Flames rise from the fingertips of Robot Resurrection at 2017 Maker Faire San Diego in Balboa Park.
Balboa Park has been invaded! Cool robots of every size and description are roving throughout the park during 2017 Maker Faire San Diego!
Maker Faire San Diego seems to grow bigger every year. During this amazing event, eye-popping inventions and marvels of technology take over the heart of Balboa Park and many of its museums.
This morning I walked around feasting my mind on all sorts of creative stuff. Students, inventors, hobbyists and local clubs were proudly showing off their unique ideas and feats of engineering. Examples of 3D printing and robotics were everywhere.
Maker Faire San Diego continues in Balboa Park through Sunday. If you can, check it out for yourself!
Here are a few of the cool robots you might see!
2017 Maker Faire San Diego features lots of very cool robots, including 28 foot tall Robot Resurrection.A human operator emerges from the chest of the gigantic flame-throwing robot! If this thing could walk it would be a formidable battle robot!Human and robot fingers meet.Robot Resurrection has a couple of tiny pals. Here’s one.Here’s the other!The very cool Electric Giraffe has returned to the annual Maker Faire San Diego.The Electric Giraffe can move about while using an array of sensors in its head. When the neck is raised, this crowd-pleasing robot is 17 feet tall!This cute cow robot is named Milky White. It can move its eyeballs, eyelids, ears, tail and jaws!People at San Diego’s annual Maker Faire in Balboa Park check out a very creative robot designed by a friendly young man.Many schools from around San Diego demonstrate robots and other engineering projects during Maker Faire.The Robotics Society of Southern California has a sophisticated humanoid robot that moves realistically.The Glendale Robotics Academy had their Party Rover on display in the Japanese Friendship Garden.Kids check out another robot in the garden.A performance artist becomes a fun robot. People walking down El Prado posed for photos!This robot named Darth Zamboni was created by the Top Hat Technicians of High Tech High North County. It launches balls!Small autonomous cars on a track inside the San Diego History Center. They were being controlled remotely in order to gather navigational data.Autonomous car technology being developed today utilizes deep computer learning.A student participating in the First Robotics Competition demonstrates a small vehicle that their team built. Many robots can be seen up close in the San Diego History Center.This competitive robot corrals balls and then launches them.Cool robots of every size and description are on display throughout Balboa Park during 2017 Maker Faire San Diego!
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A guy with a super cool steampunk outfit spread his mechanical wings for a photo as I entered the library!
Check out these cool photos from Steampunk Day at the Library!
I headed over to San Diego’s Central Library early this afternoon not really knowing what to expect. And what I experienced absolutely blew me away!
San Diego Steampunk, Gaslight Steampunk Expo, and the Friends of the Central Library put on an event that still has me smiling as I write this! You wouldn’t believe all the awesome steampunk costumes and gizmos and props and gadgets and inventions and artwork that filled a good chunk of the library’s first floor. I saw original stuff inspired by Lewis Carroll, H. G. Wells, Jules Verne… Some of my favorite authors! There were also a couple lectures and something called Tea Dueling, which I missed. Perhaps next year…
The participants, most of whom are makers, were all super friendly and eager to tell me about what they had created. I pocketed lots of business cards and flyers, and have tried to provide photo captions that accurately describe what I came across.
So what did I see? Take a look!
