forward to seeing the rest, especially the one about electricity that's due out in April.

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Meet a few of the makers who brought their projects to Maker Faire Austin, 2008.
To download I Make 2008 MP4 click here or subscribe in iTunes.

Weekend Projects return next week!

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turnkeylinux writes "Amazon just launched its Public Data Sets service (home). The project encourages developers, researchers, universities, and businesses to upload large (non-confidential) data sets to Amazon — things like census data, genomes, etc. — and then let others integrate that data into their own AWS applications. AWS is hosting the public data sets at no charge for the community, and like all of AWS services, users pay only for the compute and storage they consume with their own applications. Data sets already available include various US Census databases, 3-D chemical structures provided by Indiana University, and an annotated form of the Human Genome from Ensembl."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Ponca City, We love you writes "Powerful telescopes in Hawaii and Spain are using 'light echoes' from the original supernova explosion that have bounced off dust in the surrounding interstellar clouds to identify the precise type of supernova that Tycho Brahe saw 436 years ago. Although the echoed light from Tycho's supernova is around 20 billion times fainter than the original light observed in 1572, the team took identical images of the sky a few months apart and then digitally subtracted one from the other to find evidence for several sets of light echoes rippling across patches of dust in the northern Milky Way. 'Using light echoes in supernova remnants is time-travelling in a way, in that it allows us to go back hundreds of years to observe the first light from a supernova event. We got to relive a significant historical moment and see it as the famed astronomer Tycho Brahe did hundreds of years ago,' said Tomonori Usuda, of the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii. Tycho's original observations were particularly important as he immediately concluded that the new star, visible even by day, could not be closer than the Moon challenging the Aristotelian view of the cosmos, widely accepted since ancient times, which held that the sky beyond the Moon never changed."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

This robot is called "WinBoni" and like its namesake, actually cleans your windows the way a Zamboni would clean your favorite ice rink. The project won first prize in the International Student Design Competition held by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers so it wins for a feat of anti-gravitational genius. Watch the video to see it in action.

via DVice

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For the most part, libel is a civil issue between the person who made the libelous statements and the person harmed by those statements. However, there are some states that do have criminal libel laws on the books -- though they're rarely enforced. The state of Colorado, however, apparently is willing to use the law, and the law itself seems fairly broad. It was written over a century ago and says that "tending to blacken the memory of one who is dead" or to "expose the natural defects of one who is alive, and thereby to expose him to public hatred, contempt or ridicule" counts as libel. Libel should be about making materially false statements about someone. If you're exposing the real natural defects of someone, it's difficult to see how that should be considered libel.

Either way, that law is being tested once again, as a man is being charged with criminal libel for posting disparaging messages about his ex-girlfriend (and mother of his child) and her lawyer on Craigslist. The guy says he was only venting -- but it certainly does sound like he was libelous in what he posted. The question, though, remains whether it makes sense for the lawsuit to be criminal, or a civil issue to be taken up directly between the libeled parties and the guy who posted the remarks. Making it a criminal charge seems like a waste of gov't and taxpayer resources concerning a dispute between parties who should be able to settle things via a civil lawsuit.

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adamengst writes "Numerous users have been complaining about grey lines that muddy the crispness of the displays of the recently updated MacBook Air. Doug McLean explains the problem in TidBITS, along with what Apple appears to be doing about it."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

"Canoe" by Canadian artist Peter Fleming is a 20 foot long trough of water resembling a canoe where a gunwale tracking mechanism endlessly paddles forward and back inside the boat. The entire piece is solar powered and was originally built from aluminum, gussets, and bolts so that it was fully collapsible. Check out the link below for some video clips (Quicktime) of it in action.

Canoe - Indoor Version

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MAKE spent the day in a marathon 8 hour session laser etching tons of gadgets at the Gizmodo gallery! The gallery was a showcase of high tech as well as retro devices, it was also for a good cause - Toys for Tots. Congrats to Brian Lam, Chris Mascari and their team for putting together a great show, it's going on until Sunday, so if you're in NYC pop by.

