openMaterials

Thom Yorke 3D print by Tiago Serra: a 3D model/print created from the CC licensed original point cloud data of Radioheads’s “House of Cards” videoclip. Audiência Zero (altLab, LCD and xDA’s mothership) recently held a 3D Printing Workshop led by Zach Hoeken from MakerBot Industries. Sérgio Ferreira wrote such a nice post about it that I [...]

A follow up to our last post on artificial muscles.. I just found this ebook- Electroactive Polymers for Robotic Applications, Kim K.J., Tadokoro S.(Springer, 2007) The description states: Electroactive polymers (EAPs) respond to electrical stimulation with large deformations. They are dynamic actuators which have attracted attention from an interdisciplinary audience of engineers and scientists. An enabling EAP technology is [...]

A great demo showing some Artificial Muscle - Electro Conductive Polymer from Ishii Lab, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Japan

Sparkle Labs just announced their new business card micro kits: a paper base with embedded LEDs that light up in the dark. Check out their site for more photos and PDF instructions. We love paper circuits - please keep them coming :)

Teaching Resources at Middlesex University (MUTR) is a UK-based online store with a mission to support technology teachers. They provide wonderful materials at affordable prices: from expancel, carbon nanotubes, SMAs, SMPs, photochromic and thermocromic materials, paper-making sets, to motors, solar panels, electronic components, as well as traditional materials such as paper, wood, and metal - [...]

Papercrete is a construction material made from waste paper, for affordable, sustainable housing. The name implies a mix of paper and concrete, hence paper-crete. Papercrete can be mixed in many ways. Paper is principally wood cellulose, which is considered a fibrous material. Cellulose is the second most abundant material on earth after rock, and is [...]