Steampunk Day at the San Diego Central Library promotes S.T.E.A.M. learning. Readers, students and imaginative people can explore concepts in science and technology! And enjoy excellent literature and learn some history, too!Dozens of local steampunk enthusiasts had gathered in the library to have fun and provide creative inspiration for young and old alike.A super nice lady had a table full of steampunk crafts she had made. Like others participating in the event, she is a member of San Diego Steampunk.Library visitors during Steampunk Day could pose with Victorian costume accessories and props for a cool photo.One of the first things I saw was an awesome model of Jules Verne’s Nautilus from the classic Disney movie 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea!Richard Ferrell aka Colonel Malcolm Weatherby was holding a ray gun at the ready. Like many other steampunk enthusiasts, he makes his own props.This ray gun from Steampunk Arsenal is a fusion of glass bottles and imagination.It’s The Mad Hatter! And her mobile table is set for tea! Or perhaps A Moveable Feast! (Okay, I’m sorry–it’s the library.)I didn’t get the names of these folks, but they had some of the most inventive stuff. The blue liquid on the right is composed of distilled moonbeams.That gadget up at the top of this photo propels a courageous adventurer through time.I believe this guy said he’s Gandalf the Brass. His staff emits different colored light, depending on the magic. Should he defeat a Balrog, he might become Gandalf the Gold.Steampunk writer Madeleine Holly-Rosing had a table displaying some of her books. If you like reading steampunk fiction, you should probably check it out!Madeleine Holly-Rosing is author of comic book series Boston Metaphysical Society. Kind of like a steampunk The X-Files I was told. Sounds cool!Maleficent greeted me at the Steampunk Public table. I learned she’s not really evil, just a bit misunderstood.And look at all the cool contraptions created by Steampunk Public! Sheer fun and human creativity!In a glass library display case I discovered steampunk collage art by Ramona Szczerba. She calls these curious vintage fictions.Imaginative uniforms exhibited during Steampunk Day by the San Diego Costume Guild. They create costumes representing many different eras.Goggles and top hats everywhere!A British explorer or officer or eccentric character from a weird alternate reality–I’m not sure which! But he was super nice!Taking an image using patented Spectral Photography.Kids in the Children’s Library were busy making Mad Hatter hats!A scary steampunk vampire looked me over when I stepped outside. Perhaps she was getting a bit thirsty. “Fangs for nothing!”More awesome steampunk cosplay near the Central Library’s auditorium.This guy on the time machine materialized from the future right as I took a photo. I don’t know whether he saw any Eloi or Morlocks.
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This 1947 Cadillac was transformed into an amazing cross-country contraption! The unusual car drove from San Diego to New York and back–without stopping!
Have you heard of the amazing car that features a toilet, washing machine, ironing board, shower, and even a kitchen sink?
Did you know this amazing car also has an electric stove, refrigerator, medicine cabinet, and drinking fountain?
And that this particular car holds the cross-country driving endurance record? In 1952, three men drove the car 6,320 miles nonstop–literally without stopping–from San Diego to New York and back, accompanied by a police escort the entire way! They refueled from a moving gas truck!
What else can this amazing car do?
The car automatically changes oil and refills the radiator. Movable platforms and hydraulic jacks allow any tire to be changed without stopping the car. And repairs to the engine can be made while driving. The hood, when open, has transparent panels that allow the driver to see the road!
A shower and drinking fountain! Why not? The shower is on the right running board and the drinking fountain can be accessed at a rear taillight! The back seat conveniently contains several household necessities, including a refrigerator, stove, small washing machine, chemical toilet, and, of course . . . that kitchen sink!
Never heard of this crazy car? It once was quite famous, widely appearing on television, in magazines and newspapers. But that was decades ago.
Today you can see Louie Mattar’s extensively modified 1947 Cadillac for yourself. It’s on display at the San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park!
Here’s to the dreamers. And here’s to the actual doers. It took Louie Mattar five years to transform his amazing dream into reality!
Louie Mattar’s car was driven 6320 miles without ever stopping. Refueling, tire changes and even engine repairs are done on the run!You can see the most amazing car in the world at the San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park!The car tows a trailer, which stores gasoline, water and oil. At the rear is an outdoor dining area complete with dial telephone!When the car was in motion, a passenger in swim trunks could stand on a narrow platform outside and take a shower!A look at the complicated dashboard. I’m reminded of an airplane’s cockpit.Diagram shows the many gauges and switches available to the driver. A bar and hookah are within easy reach of the front seat passenger!Another look inside the amazing car through the front passenger side door.A crazy tangle under the hood. It looks like a dish of spaghetti!Diagram shows numerous modifications and additions to the 1947 Cadillac’s original stock engine.A passenger in the moving car could stand on this projecting platform to change a tire! The axles are drilled, so tires can be inflated while they are turning!A video in the San Diego Automotive Museum shows the amazing car in action!How many cars in the world are equipped with an electric stove and ironing board?
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
A broken chain at the Maritime Museum of San Diego.
These photos taken at the Maritime Museum of San Diego tell a story. It’s that never-ending tale of human struggle against the elements.
Rope and chain. Ancient inventions.A tale of human struggle against the elements.Waiting for an outstretched hand, a critical moment.An anchor above calm water.Instruments of control in a stormy world. Rope, chain and anchor.Life clings to chains. Rust devours chains.A strained connection.Necessary chains. Rusty chains large and small.Human endeavor.Ropes cast aside, perhaps hurriedly.Ordered ropes, to harness gusts above.New strength.Bent steel, neat coils, in a tangle of untouchable dark shadows.Worm, Parcel and Serve! A never-ending story of human ambition, battling water, sun, salt and wind.Tarring at the museum.New bonds, prepared.A strange sculpture, or a potent symbol.A wrestle.