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Just posted! The second of our group tests covers the ultra compact, style cameras. They fit well in a pocket or handbag, they offer interesting design and a choice of colors; but is there a price to be paid for that compactness? Can the substance match the style? Follow the link, delve into the reviews and see what we've found...

Richard Kelleher writes "It seems the current design of multi-core processors is not good for the design of supercomputers. According to IEEE: 'Engineers at Sandia National Laboratories, in New Mexico, have simulated future high-performance computers containing the 8-core, 16-core, and 32-core microprocessors that chip makers say are the future of the industry. The results are distressing. Because of limited memory bandwidth and memory-management schemes that are poorly suited to supercomputers, the performance of these machines would level off or even decline with more cores.'"

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Paul writes -

Structure Synth is an application for creating complex three-dimensional structures using simple rule sets. Using a few line of code, with statements condensed to a few characters, iterated multiforms can be generated consisting of thousands of individual objects. Developed by Mikael Hvidtfeldt Christensen, this free software is a direct attempt to produce a 3d version of Context Free..

From Beyond the Beyond.

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Leica and Fujifilm have announced firmware updates. Leica’s update for the M8 and M8.2 rangefinders recognizes and incorporates profiles for 4 new M lenses into the camera. It also fixes a problem in discreet mode on the M8.2 and corrects issues with the auto ISO mode, image numbering and displayed sync speed. The firmware update for Fujifilm S5 Pro prevents the camera from freezing while operating it from a computer. Fujifilm has also released updates for its Finepix J Series compacts that fixes minor printing issues.

A European court has slapped down the UK for violating human rights with its fingerprint and DNA database, in that it retained the data on people not convicted of crimes. Until now, the UK police recorded fingerprints and DNA info on everyone arrested, but two guys who weren't convicted felt that their info should be deleted from the database, and the court has now agreed. The UK's defense was that "this info is important in fighting crime." Of course, so would be forcing everyone to wear a GPS device and record everything they do on cameras only the police can watch -- but we don't allow that because it's a violation of privacy. Either way, the UK now needs to start destroying info in its database and purge its data on other people who weren't convicted.

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It seems like a lot of people still have a bunch of old diskettes lying around collecting dust. Why not make them into a geeky holiday ornament for your tree? It's the perfect gift for your hacker friends.

More about DIY: Old diskette ornaments [CraziestGadgets]

In the Maker Shed:


The Best of Instructables Volume I

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bckspc writes "The Committee to Protect Journalists today released the results of its annual survey of journalists in prison. For the first time, they found more Internet journalists jailed worldwide than journalists working in any other medium. CPJ found that 45 percent of all media workers jailed worldwide are bloggers, Web-based reporters, or online editors. Their chart of journalists jailed by year is also interesting."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

This is a really interesting project that uses an AVR micro-controller to crate a 1-key keyboard. I can think of a thousand uses for this type of device.

The idea for a 1-key keyboard comes from the need as an interaction designer to make "cheap, quick and dirty prototypes." When creating a quick screen-based demo in e.g. Adobe Flash, a common way of quickly prototyping physical actions is to assign actions to certain key presses on a keyboard. In more advanced prototypes, physical hacks to the circuit board from a keyboard are also often used to interface custom buttons and switches with a computer.

More about making The 1-key-keyboard project [About Microcontrollers]

In the Maker Shed:


Arduino Mini Board, fully assembled

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Jupix writes "It took Rockstar most of a year to port Grand Theft Auto IV to the PC, and while they claim this was because they wanted polish and quality with their PC release, it appears the result has been less than satisfactory. Players all over the internet are furious over numerous bugs in the release, ranging from nonfunctional internet registration and graphics glitches to completely inoperative installations. One of the game's largest retailers, Steam, has reportedly gone so far as to start handing out refunds to hordes of unsatisfied (and no doubt uncomfortably noisy) customers."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Ontario Premier says he wants to engage young people in dialogue on Facebook (via Michael Geist) over protests against proposed restrictions on young drivers. The strict, zero-tolerance proposals have caused many young people to speak out on Facebook, and one protest group now has over 140,000 members. The Premier has responded publicly, "I think we need to find a way to get on Facebook... I think we need to find a way to engage in a dialogue in a social network where they are," noting that most young people won't come to the traditional legislative meetings. There's one snag though -- government computers currently block Facebook.

