Comments on: HOWTO: glowing balloons that show air quality

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Interesting story.

By: jimkirk

jimkirk — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Now I have Nena singing 99 Luftballons in my head.

Sweet!

By: GlenBlank

GlenBlank — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

BAROMETER, n.

An ingenious instrument which indicates what kind of weather we are having.

–Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary, 1911

By: FutureNerd

FutureNerd — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Even non-techies should be skeptical about an “air quality” meter.

Technically, you get to pick one of two sensors, and each reacts to a specific group of chemicals, not necessarily more strongly to worse chemicals, and, once you do your best to follow the instructables, not accurately.

So it’s a cute demo that hints at the kinds of things that could be done when things improve by another factor of a hundred.

By: gwailo_joe

gwailo_joe — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Until they can ~float~ against the wind a-la everyones favorite clown Pennywise. . .I’m out.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I think I’d love to encounter any kind of glowing baloons as I walk through the city at night :)

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I think I’d love how variable the air quality is around those park benches!

By: Stefan Jones

Stefan Jones — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I’m guessing that that is Schenley Park.

#2: I’m guessing someone cut a really ripe fart while sitting on the left bench.

By: Fee

Fee — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Based on the prices in their instructable, you’re looking at roughly $240-worth of colour changing balloons. I don’t think $40 a shot is inexpensive!

While they are lovely and may even have a practical use, I don’t think they are an economically sound proposition for most people, however cool.

By: Dig Duggler

Dig Duggler — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Next, color-changing condoms that sense STD.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

neat–when i see a balloon that says the air quality in my neighborhood is bad, i can just move!

By: holtt

holtt — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Combine that with the mushroom lights and make air sensing mushrooms

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Hurray, more balloons on BoingBoing

http://boingboing.net/2010/07/14/boing-boing-picnic-a.html

By: Drew from Zhrodague

Drew from Zhrodague — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

If you're in the Pittsburgh area, dorkbot pittsburgh will be starting up again soon, where you can meet some of these people, and other interesting folks. There's also the hack pittsburgh crew, they've been doing a bunch of arduino things.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

This reminds me of the technique of “continuous feedback” to improve quality in software: setting up a display that at all times tells you whether your software process is on track or not.

Would the feedback from a bunch of air quality balloons distributed throughout a city make people more aware of and interested in reducing air pollution, or would it just become part of the background noise of the urban environment?

The “Spare the Air Days” campaign in the SF Bay Area gives similar feedback, but in a far less visual and obvious way.

By: PARLIAMENT

PARLIAMENT — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

It’s air pollution musical chairs! Turn your relaxing walk through the park into a blood-pressure-raising scramble to save yourself from carcinogens!