This is a story of struggle with many pages. The unconquerable antagonist in every chapter is Time.
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
A huge spider-like working octopod vehicle on display in the Plaza de Panama at 2016 Maker Faire San Diego!
Check out some cool photos! I took these this morning at 2016 Maker Faire San Diego which is being held this weekend in Balboa Park!
This now annual event–I believe this is the second year–attracts creative people of every type: engineers, inventors, dreamers, artists, students . . . If the human imagination can envision it, these folks will build it!
If you are a dreamer and a doer, head down to Balboa Park and be inspired!
Maker Faire San Diego has taken over Balboa Park this weekend. The annual event features fantastic creations and the inspired creators who like building cool stuff!This super cool octopod moves slowly forward and backward using its spider-like feet. I’d love to sit inside and drive it! I learned that it doesn’t steer very well, however.In the morning, before the Maker Faire officially opened, I spotted two cupcake cars heading through Balboa Park!This guy was flying what appeared to be a huge model of a Star Wars Imperial Star Destroyer down Balboa Park’s El Prado!A bunch of Maker Faire exhibitors set up on Saturday morning in front of the San Diego Air and Space Museum in Balboa Park.This human powered submarine was created by a team of students at UCSD. It competed in the International Submarine Race and was propelled by a 3-D printed fin.This cool robot was created by high school students, namely High Tech High’s Top Hat Technicians. It competed in an event where a ball had to be shot at a goal.Make your own molecule using this cardboard Molecube!These awesome guitars were made by students in a special STEM Guitar-Building class at San Diego City College.The Ghostbusters ECTO-1 vehicle has arrived for Maker Faire San Diego, as well as a Jeep from Jurassic Park.Commissioner Gordon must be nearby. I spotted his Gotham Police Department vehicle.A tiny house would be built here during the Maker Faire weekend. When I first walked by, the floor was being laid down.About an hour later, one wall was already up!The Electric Giraffe returned for 2016 Maker Faire San Diego. It walks, talks, and has become quite a phenomenon. It has even appeared at the White House!The Electric Giraffe is 17 feet tall when its neck is fully raised. Its “horns” (actually ossicones) appear to be lava lamps!These creators at Maker Faire San Diego were building the Temple for Youtopia. It’s an interlocking plywood parabaloid with a single light source at it’s focal point. When finished, light shines out everywhere.A similar Temple is built each year at Burning Man and set on fire.I noticed a lot of cool Star Wars cosplay at 2016 Maker Faire San Diego.I caught this Star Wars cosplay between Balboa Park’s House of Hospitality and the Japanese Friendship Garden.Back in Balboa Park’s central Plaza de Panama, the San Diego Sabers engaged in a fast-paced lightsaber battle!Enthusiasts in cool protective costumes engage in lightsaber combat as a crowd watches during 2016 Maker Faire San Diego!Anybody passing by was invited to Paint a Prius near the San Diego Automotive Museum!Kids have a blast in front of the San Diego Air and Space Museum. Air-propelled rockets were flying all over the place.Kids at Maker Faire San Diego test a carbon dioxide cannon, made from a garbage can!This remote control robot batter was swinging wildly at beach balls. A rather amusing scene! (Wish I’d taken a better photo.)Here comes AR-Duo, the Caloric Rover, a cool steampunk rolling doohickey which is beyond awesome.There’s just too much fun at 2016 Maker Faire San Diego! Head over to Balboa Park this weekend!
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Unique holographic artwork painted on glass as seen through a downtown San Diego window. Reflections of life on the street are also visible in this photo.
Look what I discovered! These super cool, revolutionary paintings are on display in downtown San Diego. You’ll find them arranged behind the windows of the now closed Gaslamp 15 movie theater, just beneath the old marquee.
When I read the signs near these vibrant paintings, my curiosity was piqued. An inventive gentleman named Liguori has used proprietary holographic paints to create two-dimensional images that seem three-dimensional. The visual appearance changes depending upon the angle from which the artwork is observed!
