How to Build a Multimachine

Wednesday, March 14th, 2012

For starters, you’ll need a PDF instruction manual. That, and the machine itself, because once you have one machine, you’ll be able to make more – One Machine To Rule Them All!

(Plus it looks pretty wicked!)

Meanwhile, in Geekville

Sunday, March 11th, 2012

such a bad, bad, bad idea:

###

Tweets can now be cited in academic papers, using the following format:

For example:

Athar, Sohaib (ReallyVirtual). “Helicopter hovering above Abbottabad at 1AM (is a rare event).” 1 May 2011, 3:58 p.m. Tweet.

via, you guessed it, the MLA website

###

The door to the apartment of Hector Monsegur aka Sabu, hacker turned FBI informant, who lived in Manhattan and whom the NY Times published this not-so-flattering profile on last week:

Hector Xavier Monsegur, or Sabu, lived in Apartment 6F at 90 Avenue D in the Jacob Riis complex in Manhattan.

###

The Rube Goldberg of wine de-corking and pouring machines:

###

On the Homeland Security’s “Long, Long List of Social Media Watch Words” includes the gem “social media”, because, you know, “We heard you like social media with your social media so we put social media in your social media so you could social media while you social media.”

###

What is “computer virus”? Whatever it is it doesn’t translate to TV:

###

On the history of GIFS, who says PBS is dead?

Also, it’s pronounced “GIF” – wait. I mean Ghif. As in not-the-peanut-butter. Because “graphics” is pronounced “Guh” not “Juh” and the G in GIF stands for Graphics. So who cares what the Compuserve “jiy” or “guy” says. Get it?

###

Mobee, The Pop-Up Monolithic Robot Bee

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

Mobee, or Monolithic Bee, is a pop-up robot fabrication project of the Harvard Microrobotics Lab. Using Printed Circuit MEMS (Microelectromechanical systems), a single piece of material (thus its ‘monolithic’ nomenclature) can be folded and locked into a 3-dimensional structure, similar to a pop-up book or piece of origami. Five layers of carbon fiber, two layers of plastic, two brass layers, one layer of titanium, and eight layers of adhesive are heat-pressed together to form an 18-layer laminate, while two piezoelectric ceramic inserts will provide mechanical function. After being laser-cut, the laminate can be popped up and assembled in one motion, allowing for rapid fabrication of many robots! The robot’s locking joints are soldered together, allowing it to be easily removed from the sprue for mechanization. Watch the video below for plenty of jaw-dropping awesomeness, and for more in-depth reading on this technology, I recommend reading “Pop-up book MEMS” (PDF) by the makers of Mobee.

LIC being increasingly modelled and mapped

Sunday, February 19th, 2012

Noticed while browsing around inside Google Earth that Long Island City is being increasingly modelled, even more-so than Greenpoint or Williamsburg, which is interesting because you know, LIC is still “on the cusp” of becoming “cool”. Which either means the residents of this town have more time on their hands to produce 3D models and plot them in Google Earth, or the residents of this town give more concern towards how their town is perceived in both real and virtual worlds – either way it’s win-win for LIC!

Some other areas of Queens are also being increasingly modelled and mapped:

A clever marketing ploy, a recent condo development in north Astoria uploaded their model; I can already hear the broker saying, “Here, click this link to see your future bougie digs in Google Earth!”

A nearby business/warehouse district in Woodside also updated their area with scale models.

Someone even took the time to model these generic housing blocks, in south Corona.

Obviously a marketing ploy, regardless, I’ll always call it New Shea Stadium.

the scale of our insignificance

Thursday, February 16th, 2012

It’s humbling once you try and process it really. From 10^-35 to 10²⁷, there you have it, the known Universe! Equally as incredible is to think to scale the Universe is 9.3 meters wide, at 10²⁷ scale! All built into a beautiful ‘Scale of the Universe 2′ slider, so you can smooth scroll back and forth to comprehend your own insignificance in the scheme of things.

occupy mblying, #OccupyCaptcha

Monday, February 13th, 2012

Hrmmm… curious.