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Mark Frauenfelder at 2:53 pm • • 
The new issue of MAKE magazine has hit the stands! Volume 32 has lots of cool projects and articles. The cover story is a profile of prop maker Shawn Thorrson, who makes amazing science fiction costumes with a vacu-form system in his workshop. The issue also includes an interview with Arduino co-creator Massimo Banzi, an introduction to industrial design by Bob Knetzger, a profile of famous toy and game designer Marvin Glass (Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots, Mousetrap, Operation), a BeagleBone tutorial, a feature about the rocket industry in the Mojave Desert, and a profile of Dezso Molnar, creator of a motorcycle gyrocopter.
Mark Frauenfelder at 3:37 pm • •
Stett Holbrook says:
MAKE magazine’s latest issue goes on sale tomorrow and to mark the event, MAKE editors, designers, and contributing writers will participate in a Google+ hangout on air tomorrow, Oct. 23, at 2pm Pacific Standard Time to give readers a behind-the-scenes look at the magazine and how it came together. Log on to watch and post comments at google.com/+make. The hangout is the first of a series of MAKE editor hangouts.
Volume 32 focuses on design and is a packed with great stuff. The new issue includes:
Twelve pages on master costume maker Shawn Thorsson.
An interview with Arduino creator Massimo Banzi by Dale Dougherty.
An appreciation of toy designer Marvin Glass.
Dezso Molnar’s quest to build a flying motorcycle.
The debut of MAKE: Believe, a new video series on the people who turn fantasy into reality. This one features toy sculptor Scott Hensey. Plans for nearly two dozen projects.
We’ll also be discussing our just-finished, first-in-the-world (that we know of) buyers guide to 3D printers. It’s a MAKE special issue that comes out next month. You’re gonna love it.
Mark Frauenfelder at 11:38 am • •
I invented the Monkey Couch Guardian, and wrote a how-to so you can build one, too.
Combine an Arduino with a proximity sensor, and make an obnoxious device to discourage cats and other fur-shedding pets from jumping on beds and couches. This project will also introduce you to the SPDT relay, a fundamental component of hobbyist electronics projects.Monkey Couch Guardian: complete instructions
Xeni Jardin at 9:31 am • •
"The plan was simple. Take a nostalgic NES "duck hunt" Zapper, and retrofit it with a ridiculously powerful laser."
A project from North Street Labs. In case it's not obvious, this is dangerous, and could lead to death or blindness without safety precautions.
Components: "2.1A input buck driver, 2x 750mAh 35-70c Lipo batteries, M140 445nm diode, G2 lens. homemade custom heat-sink, turn key safety switch."
Learn how to build your own, here. But remember, kids, always wear protective safety goggles. And, wear the right kind for the laser you're working with. [Video Link].
Mark Frauenfelder at 11:38 am • •
[Video Link] Here's an ingenious makeshift jig for forming tuna cans into a stacking metal lunchbox.
How-To: Stacking bins from tuna cans with cool improvised jig
Mark Frauenfelder at 11:30 am • •
[Video Link] MAKE founder Dale Dougherty was profiled on a recent episode of CNN's The Next List, hosted by Sanjay Gupta.
Dale Dougherty is the founder of MAKE Magazine and Maker Faire. He believes in a simple idea: that we all have potential to be makers. He is passionate about creating a generation who are creative, innovative, curious, and making things to improve our world.See part 2
Mark Frauenfelder at 10:39 am • •
[Video Link] For today only, MAKE magazine is offering a special deal on its "Kids Summer Fun Guide" issue. You get the print issue (includes 3D glasses to view the 3D images) plus a PDF of the issue for immediate download.
This Summer Fun Guide is brimming with over 50 projects for kids of all ages. You'll also find inspiring young maker profiles, as well as tool reviews written for and by kids! Plus, it's our 3D issue, complete with 3D glasses and tons of super-cool 3D photos. Look for it in the Maker Shed and on newsstands all summer long!
Special "Kids Summer Fun Guide" issue of MAKE on sale for $5
Mark Frauenfelder at 10:30 am • •
Cool Tools at 6:01 am • •
The ShopBot is a low-cost CNC, or computer controlled router. Think of it as a large-scale milling machine. It is great for small-scale production runs of machine parts in wood or metal. A friend of mine used his ShopBot to cut the gears and mechanism (other than the chime) for a full-scale replica of a grandfather's Clock. ShopBots (and their kin) can also fabricate extremely detailed 3D contour maps (whole cities!), and other intricate 3D surfaces.
We have one at the design school I teach at. It can cut anything programmable like the hull plates for a full scale sailboat. On a big boat, each plate of the hull is different shape, but the ShopBot just follows its orders and spits them out ready to install. It is very accurate. Hey, you can even equip it with a pen or the like, which permits very intricate drawings. The cheapest Shopbot is the small Shop Bot Desktop for $5,000. They are getting cheaper every year, but if you only need one occasionally, you can buy time on one at shared workshops like Techshop.
-- J. Baldwin
Mark Frauenfelder at 7:00 am • •
Here's the 9th episode of MAKE's podcast, Make: Talk! In each episode, I interview one of the makers featured in the magazine.
Our maker interview this week is with AnnMarie Polsenberg Thomas. She's the director of the Design Laboratory at the University of St. Thomas. Prior to that AnnMarie was a faculty member at Art Center College of Design. She's one of the most playful professors I know -- she created a course called The Science of the Circus and she actually learned to juggle and perform circus stunts. She's designed underwater robots and she also is the creator of something called Squishy Circuits, which she talks about in the interview.
Before the interview with AnnMarie, I chat with MAKE's senior editor, Goli Mohammadi (left), about the special monkey she received in the mail this week.
Rob Beschizza at 5:16 am • •
Make your upvote really count with this delightful USB Upvote Button box, created by Chris Krueger as a tangible accompaniment to the Reddit Enhancement Suite. [via MAKE]
