The makers were out in force this weekend at Seattle Center, sharing their squirt-gun-shooting robots, laser-cut dollhouses, and the crazy powers of Microsoft Kinect at the Seattle Mini Maker Faire.
The rise of Make magazine has helped to fuel the trend, and DIY clubs around Seattle have been growing steadily over the past five years. It’s exciting to see a new age of curiosity and inventiveness bubbling in this city.
In this fish tank by the Magnicians you are seeing the magnetic fields of electromagnets illuminated by LED lights. Small particles of nickel are suspended in soapy water and by activating the electromagnets, the particles orient themselves along the lines of the magnetic fields. You are seeing something that would otherwise be invisible!
These magic dollhouses are laser-cut without any glues or fasteners. Dan Robbins used Sketch Up to design multiple rooms that can be connected together in different ways to create an entirely new house in minutes. He said, “Think of it as huge legos for a dollhouse.” Dan’s project is still in the prototype phase but you can find out more about it here.
This sneaky robot from the Tacoma Robotics society was following kids around and squirting them with water. If you were wondering where those hysterical giggles were coming from, I found the culprit.
These robots from Ken C Judd can’t shoot water, but they are bursting with personality. I can imagine them in a stop-animation film fending off wizard intruders. Next Geek Made column perhaps?
The Microsoft Robotics booth was exhibiting new projects and programs — Kinect for Windows, Mayhem Project, .NET Gadgeteer and Kinect Fusion. They were able to make an instant 3D model of my camera and me and transform a participant into a bobblehead. Fun stuff!
Story and photography by Annie Laurie Malarkey, who writes the Geek Made column for GeekWire. See this site for more of her work. Do you have a cool project or creation you’d like to share with the GeekWire community? Please email annielaurie@geekwire.com about being featured in Geek Made. Find her on Twitter @annieandacamera and on instagram @annielaurie.
