DIYs & Mods

Google engineers send their latest smartphone into the upper atmosphere, extending the reach of the do-it-yourself impulse into space.

An animated reverse-history of communications media that goes from apps to web to video to clay to slate and chalk. In six seconds.

An ancient device for predicting the occurrence of solar eclipses gets a fun, lucid reboot�in interlocking plastic blocks.

Impress your Romulan visitors with this fashionable DIY sliding-door treatment. Video after the jump.

At Berkeley, a Kinect hack takes flight.

Remember what Larry Summers said about women and math? He should see this video.

"We were forcing acoustic guitars through a cassette player, and what came out the other end was electric as hell."

Day by day, the hacks are getting more interesting.

Coffee isn't only a stimulant, but also a social glue and fuel for creative lives. A proposed mobile app would allow caffeinated bloggers, writers, artists, and designers to share their coffeehouse-generated work in real-time.

Kinect hacks are emerging at a rapid pace; it�s hard to recall a mass-market gadget so quickly adapted to new uses. As Bruce Sterling points out, �Microsoft accidentally invented a primo piece of art-installation hardware.� It's this kind of DIY innovation that keeps tech feral.