One of the best way to get young kids started on programming is with Scratch, the MIT-developed programming environment that lets them script sprites and otherwise dip their little toes into machine logic. In July, educators, developers and others interested in introducing kids to programming will gather in Boston for Scratch@MIT to: share stories of […]
Continue ReadingPlay around with Lego Mindstorms NXT enough and at some point you’ll inevitably get frustrated with NXT-G, its graphical programming language of "blocks" that you drag around and connect with "wires". It’s great for teaching kids the basics, but once they embark on anything remotely ambitious they’re bound to run into trouble. Whether it’s the […]
Continue ReadingI started this as a review of a robot kit for kids, but I think I’d like to tackle something larger: the whole problem with toys, games and projects meant to teach kids about science and technology. That problem is that most of the time they’re simply not that much fun, or at least (and […]
Continue ReadingI don’t know about you, but there’s no way that my wife is going to let me bring home iRobot’s new telepresence bot. "Honey, I’m off for another week’s travelling, but don’t worry–I’ll read to the kids with ConnectR!" In our house, that gets counted as negative parenting points. Gadgets that I’m actually buying for […]
Continue ReadingHow is that Lego released a motorized walking AT-AT and I didn’t hear about it?!? $129 may be a lot for a kids’ Christmas present, but let’s be honest: it’s not really for them, is it? (hat tip to Mark at Bundlo for the link)
Continue ReadingA few years ago, Pam Omidyar, who’s married to eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and is a former biomedical researcher, started HopeLab, a non-profit foundation that explores ways that technology can help fight childhood diseases. Among its accomplishments is Re:Mission, a videogame that encourages kids with cancer to stay on their meds (it’s now been downloaded […]
Continue ReadingThanks to my unexpected voice acting cameo in Halo 3, Microsoft sent me an early copy of the game, which just arrived today via DHL. So needless to say, that was the afternoon. We haven’t had so much fun since, well, Halo 2. Cooperative mode, which was already the best father/kid bonding experience in the […]
Continue ReadingMy kids are growing up with real robots in the house, from Dad’s UAVs to Roomba. And being 21st Century natives, they think nothing of it–of course the vacuum cleaner is autonomous. But I thought our first Roomba was a revelation: it was cheap, cool and remarkably effective, although not quite as the designers intended. […]
Continue ReadingThe other day my ten-year-old told me that he doesn’t like "toys with batteries". Which is tough to hear for the editor of Wired. When I probed a bit, he explained that the problem with battery-powered toys is that they so often don’t work, especially when they’ve been sitting at the bottom of the toy […]
Continue Reading…if only it weren’t just an art project by a bunch of Swiss designers. The "comes with three wooden cars" is just a tease, I think. But still…Sell this!
Continue ReadingThis is adorable. On Instructables, "Rosedale25" publishes a How-To on making an Optimus Prime head out of Lego. There’s only one problem, which the commentators quickly zero in on: Dude im sorry but that looks more like marge simpson!! have you actualy seen what Optimus Prime looks like? Much piling on ensues. Then comes this: […]
Continue ReadingDylan Tweeny writes with a question: My daughter, age 6, has become obsessed with the idea of building a flying saucer. She wants it to be full sized, to actually fly, and to have some kind of grabbers so she can pick up other kids and spirit them away. As a geek dad, I’m thrilled […]
Continue Reading[Guest blogger Kevin Karplus sent in the following. Like it? Ask for more in the comments! -ca] For the last two weeks, my son has been at a theater class, working on a production of Robin Hood. He had the part of Friar Tuck and had to do a quarterstaff fight with Robin Hood. They […]
Continue ReadingIn my quest for the perfect pan-tilt gimbal assembly for a small UAV, I’ve made one out of Lego and have some clumsy ones out of aluminum. Most commercial pan-tilt assemblies are made for much larger cameras than the ones we fly, or they’re incredibly expensive turrets meant for military and commercial UAVs. But I’ve […]
Continue ReadingHere’s a semi-scale Predator. Pretty cool, but it’s an Almost-Ready-to-Fly model so I can’t do too much bragging. I just modded an inexpensive ($80) Nitro Models kit with a AXI 2208 brushless motor and added some proper landing gear and an airscoop to cool the motor in the back. (BTW, Nitro sells two Predators. Get […]
Continue ReadingYou know those awesome micro R/C helicopters that you can fly indoors and cost less than $40? They can be oh so much more awesome! the PiccoZ modding community–yes, there is such a thing–is on a real tear these days, and they’ve progressed from just adding weights and shaving off bits to crafting entirely new […]
Continue ReadingWhat I would have given to go to this when I was a kid. From BoingBoing: Explosive camp trains demolition kids NPR reports on "explosives camp" in Missouri, where kids are taught to be explosives experts: "Some people like baseball, others like math – I just like to set off bombs," he said. "I figure […]
Continue ReadingFile under "hacking kids". GeekMom Asha Dornfest has some good advice: When explaining things to my two year-old, I often find myself wanting to say, "OK?" at the end, so he can respond. That way I know he’s listening and he agrees to it. The problem with "OK?" is that it opens the door for […]
Continue ReadingRead all about it at Thingamababy.
