Over a year ago I posted about a couple of cool new toys that were being crowdfunded by a company called, “Play-i.” They were adorable robots that could be controlled with bluetooth devices and even programmed using block programming. A lot has happened in a year. The company is now called Wonder Workshop. The robots are … Read more
Last November, I published a post about an interesting product by Modular Robotics called, “Cubelets.” It was included in my “Gifts for the Gifted” series, which I try to do every November and December. (You can find a collection of these here.) Cubelets are a bit pricey for a birthday gift, but they make a … Read more
The other day, I was talking to one of my GT classes about the possibility of our Maker Studio classroom getting a 3D Printer through Donors Choose. “Can’t those be used to make guns?” one student, who apparently pays some attention to current events, asked. “Those should be banned, then,” said another student. This brought … Read more
I couldn’t wait until Phun Phriday to share this post. So, I’m officially declaring today Thrilling Thursday! On Tuesday, I saw a tweet from @techminock (2 Guys and Some iPads) about an app from FuelFX. After responding to Drew’s tweet, I got a tweet with the link to the app from FuelFX, and an invitation … Read more
Last year, our school Robotics club had 18 boys and 6 girls. This year, I thought I would try to even out that ratio by using a bit of subtle persuasion. I put a picture of the girls from last year’s Robotics team on the applications. Apparently, I was a bit too subtle. We just … Read more
Many attempts to encourage girls to pursue scientific careers through toys seem to follow a line of thinking that suggests that merely producing playthings in pastel purples and pinks will make them more appealing to the female gender. I have addressed the questionable nature of this hypothesis in a couple of other posts. (See Goldiblox, … Read more