This isn't the first time a Facebook group has caught the attention of Canadian politicians (it's also not the first time this Ontario government has proposed controversial driving laws). Over the past year, a Facebook group, created by Geist, protesting proposed copyright legislation, was mentioned repeatedly by the opposition in federal parliament. This time, the government itself is bringing an online protest to attention. The idea of Facebook consultations drew some criticism in the comments on Geist's post -- why should the government conduct its business on a proprietary, privately owned silo? But Geist isn't suggesting that the government rely on Facebook or any one service, just that they could make use of services that people are already using. Facebook is especially relevant for legislation affecting young voters. In an earlier column, Geist notes that it takes more than just an "if you build it, they will come" approach. Governments could broaden their online consultation strategies to include a presence on social networks where active dialogue is already taking place. In this particular case, it's still a bit too early to tell if this is just talk or if the government is serious about experimenting. A good first step might be to reconsider that Facebook ban.

Blaise Alleyne is an expert at the Insight Community. To get insight and analysis from Blaise Alleyne and other experts on challenges your company faces, click here.

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Greg Conti -- a West Point instructor in computer science and information war -- has taken a long, hard look at the amount of information Internet users explicitly and implicitly disclose to Google and the results, collected in his book Googling Security: How Much Does Google Know About You? are sobering.

Conti enumerates all of Google's (often fantastic) services, describes how compelling they are, and then notes what information you disclose when you use them -- even when you only use them inadvertently (say, when you send email to someone with a Gmail account, or when you load a bookmarked Gmap that's been sent to a group of logged-in Google users, thus tying yourself to those users as part of the same group).

In slow, methodical steps, Conti builds his case: our complacency, Google's capacity for building compelling services, and the inadequacy of our browsers and other tools in alerting us to potential information disclosure have created a situation where Google ends up in possession of an alarming amount of information about us, our beliefs, our movements, our finances, our health, our employment and our social circles.

Conti's explanations are extremely accessible, even when discussing difficult and counter-intuitive subjects like cross-site scripting and cookies. Likewise accessible are his concrete recommendations for staunching the flow of personal information from your computer into Google's records. Finally, Conti does a great job of explaining why people who "have nothing to hide" might still want to keep their information to themselves (the approximate dimensions and characteristics of the body under your clothes aren't a secret -- but you still don't walk around naked in public and you'd resent it if someone forced you to. Private and secret aren't the same thing).

I've given the subject of privacy and Internet use a lot of thought, but even so, Conti's book opened my eyes to potential risks I'd never considered. I'd recommend this to anyone who's worried about what's happening to our ability to control the aggregation of our personal data.

Googling Security: How Much Does Google Know About You?, Slashdot review

Lately it seems like every kid's party has a spin art machine. These things can cost over $100 to rent. Crazy! This is a great how-to about making one for almost nothing, and you get to use it whenever you want!

More about making a spin art machine

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Photograph by Kim Dow

Scott Wade of San Marcos, Texas, thought he could do better than write "Wash Me" on the backside of a dusty car. He started drawing caricatures. His father was a cartoonist of sorts and had taught him to draw funny faces. It was Wade's idea to make a dirty car window his canvas.

"For the last 20 years living on a dirt road," he says, "there's always dirt on my car."

With the sun baking it, the dirt takes about two weeks to form a stable work surface. Wade began, like anyone else, by using his finger, and then tried popsicle sticks. To introduce shading, he decided to use brushes. Over time he developed a range of techniques, which included using plants and rubber paint-shaper tools.

Wade particularly likes the dirt of central Texas, where crushed limestone mixed with clay serves as a road base.

"It makes the perfect dirt," he says. "It's very light-colored and the contrast is great against the dark shadow inside the car."

As he got more requests to create his Dirty Car he realized that he had to figure out how to dust up a car himself. Now, he can prepare a car in minutes using a light coating of oil and pyro-lite, a less toxic alternative to fuller's earth.