According to the written description, this method of painting is so unique that it constitutes a completely new art form! My photos through the glass windows don’t really demonstrate the appearance of three dimensions. But my photos do include interesting reflections from the city street! Melded with the colorful art are buildings, people, a bus, cars, and just regular ordinary stuff a person walking down the sidewalk might observe. In a sense, this adds another unusual dimension! Please read the two signs that I photographed. Especially if you are keenly interested in physics and philosophy, and unbounded human creativity.
Do you have questions? Would you like to learn more? Perhaps you’d like to purchase one of these completely revolutionary pieces, which belong to an art movement yet to be named! That’s what the sign says! And all proceeds go to charity! To contact Liguori, use the email that is at the bottom of the signs.
Very cool!
Very cool works of art are on display in downtown San Diego. You can see them in the windows of the now vacant Gaslamp 15 movie theater, beneath the old marquee.Liguori is a successful businessman in his seventies. He took up painting late in life. He developed a totally new art medium. All the proceeds of his work will go to various charities!More examples of Liguori’s dazzling, thought-provoking pieces. Apparently the application of his special holographic paint on glass is an entirely new, revolutionary art form.Bold color stimulates the human mind and imagination. Like the universe (or perhaps multiverse), what is seen depends on the observer’s momentary point of view.Liguori’s work provides a physical manifestation of objective reality. When viewing this holographic art, countless three dimensional images are possible. It depends upon the angle of observation.Abstract art melds with cars, buildings, and bits of everyday experience in one wonderful window.More fantastic artwork. I was unable to take photographs without reflections in the windows. But it makes these images that more interesting!A dim somebody strides through a splash of vibrant color.The cosmos is incomprehensibly enormous and complex. Different wavelengths, angles, points in space and time…different states of mind and a blink of the eye. Objective reality is observed only in tiny slices.
UPDATE!
I’ve decided to walk past these holographic paintings again, and attempt to take some better photos without the street reflections. I’ll post them shortly…
Okay, I somehow got two close-up photos through the windows that are pretty amazing. Here they are…
01 Close-up photo of holographic painting by Liguori.02 Close-up photo of holographic painting by Liguori.
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Do you like to read short pieces of thought-provoking fiction? You might enjoy checking out Short Stories by Richard.
Amazing wood art. A hooded figure takes a break at an inn. Just Off The Road, Basswood, Randy Stoner.
Today I moseyed around Del Mar and Solana Beach. My walk included a couple of stimulating hours at the San Diego County Fair. I just wandered about, soaking it all in, and found my feet heading toward my favorite part of the fair, the Design in Wood Exhibition.
Some of the best wood artists in Southern California–the world, for that matter–submitted their incredible pieces this year to be judged. The exhibition, a collaboration with the San Diego Fine Woodworkers Association, is celebrating its 35th year.
Here is some of the wildly creative woodwork that really caught my eye. You’ll notice many pieces have an Alice in Wonderland theme. That’s because this year’s San Diego County Fair is all about that timeless children’s book penned by Lewis Carroll. White Rabbits, March Hares and Mad Hatters abound! Everywhere you turn there’s a tea party or a grinning Cheshire Cat!
The Alice in Wonderland theme intersects with Steampunk, of course, so many fantastic contraptions and quirky bits of wood art are included in the exhibition. Take a look!
