The 12-foot-tall "Rookie of the Gear" pitching machine will be one of 75 handmade or homemade projects on display inside and outside the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.Following today's field trial, the mechanical hurler will throw out the first pitch when the Bucs meet the St. Louis Cardinals Sept. 1 at PNC Park.
The Pirates and the Cardinals are battling for first place in the National League's Central division.The design of the pitching machine was based on that of a stone-chucking medieval trebuchet. It was constructed and refined over the summer at the Makeshop project center at the Children's Museum.
Attending today's event will be Californian Dale Dougherty, the founder of Make magazine. The magazine, which provides ideas for multiple projects in each issue, in turn gave birth to the Maker Faires that are now held all over the world. This year marks the third annual event in Pittsburgh.As Mr. Dougherty explains it, the people exhibiting, demonstrating and teaching at a Maker Faire often combine new technologies with traditional crafts and skills. The results on display today will include "Cuddly Circuits" -- knitted stuffed animals brought into the 21st century with the use of electronic components and e-textiles that can light up and respond to handling.
"Just as importantly this event is meant to be fun," he said. "The robots may make music or have flashing lights. We want kids and adults to ask 'How do I get to build that?' "
"This event is a reminder to people that they should see themselves as makers," he said. "I hope that when parents see their kids enjoying an event like this, they will be encouraged to buy them a set of screwdrivers rather than the latest iPhone application."
The Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire is a co-presentation of the Children's Museum and HackPittsburgh, a nonprofit workshop whose members share tools and skills in pursuit of creative projects. Members include inventors, engineers, scientists, hobbyists, artists and arts-and-crafts makers.welcome to Men's GUCCI Long Sleeve T-Shirts for sale,best service and low prices.Jane Werner, executive director of the Children's Museum, described Maker Faire as an ideal partner for her institution.
"We believe in hands-on learning and learning by doing," she said, pointing to the museum's tradition of interactive displays and exhibits.
The projects being demonstrated should interest adults as much as children, she predicted.The Girls of Steel robotics team will bring EVE, their Frisbee-shooting creation. The mechanical creature made by the young people in the Sarah Heinz Advanced Robotics Program competed in "Ultimate Ascent" contests as part of the national FIRST robotics program.Using hand-held controllers, fairgoers will have a chance to drive some of the robots.
An event like a Maker Faire brings the region back to its deep manufacturing roots,welcome to cheap Juicy Couture Grade Wallets sale,free Shipping available. Buy Now! Ms. Werner said. "It shows Pittsburgh drawing on its past and projecting into the future."Mr. Dougherty said he sees his project-oriented magazine as a successor to Popular Mechanics, which provided designs for better feed troughs and wind-driven iceboats.
"Think of it as 'Martha Stewart for Geeks,' " he said. "I like to learn how to do something I've never done before -- brewing beer, making cheese. ... I'm not going to be the best person doing this, but I still can appreciate it and enjoy it.wholesale cheap Armani Grade AAA Belts sale from www.googbusiness.com homepage."And from those many efforts can come technological advancements. "This is the bedrock from which innovation comes and talent grows," he said.
San Jose residents Coda Brown, Danny Regua, Brian Alamazan and Eric Fogle were confident that their fitness abilities would help them paddle fast across the ocean in Sunday's outrigger canoe races next to the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf.
The foursome, who had never picked up an oar before the race,Our store can offer High quality Tory Borch handbag, welcome choose! thought it would be fun to join the 21st annual Aloha Outrigger Races and Polynesian Festival, an event organized by the city Parks Department to showcase Hawaiian culture.They were proud to place second in their heat, and attributed the strong finish to regular Crossfit training.
"It's a lot of fun," Regua said while getting his photo taken after the race. "It's a very social race. And it's a full-body workout. We really have never practiced."The outrigger races got the aloha spirit going Sunday morning, while traditional Polynesian dance and music filled up the afternoon.
Several hundred people throughout the day lingered around the Hawaiian-style crafts, which included shell jewelry, wood carvings, leis made from yarn and ribbon, and clothing.An ancient Hawaiian massage treatment known as "lomi lomi" was offered next to the entertainment stage.
A cheese platter. A glass of wine. Roasted macadamia nuts. And the scenery of the Barron Gorge rolling past the window. The brass trim of the old wooden railway carriage is gleaming and the pressed-tin roof lining is glossy with fresh paint, while uniformed staff move around topping up glasses and taking orders for coffee.
This is Gold Class on tropical north Queensland's Kuranda Scenic Railway, which takes passengers through the dramatic tropical landscapes of the Barron Gorge National Park. The train has been running for many years, but this is a new way of experiencing it.
The Gold Class carriages are painted in heritage green and located in the middle of the train, so passengers are in prime position at stations and when the train stops at a scenic viewpoint for the 250-metre high Barron Falls.
On-board, the emphasis is on local produce, with Gallo cheeses, Wondaree nuts and Skybury coffee from the nearby Atherton Tablelands, tea from the Daintree, beer from Cairns' Great Northern Brewery and wines from Queensland's Sirromet Wines, followed by locally-made frozen mango desserts.
The train runs between Cairns and the Tablelands village of Kuranda,Coach Grade Sunglasses a journey of less than two hours each way, cutting along the sides of steep gorges and crossing small bridges over tumbling waterfalls and streams. At times you can see all the way out to sea, even picking out the shape of Green Island on the Great Barrier Reef. On other parts of the journey, the narrow track and rough terrain give you an appreciation for the men who hand-cut tunnels and built bridges back in the 1880s, when tin miners were seeking a better way to reach the coast. It is worth doing the trip for the scenery and the historic train alone, but in Gold Class it is something special.
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