Justin

Hey Justin. What is the topic of your masters?

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:46:27 -0400

Mechanical Engineering, focusing on mechatronics and controls. I dig robots and stuff but I also hope to work on clean energy someday.

wilwheaton: Some guys at Reddit thought that Colbert should...

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:13:55 -0400

wilwheaton:

Some guys at Reddit thought that Colbert should have a rally of his own, to mock Glenn Beck. I approve of this message.

(via i.imgur.com)

laughingsquid: MakerBot Build Party at NYC Resistor dat is one...

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 16:30:22 -0400

laughingsquid:

MakerBot Build Party at NYC Resistor

dat is one sweet logo you got there.

So glad is going to rain tomorrow because its hot as hell today

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 16:20:41 -0400

So glad is going to rain tomorrow because its hot as hell today

thedailywhat: [snip] [image: reddit.] “Now we are going...

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:41:38 -0400

thedailywhat:

[snip]

[image: reddit.]

“Now we are going to take the fan brush and mix in some blood red and paint the capes of the SPARTAN WARRIORS!”

Open source synthetic intelligence project Help fund the skynet!...

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:10:17 -0400

Open source synthetic intelligence project

Help fund the skynet! I am kidding of course. Synthetic intelligence is awesome and it needs funding. I am sure the coding structure is built on neural networking. This is interesting because I am currently taking a class to learn how this works. Basically its modelling computer code to replicate neurons. To the people who might say this is grandfather of the terminator and skynet, just keep in mind that currently its just hackers and builders making this stuff, we just want a robot to bring us beer.

E1 is an inexpensive open source hardware kit in the same theme as the Arduino—for bringing synthetic intelligence to electronics projects. We’ve made tremendous progress over the past year, but now we need your help to get it manufactured.
….

Here’s how it works. Attach inputs like cameras, microphones, and sensors—and output mechanics, like servos, actuators, or motors. E1 starts out in an untrained state, but can receive reward and punishment with a remote. It can also detect some set of behaviors, like facial expressions. Over time E1 not only learns what you teach it, but learns the conditions that lead to reward and punishment and so when it should reward or punish itself.

…

Make: Online

We do it for the sake of a hot night…

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:44:42 -0400

We do it for the sake of a hot night…

thedailywhat: This x That: [snip] Above: Authentic...

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 22:28:35 -0400

thedailywhat:

This x That:

[snip]

Above: Authentic Victorian prosthetic arm. (via.)

Awesome prosthesis.

My cubby hole

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:59:27 -0400

My cubby hole

At the dmv and its surprisingly fast

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:26:18 -0400

At the dmv and its surprisingly fast

"Hello, Oompa-Loompas of science!"

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:34:08 -0400

incaseyouwantorneedtoknow:

[or, “only works for a spherical chicken in a vacuum.”]

Engineering is not just science (loveit) and math (intimidatedbyit) although they are what we’re made of and what we make things out of. “We” is all of us, not just the nerdy ones, and even the avowed math- and science-haters.

I understand the snarky snootiness of the purists (like when Sheldon harasses Howard on The Big Bang Theory). But I love that engineers try to see the big picture and use

knowledge

skill

intelligence

instinct

maybe even luck (!)

to bring things into focus and into the real world (the first 4 dimensions or so, anyway).

Things like monetary restrictions, time available, limited energy, or lack of computing power can make “perfect” impossible. Hopefully the engineer has a sense of how close we can get, how to get there, and what could throw us off.

But maybe I’m just trying to console myself since I can’t understand string theory.

rocketboom: Video platform equality, from the labs of...

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:15:40 -0400

rocketboom:

Video platform equality, from the labs of Rocketboom R&D and Mag.ma:

rocketboomdev:

In today’s age, we don’t judge books by their covers. We judge them by their thumbnails. We also judge videos, e-books, software, and people the same way. Engaging an audience demands engaging them visually, no matter the medium. Some of our peers in the online video community recently noted that Tumblr allows the display of thumbnails for YouTube embeds on their dashboard, but other popular video sites, such as Vimeo and Blip.tv, are currently left out from showcasing their user videos with a thumbnail image.

Rocketboom R&D, the development unit of the Rocketboom network, has created a simple solution: a browser add-on that allows Tumblr users to see any video’s known thumbnail in their Tumblr dashboard. There’s no platform favoritism; this enables nearly every other common video platform the ability for thumbnail display. The add-on was created using Mag.ma, our own video aggregation service, to do thumbnail lookups for numerous video platforms with our simple API methods. The results? Uniformity for Tumblr users and creative support for content creators.

Get your browser add-on for Firefox, Chrome, or Safari, and visit the Tumblr Video Thumbnails add-on page for information, installation help, and more. Special thanks to our friends at Vimeo, Blip.tv, and Wreck & Salvage for their testing and support.

Dashboard Video Liberation!

So I am considering building a usb typewriter some time. I am...

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 23:13:54 -0400

So I am considering building a usb typewriter some time. I am in a very cyber punk mood and I am needing something to build here soon. There is a kit for turning regular typewriters to usb on etsy. Also there are plenty or rather cheap typewriters on there too.

I just curse the sun, so i can howl at the moon

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 15:30:56 -0400

I just curse the sun, so i can howl at the moon

thedailywhat: OMG! Adorbz of the Day: Korean Nixon Kid says: “I...

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 13:15:01 -0400

thedailywhat:

OMG! Adorbz of the Day: Korean Nixon Kid says: “I am not a 4-year-old girl.”

[reddit.]

“I am not a crier!”

Test

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 13:03:29 -0400

Test

Fletcher’s grove

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 23:23:31 -0400

Fletcher’s grove

Fletchers grove at 123 pleasant street

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 23:04:32 -0400

Fletchers grove at 123 pleasant street

I updated my Shapeways Shop with some logos. I also do requests.

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 21:49:59 -0400

I updated my Shapeways Shop with some logos.

I also do requests.

trendd: The project that was started by four NYU coders as a...

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 21:05:10 -0400

trendd:

The project that was started by four NYU coders as a Facebook alternative (with FULL privacy control) is going to be a reality. After blowing away their $10,000 funding goal by $190,000 on Kickstarter the four students huddled away in a “summer of code” to build the rival platform. Diaspora now launches on September 15th.

“Earlier this year, Facebook was embroiled in controversy after it made significant privacy changes. Users didn’t like having more of their information public, so they revolted.

During the height of the crisis, four NYU students decided to create an open source alternative to Facebook. Their goal was to raise $10,000 for their summer project, but dramatic interest helped them raise over $100,000 through donations. Even Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg donated to the project.”

Facebook Alternative Diaspora Launches September 15

So awesome!