Glass table supported by fantastic underwater character carved from wood. Califa’s Realm, Avocado, Lorenzo Foncerrada.A steampunk writer might enjoy creating new worlds while sitting here! Time Machine Desk, Recycled Pine and Plywood, Jeffrey Comulada.Yikes! Get out of the way! This eye-catching contraption is just too cool. Scorpion Wheelchair, Pine, Roger Aceve.A truly amazing fantasy woodcarving. Julia the Dragon Killer, Bass, Antonio Barrios.Ancient warrior and an incredibly elaborate helmet made of wood. Dracon Soldier, Bass, Antonio Barrios.More outstanding artistry. Heron in a scene from a San Diego lagoon. Spirit of San Elijo, Torrey Pine, Lorenzo Foncerrada.Wood grains flow in this crazy organic bench. Ongoing Conversation, Baltic Birch, Alan Johnson.A very cool tangle-tentacled wooden octopus. Denizen of the Deep, Maple, Tom Edwards.Perhaps this is a wood version of Strider from Lord of the Rings. Ranger, Basswood, Randy Stoner.A mountain lion carved from wood keeps guard among other spectacular works of art. Kitty Kitty, Mahogany, Bill Churchill.This skeleton pirate with a brass steampunk telescope is beyond awesome. Mutiny, Bloodwood Fir, Mike Anderson.Two very cool handmade guitars with an Alice in Wonderland theme. I see clocks, the White Rabbit, a mad tea party, even a mustache!I love this example of imaginative wood design. Jack Rabbit, Alder, Ray Camien.Members of the San Diego Scrollsaw Clubs demonstrate their craft to people visiting the Design in Wood Exhibition at the San Diego County Fair.A wonderfully inventive piece of furniture. Birdcage Chair, White Oak, Patrick Atangan.Looks like an animal skull in the desert Southwest. Early, Early American Chair, Poplar, Del Cover.This might be the most intricate model tall ship I ever saw. Sovereign of the Seas, Boxwood, Mahogany, Ebony, Sycamore, William Norris.When a person becomes old, there’s no need to become dull. Two Canes, Various, Tracy Talbott.A fun chest of drawers perfect for a kid’s room. Buddy Bear, Walnut, Ralph Crowther.I wonder if Lewis Carroll imagined there would be steampunk powerboats one day. Looking For Alice, Various, Michael Rumsey.I love the cosmic layered wood sky with Saturn behind buildings. Night Surfing, Hardwood Plywood, Robert Stafford.Gears aplenty. Steampunk Cat, Various, Stephen Knight.Now this work of wood art totally blew my mind. Absolutely beautiful. Stormy, Various, Chuck Collins.Yeah, some days this pensive chimp could easily outwit me. Thinking, Various, Daryoush Ababaf.
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Uniquely beautiful Fern Lumen by artist Patricia Grabski.
This weekend you have an opportunity to see something really unique. Patricia Grabski is displaying her amazing lumen and cyanotype photo art in Balboa Park. Her work is part of a five artist exhibition called Ain’t Nothing Like a Dame, which you can enjoy inside Gallery 21, in the always wonderful Spanish Village Art Center.
I learned that cyanotype printing was invented in England in 1842. Utilizing two chemicals, ammonium iron citrate and potassium ferricyanide, this process was used to create early blueprints. In 1843, the world’s first woman photographer, Anna Atkins, placed organic materials onto paper coated with cyanotype; when exposed to sunlight, ghostly, artistic photograms were created.
Lumens is a very similar process that uses old unexposed black and white photo paper. Exposure to sunlight creates all sorts of fantastic colors and effects.
My own poor photographs don’t do this fascinating artwork justice. You have to see the subtle detail in person. So head on over to Spanish Village tomorrow. Patricia Grabski’s work will be displayed through March 14. If you want to contact the artist, her info is visible in one photo.
Patricia Grabski is currently exhibiting her unique creations in Gallery 21, in Balboa Park’s wonderful Spanish Village Art Center. Her pieces are available for purchase.Patricia Grabski uses neither camera nor lens–she contact prints her images with alternative photographic processes–cyanotype, platinum, palladium, albumen, van dyke brown, salt and lumens. Her prints are made on photographic paper, art paper, glass, tin, cotton handkerchiefs and old linens.
Leaf Lumen. Fantastic art created by Patricia Grabski.
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A mad scientist at the San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering shows a kid how to have some fun with magnets!
Here are 14 different simple science and engineering projects that kids are sure to love! I’ve included lots of instructions and photographs–courtesy of many exhibitors at this year’s San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering Expo, held yesterday at Petco Park. I also blogged about the event last year.
Check out this fun stuff! Feel free to share! First up . . . how to make slime!
HOW TO MAKE SLIME
Who doesn’t love slime? Slime is fun! And making it is easy! These instructions are courtesy of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, who had a fascinating exhibit at the big STEM education event held at Petco Park.
Just click the image with easy directions to enlarge it! You can enlarge the other images on my blog in the same way, if you want a closer look. Feel free to share these useful how-to photos on Pinterest or with your friends, if you’d like!
How to make slime. You need borax powder, water, white glue and food coloring. Click each image to enlarge instructions.
HOW TO MAKE A FUN PAPER ROCKET
Follow the diagram to cut and fold a simple paper rocket with paper clip! These instructions are courtesy of the San Diego Air and Space Museum in Balboa Park. Kids love the world-class museum. It’s one of the coolest places in San Diego!
How to make a cool paper rocket, using a rectangular piece of paper, scissors and a paper clip.
