Todd McLellan takes things apart and photographs the parts. Reminds me of a nursery school in Sierra Madre where the kids spent hours taking stuff apart like that. He’s got a book featuring all those photos: Things Come Apart
(thanks/via: TODD MCLELLAN)
Lockitron - Keyless Entry Using Your Phone (by lockitron)
These things are just so amazing! How amazing that you need only walk up to your door to unlock it. Only problem, this just tethers you ever tighter to your iPhone.
“The night explosion was the longest concrete-bridge demolition in China’s history, according to ITV News. In a sign of how fast China is developing, the two-lane bridge, which was only about 16 years old, will soon be replaced with a six-lane highway that’ll be a mile longer than the original.”
Read: One of the Craziest Bridge Demolitions You’ll Ever See
Engineered demolition explosions are cool; this one was massive.
Pont de Singe helium balloon bridge by Olivier Grossetête
You gotta love bridge design. This one is dreamy and whimsical.
(thanks/via: Dezeen)
Mattiazzi Branca (by Mattiazzi)
This video shows how Mattiazzi manufactures the Branca chair. Branca is designed by Sam Hecht and featuring an organic form that seems handmade but is made in a computerized factory. Branca is available through Herman Miller.
STAEDTLER: Sharpen up (by STAEDTLERpencils)
It’s always fun to see the engineering in factories, especially those featuring German technology. This factory Staedtler pencils is pretty amazing.
(thanks/via: Monocle)
What most schools don’t teach (by CodeOrg)
Learn about a new “superpower” that isn’t being taught in in 90% of US schools.
Starring Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, will.i.am, Chris Bosh, Jack Dorsey, Tony Hsieh, Drew Houston, Gabe Newell, Ruchi Sanghvi, Elena Silenok, Vanessa Hurst, and Hadi Partovi. Directed by Lesley Chilcott.
Code.org is a non-profit foundation dedicated to growing computer programming education.
URBEE Promo (by UrbeeCar)
Urbee 2, A 1,200-Pound 3D-Printed Car
Jim Kor of Kor Ecologic is currently working on Urbee 2, the second evolution of his 3D-printed car. The unusual little vehicle takes about 2,500 hours to print in its entirety, but is only ten feet long and weighs just 1,200 pounds. The three-wheel Urbee 2 is so light because it is primarily made usingABS plastic rather than steel — though the car’s engine and base frame will still be made of metal — and as a result the vehicle is expected to have significantly better gas mileage than traditional cars. As a test of the Urbee 2′s mileage, Kor told Wired he wants to take the car from San Francisco to New York on just ten gallons of gas.
It is nice to know that 3D printers are not only good for printing small plastic stuff.
(thanks/via: LaughingSquid)
German born, Barcelona-based architect André Broessel …images of his latest development of a spherical glass solar energy generator. The project uses the advantageous strategy of implementing a ball lens and specific geometrical structure to improve energy efficiency by 35%. In contrast to its traditional photo-voltaic ‘dual-axis’ counterparts,the device incorporates a fully rotational weatherproof natural optical tracking device that is adequate for functioning on inclined surfaces and curtain walls, empowering any building surface. the new solar generating concept has capabilities that concentrate diffused daylight or moonlight for a more effective site context application. (more here)
(thanks/via DesignBoom)
Swing installation by Moradavaga
A swing, an engineer, a vision of generating electricity to fuel light….Nice!
As each swing moves back and forth, a bicycle chain attached to it turns a wheel which then turns a dynamo to activate the light below. The swings are built on a base of wooden pallets, which also hides the mechanical parts.
“Based on the principle of swinging to produce electricity, Swing is also an ode to the rich industrial heritage of Guimarães, reflected in its mechanical devices and sounds evocative of the ones once produced in the factories of the city,” say the designers.
(thanks/via: Dezeen)
For its 14th edition earlier this month,Designers’ Saturdays in Langenthal, Switzerland invited ECAL undergraduate and Masters students in industrial and product design to let their imagination run free while developing a series of machines exploring the manufacturing process of a selected product….Students had the opportunity to experiment with techniques such as moulding, thermoforming and knitting while fabricating mirrors, hats, bags, toys, lamps and even popcorn. (read the whole post on CoolHunting)
This is so cool. Mechanical engineering and industrial design are so amazing. I like that these projects take a a less is more approach leaving the viewer with this sense of awe that things inspired can be reduced to uncomplicated processes.
(thanks/via Low-Tech Factory and CoolHunting)
This is so cool. I don’t normally blog about hand soup but this new product packaging from method seems innovative. The idea is that plastic is collected on the ocean, cleaned and sorted, then pelletized to be used for method’s Sea Minerals Dish and Hand Soap bottles. How many plastic-bottled products can be replaced with this innovative packaging?!
Watch a series of videos explaining the design and enginieering that made this plastic recycling product possible here.
Eric Smalls: Dear Mr. President video from Obama for America
Robotics can motivate! Forward to the polls.
(thanks/via BarackObama.com and YouTube)