At the Austin Maker Faire in 2007 (& 2008), Wade dusted up his Toyota and created Monsters from the Movies, featuring the Phantom of the Opera, Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Wolfman. The next day he painted a tribute to Willie Nelson that included Waylon Jennings. "After a good rain," he says, "it appears to wash off, but in a couple days it comes back in a ghostly form."

Recently, he was asked to draw Biff Henderson for the David Letterman show. In addition to portraits, he enjoys dusting up the old masters. "I have this grandiose idea of parking cars all the way up the ramp of the Guggenheim Museum and painting in dirt reproductions of the pieces that are on the wall next to it."

>> Dirty Car Art: dirtycarart.com

From the column Made on Earth - MAKE 14, page 23 - Dale Dougherty.

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teh moges writes "I recently received a response from the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, regarding issues I had with the ISP filtering proposed for Australia. My comment can be summed up by 'Any efficient filter won't be effective and any effective filter won't be efficient.' His response clarifies the issue of using the blacklist for censorship." Read on for the gist of Conroy's mistakes-were-made response, which seems to sidestep teh moges' critique, but offers Australian Internet users some idea of what they're in for.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The change in the newspaper business is undeniable, with many newspapers' fortunes looking bleaker and bleaker as they continue to misunderstand, underestimate and ignore the internet. But with a downturn in ad spending hitting TV stations hard, will local TV news be the next to go through industry-wide upheaval. While newspapers have struggled, TV news has puttered along, but the cost pressures of the current market could change that as stations pursue resource-sharing agreements or other measures to cut their newsgathering costs. The fundamental question, as PaidContent asks, is is there too much local TV news? And as they conclude, it's hard not to answer no. With three or four (or more) affiliates in many markets -- and even smaller markets getting their own 24-hour stations -- there's a lot of airtime to fill, and a lot of overlap with other news sources, many of which do a better job of reporting or delivering news to readers. The basic thought seems to be that more local TV news is better, particularly as stations have added more and more slots to fill (such as the 5 o'clock and 4 o'clock broadcasts that have been added over the years). But with the slowdown in ad spending and the rise of parts of the population completely unfamiliar with the idea of local TV news, just like they're largely unfamiliar with getting news from newspapers, the future looks bleak. Will TV stations manage to negotiate the shift to the internet any better than most newspapers have done? That too, seems doubtful.

Carlo Longino is an expert at the Insight Community. To get insight and analysis from Carlo Longino and other experts on challenges your company faces, click here.

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Otto the Octopus, a resident of Sea Star Aquarium in Coburg, Germany, is bored because the aquarium's closed for the winter -- so he's making mischief. First he squirted an overhead light until it shorted out, and now he's taken to juggling the hermit crabs.

"Once we saw him juggling the hermit crabs in his tank, another time he threw stones against the glass damaging it. And from time to time he completely re-arranges his tank to make it suit his own taste better - much to the distress of his fellow tank inhabitants."

Otto the octopus wreaks havoc (Thanks, Marilyn!)

(Image: EUROPICS)

The deplorable British policing practice of storing the DNA of suspects who've been exonerated or never even charged has been found to be illegal by a European court, and now the database must be destroyed. Remember the kid who was going home on the tube in 2005 and was mistaken for a subway bomber, taken into custody, apartment raided, all data on his computers copied, and his DNA stored forever -- even though the police admitted it was all a misunderstanding? Well at last his DNA should be removed from the database.

The court said there was a particular risk that innocent people would be stigmatised because they were being treated in the same way as convicted criminals. The judges added that the fact DNA profiles could be used to identify family relationships between individuals, meant its indefinite retention also amounted to an interference with their right to respect for their private lives under the human rights convention.

The case provoked an expression of disappointment from the home secretary, Jacqui Smith, and the promise that a working party, including senior police officials, will report back to Strasbourg by next March on how the government will comply with the judgement.

"The government mounted a robust defence before the court and I strongly believe DNA and fingerprints play an invaluable role in fighting crime and bringing people to justice. The existing law will remain in place while we carefully consider the judgement."