Continue ReadingParenting blog Babble takes a hard look at the gadgets, software and DVDs designed to help your infant learn faster. One in particular is Lena, which is a voice recorder that you put in your baby’s Lena clothing, where its manufacturer says it: "….identifies and analyzes adult words and child vocalizations, and provides you with […]
Continue ReadingYou may think you’re a pretty geeky dad, but this dude has got you beat. Meet Nao Maru. Here’s how he’s described in the intro to a must-read interview in the current Robot magazine: Nao Maru works hard all week designing complex casting molds that are used to produce large metal valves, the type used […]
Continue ReadingOur own GeekMom, Asha Dornfest, is too modest to mention that she has a must-read interview with one of the brother/authors of the phenomenal bestseller, The Dangerous Book For Boys. From her excellent ParentHacks: What’s dangerous about this book? I suppose in the main, it’s the attitude – that danger isn’t a dirty word. It […]
Continue ReadingMy kids and I actually had the first successful test flight of the sub-$1,000 UAV two weekends ago, but I haven’t had time to edit the video properly until now. The good news is that a) it didn’t crash, and b) it works. We tested stabilization, autonomous navigation (only using compass headings this time, although […]
Continue ReadingCNET has a good reporter’s notebook on Maker Faire coverage, including mention of the GeekDad booth. This is a shot from their slide show, which shows me and Todd Lapin showing my "minimum UAVs", which were on display all weekend (my back is killing me!). On Saturday Brad Justus brought two (!) Lego Star Destroyers, […]
Continue ReadingToday’s WSJ has an interesting article on the publishing phenomenon that The Dangerous Book For Boys has become. Here are some choice excerpts from the piece (free today, sub req’d later): "Dangerous" has become the breakout hit of the season. The News Corp. unit initially ordered up 91,000 copies. There are now 405,000 copies in […]
Continue ReadingRobot Magazine ("The latest in hobby, science and consumer robotics") has a great listing of robotics summer camps around the country in its new issue. From the intro: There are a growing number of summer camps springing up around the nation that teach robotics on an entry level. These are educational venues where young hobbyists […]
Continue ReadingMindsensors ("Your number one source for quality devices and accessories for robotics!") has a whole bunch of cool third-party sensors for Lego Mindstorms NXT, including pressure and temperature sensors, long, medium and short-range infrared, and a Sony Playstation 2 controller interface. But what’s even cooler is what’s coming soon: a camera that can support tracking of […]
Continue ReadingThat’s GeekDad Mark Frauenfelder (editor of Make) on next month’s cover with his daughter, Sarina. They are testing a simple robot that Mark writes about in the issue.
Continue ReadingA couple years ago, we got a prototype of a board game that used lasers and mirrors to create a form of optical-bench chess, where you rotate and move the mirrors to bounce the laser across the board to strike your opponent’s pieces. Although the kids were a bit too young for it at the […]
Continue ReadingA very gratifying response to our call for volunteer GeekDads to help contribute to this site. We’ve had more than 50 strong applicants, and I now have the unwelcome duty of trying to winnow that down to about a dozen, looking for geographic and focus diversity as well as simple GeekDad chops. Here’s the updated […]
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