HOW TO FOLD AN ORIGAMI BOAT
Look at these instructions on how to fold your very own origami boat! My friends at the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park provided this information! I even once made one! (And if I can succeed, believe me–anyone can do it!)
How to fold an easy origami boat that really floats!
HOW TO MAKE MATCHBOX ROCKETS THAT REALLY WORK!
Here’s how you can make a tiny rocket that actually works in much the same way as a real solid-fuel rocket. Wrap a single matchstick in a small strip of tin foil, then crimp one end. Look at my photos to get an idea of what to do. Be careful! You know what they say about playing with matches! Have an adult help out!
Oh, I forgot to mention. This cool experiment is courtesy of the Magnolia Science Academy!
How to make matchbox rockets and why they work. This is for older, supervised kids. Fire can be dangerous.Wrap a match in a small strip of aluminum foil.Crimp the match head end of the tube (the rocket’s nose) so exhaust pressure doesn’t escape in that direction.Prepare for lift-off from a clever, fireproof launching platform! Safely apply flame and let fly!
HOW TO MAKE AN “AIRZOOKA” THAT SHOOTS CO2 RINGS!
Here’s another cool project I discovered at the Magnolia Science Academy booth. A student had created a simple “Airzooka” that shoots perfect white cloudy rings of carbon dioxide!
The trashcan with a hole part looks easy. To create the membrane that launches the CO2 rings, you’ll need to use a somewhat flexible material, like a plastic sheet. Once the can is filled with gas, just slap it with your hand and out comes a “smoke ring”!
How to make an “airzooka” using a plastic trashcan with a hole at one end and a pliable membrane on the other. Fill with carbon dioxide gas and shoot white rings by hitting the membrane!The “airzooka” is loaded with carbon dioxide gas, using either dry ice (be extremely careful) or a fog machine.
HOW TO CRAFT A FUN PAPER BAG HAT
What can you do with a paper grocery bag? Crumple it up a bit and form a Mad Hatter hat! Use your imagination and maybe a bit of glue!
This crafty idea is provided by the San Diego County Fair. This summer’s fair will have an Alice in Wonderland theme! I can’t wait!
How to make a Mad Hatter hat with crumpled paper bags and lots of fun stuff tied and glued on!You can apply ribbons, glitter, feathers, playing cards, whatever you like to fashion your crazy Mad Hatter hat! Okay, I don’t suppose this really is science, but who cares!
HOW TO MAKE A TINY PARACHUTE
I remember creating one of these when I was a kid. I made my parachute for a toy action figure! Just look at the picture and go to work! Pretty simple!
This parachute was put together by to the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center. The Fleet, located in Balboa Park, is a super cool place with loads and loads of fun hands-on science exhibits for kids, plus an awesome IMAX theater and planetarium!
How to make a simple small parachute with a Dixie cup or object providing weight, string (or similar material) and coffee filter.
HOW TO MAKE A SUPER COOL STAR WARS COSTUME!
Okay. No instructions here. Just imagination. That cool costume is actually made of all sorts of Star Wars toys! Incredible. I’m guessing that wicked-looking dude is on the Dark Side.
I believe this guy was part of the STAR WARS Steampunk Recycled Fashion and Engineering Challenge.
Yeah, making a cool costume out of Star Wars toys might take a bit of glue. But all you really need is determination and imagination! (And maybe a credit card.)
HOW TO USE YOUR IMAGINATION TO BUILD ANYTHING!
What are we building here? Absolutely anything! It just takes some imagination!
Just look at some of the common household items one can use to invent cool things. I’ll bet you have some of this stuff in your own home.
I took this pic at a fun table display in the Qualcomm Thinkabit Lab tent.
What can a person make with this stuff? Anything!Objects you can use creatively include popsicle sticks, plastic spoons, straws, tubes, tape and buttons.
HOW TO MIX UP SOME SNAIL GOOP
Slime…snail goop…boogers…it’s all the same good stuff. At least it’s the same mixture of borax powder, water and white glue. A truly yucky and wonderful substance. Science rocks!
Thanks (maybe) to the Steam Maker Workshop for this gloppy sight.
Okay, snail goop is pretty much the same stuff as slime. But I like the name!If a snail made that much goop, it would be a monster. Fortunately, that monstrous snail would be slow.Kids and curious adults were learning all sorts of cool concepts at the 2016 San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering at Petco Park.