Christ that Jacqui Smith is a piece of work. Remember, come the next election: a vote for Labour is a vote for the party that thinks 1984 is a manual for statecraft.

17 judges, one ruling - and 857,000 records must be now wiped clear (Thanks, beep1o!)

Following up on the previous post covering Make: Tokyo Meeting 02, here are more photos and info from this event. This time there were over 60 presenters and over 1,200 people in attendance (twice as many makers and guests as the first Make: Tokyo Meeting). This time the meeting featured makers from Tokyo and beyond, showing a growth in the event as well as the DIY community that Make: Japan seeks to bring together.

The Make: Tokyo meetings, although in their early stages, are quickly becoming one of the premiere arenas for makers in Japan to display their creations. Because there are relatively few other arenas for makers to display their work in a large, interactive setting, it will no doubt continue to be an attraction for creative people in Japan and beyond.

The event was kicked off with an opening speech by sci-fi novelist H. Nojiri on the future of DIY. Throughout the day there were a total of 18 presentations at ~20 minutes each, as well as full-on workshops on Arduino, electronics for crafters (using Craft's Fashioning Technology book), and LED Throwies, as well as many other mini-workshops conducted at the maker booths. MTM 02 also featured a Making Things Talk publication panel discussion by Shigeru Kobayashi, A. Kubota, and Takumi Funada. This panel coincided with the very recent publication of the Japanese translation of Making Things Talk. Appropriately, the event showcased a lot of work by students from site hosts Tama Art University, IAMAS, etc. who utilized physical computing technology such as Arduino and Gainer in their projects.

This Make Meeting also saw the presence of more craft-related makers.

"Don't sit on me!"

The Teslasizer (Tesla Coil + Synthesizer), made by high school student Hidehito Kikuchi.

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Rachel Hobson @ CRAFT writes:

Jeffery Ruddell over at CraftStylish has done it again! All of his paper projects leave me swooning, but - honestly - often leave me feeling a little intimidated. His latest project, though, is right at my speed and would actually be fun to tackle with my kids. He's made a gorgeous snowstorm garland that uses two very simple supplies: dental floss and white circle stickers from the office supply store. This makes me want to try the same idea with colored circles to string around my tree...

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An anonymous reader writes "Several sites are running a story about a domain hijacking at Checkfree, the largest provider of online bill payment services to numerous banks and credit unions. According to Network Solutions, someone logged in to the domain administration page using Checkfree's account, and redirected its domains to a site in the Ukraine configured to serve up malware to unsuspecting users." Things like thismake me nervous about switching to otherwise-tempting online bill payment, but checks are dangerous, too.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

A bunch of folks have sent in the story that the ultra-popular "Bratz" dolls have been banned by a judge following a long court case. The case revolved around a former employee of Mattel (makers of Barbie), who apparently developed the concept of the Bratz dolls while working there. However, he ended up going out on his own to produce them -- which is the history of an awful lot of American success stories over the years. Steve Wozniak developed the Apple computer while he was working at HP, but the company wasn't interested in making the machines. Robert Noyce (founder of both Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel) felt underappreciated at Shockley Transistor. There are plenty of stories of folks working at one company realizing that they could do a better job on their own -- and that leads to competition and innovation. There was also some evidence in the case suggesting the guy had actually developed the basic idea of Bratz well before he was even employed by Mattel, though it does sound like he continued to work on the idea on the side while employed there -- though only in designing the idea, not actually making the dolls. It was only after he had left Mattel that he actually moved forward with implementing the idea. To stop him from ever going to market with a doll concept he was thinking about for years just because he worked at Mattel seems ridiculous and very anti-competitive.

However, even if you grant that Mattel has some sort "ownership" over the ideas in this guy's head while he worked at Mattel, it should only apply to the first generation of Bratz dolls. However, the court has gone even further, barring everything having to do with the Bratz dolls. Mattel, of course, is thrilled. Bratz had been the first really successful competitor to the Barbie franchise, and getting a court to shut it down completely is a huge win for Mattel. There will be an appeal, of course. The judge at least allowed the products to stay on the shelves through the holiday season, and it's quite likely that the appeals court will put a stay on the injunction until it hears the case. Even if it's eventually decided at higher courts that Bratz somehow infringe on Barbie intellectual property, it seems like a fine, rather than a complete injunction is a much more reasonable punishment.

