Wednesday Cool Links: Spiderbot, Solar S...

Dave Hrynkiw
October 17, 2012

It's Wednesday! Hooray! Huzzah! We're celebrating because... Well, ok, we have nothing big to celebrate right now. So we're going to celebrate having nothing to celebrate with the traditional and only appropriate way possible... BROWSING THE INTERNET! Indeed, we've been celebrating this time-honoured tradition with steadfast dedication, and it's our pleasure to share it with all of you.

Four-Legged Spiderbot
As the website puts it, this is "a walking machine, radially symmetrical, having four legs with two degrees of freedom each, controlled through a wireless link from a hand-held controller based on two Wii Nunchucks." Very impressive articulation and range of motion. Be sure to check out the video.
The Almost Useless Machine
A solar-powered... Reciprocating saw? Make sure you have lots of patience and a cold one to enjoy while you "work"! Seriously though, while this might not be too functional, it certainly has some great craftsmanship.
Solar "Death Ray": Power of 5000 suns!
Mirrors. Lots of mirrors. 5800 of them, to be precise. It's pretty cool (and a LOT scary) what kind of power can be harnessed by arranging mirrors onto a fiberglass satellite dish and aligning it to the sun.
6 Rubens Tubes Visualizer
Hrm, a flame visualization for music? SIGN ME UP. Turn it into a handy-dandy plug-in accessory for the iPod, for the best on-the-go pyrotechnics you can possibly imagine. Might want to make sure you turn it off before tucking it away in your pocket, though.
Solar Engineer Badge on DIY
So, you think you like DIY? Well, it's time to prove your chops by completing challenges over at diy.org. They even have a Solar Engineer Badge that features a bunch of project ideas, including our Instructable for the Solar Powered Miniball.

We were once hoping that we could instead celebrate by racing giraffes through obstacle courses, but that didn't pan out. Too bad. I was planning on decking mine out with some sweet black and white racing stripes, to make it look like a very oddly proportioned zebra.

MORE POSTS

October 31, 2012
Site Back Up; Cool Links Wednesday: Hall...

If you've noticed, our website had another slight weapons malfunction that happened last night. Our server in NYC is raising from the ashes as we speak and the hamsters are back to spinning their wheels. We're even able to process orders now! Please don’t hesitate to give us a shout if you have any concerns […]

February 22, 2002
May issue of Discover Magazine

Mr. Tilden informs me that his experiments with 40 B.I.O.Bugs in the desert of Whitesands, New Mexico will be detailed in the May issue of Discover Magazine. I've seen some of his personal pics of the experiment, and it is indeed impressive photography. Keep an eye out for this issue!

October 13, 2002
Solarbotics closed Monday

Monday is Canadian Thanksgiving up here in the Great White North, so we'll not be open October 14. Business as usual on the 15th!

May 6, 2008
Missed the flight...

We had an unexpected delay in San Francisco - so we are not shipping any orders on Tuesday, May 7th.  But we are set for tomorrow so normal shipping will resume on Wednesday May 8th, our apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused.

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Solarbotics has been operating for more than 25 years, bringing electronics know-how and supplies to both the electronics professional and hobbyist. We'll be happy to help you too!

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Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.
Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.

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