HOW TO CREATE A 3-D OPTICAL ILLUSION WITH STRING
Here’s a cool experiment that demonstrates concepts in math and spatial geometry. Perhaps imagine that the string is a ray of light. From the “tower”, stretch the string so that it touches each of the four top corners of your cube, and plot where the string finally reaches your piece of paper. Connect those points with lines the way my photographs show, then look at the image from the end of the string! It looks like some sort of weird optical illusion, but you’ll see the result actually makes sense!
This exhibit was provided by San Diego State University’s InforMath Collaborative.
By using a string attached to this tower, you can plot the projected corners of a cube or other three dimensional object onto a flat two dimensional surface.After drawing the cube’s base and drawing lines to connect the square with the projected corners, I ended up with this cool figure.When I peered at the image through a hole near the end of the string, I saw a perfect cube! Cool!
HOW TO ASSEMBLE A COOL TENSEGRITY CONSTRUCT
Oh, man! I think you could construct most of this cool stuff with Tinkertoys. Look at the diagrams and go wild! You’ll need lots of rubber bands!
Tensegrity is another science concept that was being demonstrated at the STEM education event. A friendly gentleman explained that the sticks are like bones and the rubber bands are like muscles. So human beings and other critters are examples of tensegrity!
Oops. I apologize for not knowing who put on this exhibit.
What the heck is tensegrity? A funny word created by Buckminster Fuller. You can use rubber bands to add tension to popsicle sticks and create cool stuff.Check it out! Tensegrity is also sometimes called tensional integrity or floating compression.These guys formed a huge tensegrity thingamajig using pipes and big rubber bands. I suppose one could use bungee cords, too.Look at all the tensegrity objects you can make!
HOW TO MAKE A VORTEX CANNON
Here’s a pic that has exact instructions on how to build a vortex air cannon. Looks really easy! (As usual, click the image to enlarge it.)
Uh, oh. I don’t know who created this exhibit, either. I forgot to take a picture with their name. My research got a bit sloppy. Sorry about that. Whoever had this table–very cool!
The vortex cannon shoots air in–you guessed it–a vortex.To make a vortex cannon, insert a cut narrow water bottle into a larger plastic Solo cup, just like the photo.Then cut off the nozzle of a balloon, and stretch the balloon over the open end of the cup.
HOW TO STIR UP LAVA IN A CUP
Finally, I’ve heard of java in a cup. But lava in a cup? Why not?
Adding salt to the floating oil makes the blob sink. It has become more dense than water. When the salt dissolves, the oil rises again!
Those instructions look super simple!
To make “lava in a cup”, use food coloring, vegetable oil and salt! It’s easy!You can then use that colorful lava in the cup to make some colorful art! Awesome!
That’s it! You now have a whole bunch of cool and creative science projects to try out! Have a blast!
Hey! Are you a kid? (Or even a boring old adult?) Try starting a blog like Cool San Diego Sights! You can blog about anything in the whole wide world. It’s lots of fun! And it’s pretty easy, too!
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk! You can enjoy more Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
The electric wicker cart Electriquettes are returning to Balboa Park in early 2016!
The wicker carts are returning to Balboa Park! What fun!
The now famous electric motorized wicker carts were introduced to Balboa Park one hundred years ago for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition. They were called Electriquettes. They were an enormous success!
Starting in early 2016–perhaps February I was told–visitors to Balboa Park will be able to rent the new wicker carts at the San Diego Air and Space Museum. The test program will run for a year, and I hope it’s successful!
I learned that the carts travel at about 2-3 miles per hour, an easy-going speed appropriate for a pedestrian and family-friendly city park. As I understand it, the carts will be restricted to Balboa Park’s core area. They appear super easy to operate–one just steers and applies power! Perhaps the coolest thing is that these vehicles are a reasonably close representation of the original Electriquettes.
The Electriquettes began running toward the end of March! I even saw a couple driving about the Plaza de Panama, but didn’t have my camera handy! I’ve learned they can be rented right in front of the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center!
An Electriquette is displayed in Balboa Park, in anticipation of the vehicle’s reintroduction. The unique wicker carts will be rented by visitors at the Air and Space Museum.Old photograph of an original Electriquette in San Diego’s Balboa Park a century ago.Introduced at the 1915 Panama-California Exposition in Balboa Park, the historical wicker Electriquettes are making a comeback! Very cool!
