21.1.10

Blogging with a real CMS is so much easier. I'm currently working on a GPS bus-tracking project and the 'human presence detection' device -- a WiFi enabled sensor. Check them out on weakorbit.com

20.10.09

Tried to write a python webcam the other day, haha, it didn't really work. The thought process: I want to make this costume but I don't have a webcam. I do have a digital camera..what if I stream digital photos to my laptop. I'd have to make a mechanical timelapse but that wouldn't be too bad with a servo. So how can I make python pull files from my camera and display them? This file [txt] did a poor job..and ate a lot of camera battery, oh well.

11.10.09

Got back into python today; I wrote a script to (try to) analyze the fluid dynamics of a drip irrigation system I want to make for the garden. Then I went to write a second script that could do some 3d plotting with matplotlib and NumPy. It sorta works.. I wanted to do some calculations for a tipping bucket rain gauge that's in the planning stages (here's the [txt] version of the .py file). If I can make the array-handling and plotting operate a little smoother, I could drop matlab.

08.10.09

My housemates and I started a new blog; read about us here. We also made a video for our ever-absent colleague, Jeff. Concept to vimeo in, like, three hours; the video's on the blog. I also messed with Evan Roth's Processing code to make a "last-seen" timer to go with the video premier. It's based on Roth's Michael Jackson public domain coundown.

05.10.09

Projects that need a-posting: Perkinsense, AVR bike odometer, garden rainwater harvesting, PCB-milling trials, vibration therapy device protoyping, RF module testing , stream restoration work, new (and old) slacklining, the smarthome blog, and some ideas-that-distract. Also, plotting primes is kind of interesting; here are the first million.

05.08.09

I found this old elevator floor display -- the row of lights typically above elevator doors. It was in a dumpster and I've nearly finished turning it into a nice desk clock. At first I thought this could be an entry for the Nuts and Volts Recycled Electronics Contest that's been running for a while. It occured to me though that I had pulled out all the original bulbs (some were dead) and replaced them with LEDs, so oh well. That magazine and Circuit Cellar.. I may have to subscribe.

24.07.09

updates are desperately needed..but my camera has been lost so I'll rattle off a list of things for now.

    The garden shed project is finally done; some pumpkins I planted there are really coming along! The garden's also putting out a lot of New Zealand spinach and tasty tomatoes. I finished making this bat house [pdf] for the garden too (the mounting system was tough).
    I'm trying out the toner-transfer method of circuit board production; I made a little audio amp circuit last week for my bike. And I just finished coding this bike odometer [txt].
    I'm interning with the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League in their waste reduction campaign. I'm trying to develop a plan for thrift stores to recycle more of their unsold goods. A friend of mine started a mentoring and bike repair program that I'm helping with on weekends; learn a lot and meet a lot of good people.

    Otherwise I'm reading a great Python book by John Zelle and David Foster Wallace's unbelievable Infinite Jest.

15.03.09

mostly finished the trebuchet over spring break. Other time was spent putting together a shed for the garden. Circuit City died last weekend and I went to the store in Durham during its final hours. Several minutes I spent intrepidly prying nice push buttons off a display case in the desolate store, only to be told that I couldn't buy them..frustrating.

10.02.09

work on my siege engine stalled due to illness and school work; it could still wrap up this week though. Construction has begun on a wind turbine project. It's been pretty fun thus far.

24.01.09

trebuchet II is 75% complete, just a few more days now from firing. saw this wonderful little video on CNN; I'm quite envious.

22.01.09

concrete has been poured and wood is being cut for trebuchet II. Guantanamo and black sites are being closed. getting excited..

16.01.09

took apart a treadmill from the dump and retrieved an 1800W motor with belts and rollers, a working pulse meter, a 3" sliding pot, a pneumatic (?) piston, a durable wheel set, and a compact reed switch. I also got a second microwave to complete the homemade welder project. I bought a Powerbook 180c (sans powercord) at the UNC Surplus store for $5; I guess I'll work on booting it. 15 years ago, this thing retailed for over $4k.. Annnd site updates continue.

14.01.09

started the site with monome's blessing; content and updates will appear sporadically