Make a truth teller for light. Turn an old CD into a spectroscope to analyze light—you may be surprised by what you see. Try pointing your CD spectroscope at the fluorescent light in your room, sunlit ...

We have been prototyping a new automata activity called “Cranky Contraptions” using simple materials such as wooden blocks, wire, and foamies. Now that it’s been about a month that we have been ...

Happy National DNA Day, which commemorates the successful completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003 and the discovery of DNA's double helix in 1953. Published sixty-four years ago in the journal ...

What do plants know about numbers? A certain spiral pattern commonly seen in sunflowers, pinecones, and many species of cacti contains some surprising numerical properties. In this brisk talk, Paul ...

Fireworks may be a really fun way to celebrate the Fourth of July, but we know they are more than a little dangerous. The solution? Grab a friend and make your own liquid fireworks with this simple ...

Obviously this is a gross oversimplification of how a stadium wave actually works. An actual stadium wave simulator was created by professor Tamás Vicsek of Eötvos Loránd University in Budapest. He ...

In an extraordinary mission to rescue 16 kidnapped soldiers, the Colombian army turned to pop music to send the hostages a secret message.

Illustrations by Ray Larsen Our social lives are filled with ritualistic touching: from hugs to high fives to pinky-swears. These acts of interpersonal contact create feelings of connection between ...

Can you smell time? Your dog can. On a very basic level, so can you: When you crack the lid on that old quart of milk, tentatively sniff and—peeyouu!—promptly dump that foul stuff down the sink, you ...

Over the past several years of doing automata, we've developed some "classic" motion examples for participants to check out as they are starting to design their creations.

We love laser engraving! We've been laser engraving on wood and plastics and they have been great when we make signs/signage in the Tinkering Studio. Lately I've been experimenting with filling some ...

Collaborators since 2000, Sandra Gibson and Luis Recoder stage the scene of film as orphaned object through the temporal labor of a moving image installation. They unite the rich traditions of ...