Switched has a new home! Huffpost Tech.

Click here to visit the new home of Switched!

Hot on HuffPost Tech:

See More Stories
AOL Tech

Maker Faire 2010: Jet Ponies, Egg-Bots and 3-D Printing

by Switched Staff on September 28, 2010 at 02:15 PM

The Switched team arose early last Saturday to trek out to the New York Hall of Science in Queens for the city's first-ever Maker Faire. As we chugged coffee, we watched the modders, hackers and DIY-based designers of the world strut their stuff. Feeling a bit like kids again (possibly due to being alongside budding mechanics and entire areas devoted to teaching kids how to solder and deconstruct), we ate the world's largest paella, got giddy at a real-life version of the 'Mousetrap' game and felt fancy watching fashion shows by Diana Eng. We captured some of our favorite scenes (and coolest projects), so take a look at our day below.

Bike Wheel

Professional beatboxer and artist Adam Matta showed off his Beatbox and Bike Wheel project, composed of a Walkman and a bicycle wheel, at the show. In place of a tire tube, the wheel has an audio tape stretched circling the rim. Pushing the wheel backward and forward creates sounds similar to turntable scratching.

Egg-Bot

We drooled over the Egg-Bot, an open-source, DIY egg-decorating robot, when we first saw it hit the Web not long ago. Upon meeting it in person, we were very impressed with its level of detail, and with the fact that the creators were experimenting with other heads, including an engraving bit for lightbulbs and holiday ornaments. Egg-Bot is, objectively, a ridiculous contraption -- but this mini CNC's open-sourceness allows amateur makers to get creative and explore the possibilities of robotics. Go get one -- and make the best Easter eggs ever.

Magnetoscope

Michael Flynn's Magnetoscope may not be new for 2010, but it left the Switched team wishing for an office version. Manipulating a pair of magnets above and below the layer of ferrofluid creates a globe of hypnotizing expanding or contracting spikes.

Jet Ponies


Jet Ponies! Need we say more? A crew of post-apocalyptic carnies crafted this terrifying ride out of scrap metal and home-brewed jet propulsion. The result was a duo of hell-bent, equine apparati that slung two mortified girls around in a circle as onlookers wincingly watched. We're not exactly sure what kind of tech they've got going, but we do know that it involved some kind of an explosive charge and a leaf blower. Signs flanking the arena appropriately read, "Warning: This Ride Will May Kill You."

Shapeways

Shapeways


Shapeways, the 3-D print-on-demand company, is in the process of moving to New York from its home in the Netherlands, and they gave U.S. visitors (who already make up a large share of their customer base) a taste of its output at Maker Faire. While the company showcased a number of items that would be otherwise impossible to craft in one piece without a 3-D printer, the company will manufacture just about anything you design.

MakerFaire 2010 Scenes

We snapped a couple shots while on the grounds, so don't miss the giant vats of paella, post-apocalyptic family or our Editor-in-Chief wailing away on a retro NES guitar.

Maker Faire 2010: Scenes from the Event

Tags: features, maker faire, MakerFaire, MakerFaire2010, new york, NewYork, top

HuffPost AOL Social News Most Popular