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Science @ Home

A collection of 13 posts

Tensegrity Footstool

This didn't take too long to build, but it was fun and unique. Tensegrity is a structural technique that relies on elements under tension for its integrity (hence the name). Tensegrity structures also have elements under compression, but their discontinuous arrangement gives a gravity-defying appearance to the whole.

(Rocket)ship in a bottle

It's hard to believe we're already a month into 2020. This post looks back at something I built as a Christmas gift for some kids. Bottle rockets are a fun toy. Unlike most rockets, they don't rely on combustion. This makes them safer to

Wilderness Water Treatment Workshop

At a camping symposium [https://www.canoekayaknb.com/2019canoe] this fall, I had the privilege of leading a workshop on wilderness water treatment. I figured it would also be of interest to share my notes here. Note: This information is only provided for educational purposes. Drink water in the backcountry

Pitot

This is a short post about a simple device I tried making for measuring the velocity of water. A pitot tube [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitot_tube] is a device for converting a fluid velocity to a pressure (which is easier to measure). Recall from this post [https://danbscott.

3D-Printed Hydraulic AND Gate

This post is a brief follow-up to the one I wrote earlier this year about trying to make a hydraulic computer [https://danbscott.ghost.io/elementary-cellular-automata-in-a-hydraulic-computer/]. One of the key elements of the hydraulic computer I tried to build was a set of AND gates [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Elementary Cellular Automata in a Hydraulic Computer

Despite the same word appearing in both titles, this post is quite different from the previous one [https://danbscott.ghost.io/open-channel-hydraulics-for-paddlers/]. The inspiration for making the project described in this post came partly from re-reading Anathem [https://danbscott.ghost.io/neal-stephensons-writing/] last year [https://danbscott.ghost.io/2018-year-in-review/]. A

Most Probable Number

I wrote an R script for calculating MPN. The Most Probable Number [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Most_probable_number] (MPN) method is a long-standing way of calculating the concentration of bacteria in a sample (usually expressed as cells/100 mL). Its distinctive is that it doesn't require

Orbiting Kerbin

A coworker recently recommended the game Kerbal Space Program (KSP) to me. I've been enjoying it. I don’t spend a lot of time gaming, but from time to time I like to get into one. I especially like open-ended games (where you choose what to do instead

DIY CO2(aq)

This post is about a DIY project I just did to get carbonated water at home, without getting a Sodastream. I mostly followed the project description from this article [http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/06/pros-cons-diy-carbonation-rig-how-to-carbonate-cocktails-at-home-equipment-how-to-build-cheaper-sodastream-replacement.html] , with a few small changes. Mainly, I got my CO2 cylinder from a

DIY Telescope Project

This post is about a project I have planned for the next several months (or longer), to try to build my own telescope. I'll try to write a follow-up post to share how it turns out. My goal is not to build a high-quality telescope, but rather one

Canada-Wide Science Fair 2015

Fredericton had the honour and the privilege of hosting the Canada-Wide Science Fair / Expo-sciences pancanadienne [http://cwsf.youthscience.ca/] (CWSF/ESPC) this year. I attended last night, and have some thoughts to share in this post. It's open to visitors [http://cwsf.youthscience.ca/visitors-and-media] until noon tomorrow,

Calibrating a homemade probe

This post is a continuation of the previous one [https://danbscott.ghost.io/a-home-made-probe-for-dissolved-solids-in-water/] on making a homemade probe for dissolved solids in water. Here I explain how I calibrated it after I got it working. After printing off a new probe tip [http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:440005], I

A home-made probe for dissolved solids in water

Conductivity is a commonly-measured parameter in water. For example, I measured it in my thesis [https://danbscott.ghost.io/my-masters-thesis/] and it is being measured in the Disappearing Rio Grande Expedition [https://danbscott.ghost.io/up-the-creek-with-a-paddle/]. This post is about my first attempt at making a home-made probe to measure