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Check out this silicon iPhone case for the sight-impaired, via Core77:

Portugal-based designer Bruno Fosi has developed a prototype iPhone case that would enable the sight-impaired to use the device. The silicon case has debossed, tactile logos, icons and characters, yet is still thin enough for the screen to register touches. Used in conjunction with text-to-speech features, it opens up a world of possibilities for those without sight. Not to mention the blind could eke out some extra battery life by turning down the backlight.

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I'm pretty sure the tech industry is cyclic.

Here's how the cycle goes.

A new generation of young techies comes along, takes a look at the current stack, finds it too daunting (rightly so) and decides to start over from scratch. They find that they can make things happen that the previous generation couldn't be cause the were so mired in the complexity of the systems they had built. The new systems become popular with "power users" -- people who yearn to overcome the limits of the previous generation. It's exhilirating!

Some of those power users are venture capitalists, they're hanging around looking for things to invest in, and they pick a few things that look like winners. When I was fresh and dewy, part of the new crop of techies, these people were Mike Markkula who funded Apple, and Ben Rosen who funded Compaq and Lotus. In later generations they were different people, of course.

So the new folks, freshly funded, hire lots of people. They ship some products, and while the users are happy and excited about all the cool new things they can do with the new generation, now that they're freed of the limits of the previous one, they still want all the features they had come to expect from the old days. No problem! The new companies hire more people and they add all the features of the old generation. Feature wars follow, and the users get bored, and a new generation of techies comes along, takes a look at the current stack, finds it too daunting (rightly so) and decides to start over from scratch.

Round and round and round we go.

We're now reaching the end of a cycle, we're seeing feature wars. That's what's going on between Facebook and Google, both perfectly timing the rollouts of their developer proposition to coincide with the others' -- on the very same day! I don't even have to look at them and I am sure that they're too complicated. Because I've been around this loop so many times. The solution to the problem these guys are supposedly working on won't come in this generation, it can only come when people start over. They are too mired in the complexities of the past to solve this one. Both companies are getting ready to shrink. It's the the last gasp of this generation of technology.

But the next one can't be far away now. It will be exhilirating!!

Remember how great Google was when it first appeared?

Remember how great Netscape was, and before that Apple, and I know you guys won't like this, but Microsoft offered us some great new places to play. I remember finding out that their OS address space in 1981 was 640K. That was a lot to guy who was spending huge amounts of time trying to cram a 256K app into 48K.

The trick in each cycle is to fight complexity, so the growth can keep going. But you can't keep it out, engineers like complexity, not just because it provides them job security, also because they really just like it. But once the stack gets too arcane, the next generation throws their hands up and says "We're not going to deal with that mess."

We're almost there now.

I recently wrote about the somewhat hybrid physical office/virtual office we use here at Floor64, and how that's worked out well for us. Apparently, with the current financial crisis, a lot of companies are beginning to reassess whether they really need a physical office at all. A new study found that 43% of small and mid-sized businesses would consider going completely virtual in order to help deal with the current economy. Of course, the wording seems a bit weird. Why is it "would consider" rather than "are considering"? It's as if they weren't considering it at all, but suddenly thanks to this survey they admit they would consider it at some point in the future, thanks to the survey alerting them of the possibility. There may be issues involving long term leases and such, but it still seems odd to have companies say they would consider it in the future, but apparently aren't considering it now.

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An anonymous reader writes "Warner Music is pitching the idea of a 'music tax' for various top universities. The idea is that students would be free to file share, but the university needs to monitor and track everything, create a pool of money, hand it over to a recording industry entity that promises to distribute the proceeds fairly. In exchange, the university gets a 'covenant not to sue' from the music labels. It's not a full license, just a basic promise that they won't sue. It's also claimed that this is 'voluntary' but the Warner Music guy says that they need to include all universities and all ISPs to really make it work. It's basically a music tax, where the recording industry gets to sit back and collect money."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Mad clockmaker Roger Wood sent me this lovely, annotated photograph of his Chronulator-based clock that I wrote about here. He said response has been great and he plans to make a few more in the new year.

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Scott Cleland is a "telecom analyst" who, in reality, is actually paid a large sum of money by the telcos to slam Google. He's become sort of a joke in DC circles. In the past, we noted his ridiculously bad math in claiming that Google fleeced taxpayers out of $7 billion, as well as his claims that "open spectrum" is somehow anti-American. His main issue, of course, is trying to dispense bogus arguments for why net neutrality is really a big scam by Google to keep its broadband bills cheap. To give Cleland credit, at least he's not as bad as Mike McCurry, who once claimed that Google doesn't pay a dime for broadband. McCurry, of course, has moved on from spinning for the telcos to spinning for the entertainment industry, so Cleland needed to up his game.

He's now released a "study" claiming that Google uses 21 times as much bandwidth as it pays for. First of all, this is simply incorrect. Cleland doesn't know how much Google actually pays for broadband, so he comes up with a small number, which is wrong for a variety of reasons.

He seems to conflate consumer broadband and Google's broadband. This is based, in part, on the old telco argument that when you buy internet access, you're only buying access to the middle of the internet, and you should have to pay a second time to actually reach any endpoint or other user. So, even though consumers pay for the bandwidth they use to reach Google, Cleland appears to calculate that as being Google's responsibility, ignoring that consumers are paying plenty for the right to reach Google (and the rest of the internet). As Cord Blomquist points out, this is like pointing out that Best Buy should pay for the gas it takes for people to drive to Best Buy. Broadband Reports also does a nice job deconstructing this.

However, even if we ignore all the basic facts and information that Cleland gets wrong, if we grant his premise, his argument still doesn't make any sense. If anything, rather than being an argument in favor of the telcos' position, Clelands report (if true) suggests that telco execs all deserve to be fired. After all, they're the ones who set up the business model and the billing relationship, and if they're undercharging Google by so much, then shouldn't they raise their prices? Of course, there's a good reason why this doesn't happen: because Google is paying fair market value for its bandwidth, and if anyone tried to charge them 21 times more, Google would quickly take its business elsewhere. So, based on this report, either Cleland is dead wrong in his report, or the telcos who funded it are run by morons who don't know how to set pricing correctly. Which one is more likely?

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As previously mentioned, today Offworld moved just a little closer to that long-stated goal of bringing in more influence from outside the games industry proper with its first new feature from Ignatz Award winning and Eisner nominated comic artist James Kochalka, who will be creating new monstrous Miis for the site which you can bring home to your own Wii. We also saw that Rock Band is about to get a little bit country, made a plea for more developers to praise rather than scold their players, found new iPhone games based on bondage and argument-settling by music, and saw Sega racing classic Outrun re-made for Nintendo's Virtual Boy. Finally, we saw a very Weezer Christmas coming to iPhone and a Sega Master System's circuits bent to create real-time guitar effects, got jealous over a fantastic scheme to bring freelance illustrator work into LittleBigPlanet, and got ready to take a ride on the Raptor Copter, a brilliant looking and literally-named new iPhone game.

Edge Magazine is running an interview with Nintendo game designer Shigeru Miyamoto about some of the company's recent projects, such as Wii Music and Wii Fit. Miyamoto talks about his ambitions for the titles, as well as the difficulty in continuing to entertain players by surprising them. He refers to Wii Music as "music software" rather than a game, and says the primary intent was to bring music to families and assist in music education. The conversation then turns to where Nintendo can go in the future; Miyamoto discusses integrating new technologies into popular game franchises, and the dilemma Nintendo will face when designing its next console — do they stick with updated versions of their innovative controllers, do they return to a more standard build, or do they bring a completely different input device to the table?

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Brink, a new Science Channel show, will be covering Illuminati Motor Works during next week's episode. This is the first of 3 episodes including projects from this year's Austin Maker Faire.

Learn more about Brink here, and be sure to catch the Illuminati guys 10pm EST Friday, December 12th!

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