Hackaday Podcast 119: Random Robot Writing, Slithering Snake Shenanigans, and Phased Array Phenomena

Hackaday editors Mike Szczys and Elliot Williams pick up on the neatest hacks you may have missed. We start off with another “What’s that Sound?” so put your geeky-ears to the test and win a Hackaday Podcast T-shirt. Here are a couple of classic hacks to bring you joy: music based on Markov chains, and a squiggly take on the classic Nokia game of snake. For the more hardcore science geeks we dive into the B Meson news coming out of CERN’s physics experiments. And after taking a detour in bristle-bot-based pen plotting, we unpack the hidden system of pipes that carry oil, gas, diesel, and more from the refinery to your region.

Take a look at the links below if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

Direct download (The best 57 MB you’ll download all day!)

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Episode 119 Show Notes:

What’s that Sound?

Tell us your answer for this week’s “What’s that sound?”. Next week on the show we’ll randomly draw one name from the correct answers to win a limited-edition Hackaday Podcast T-shirt. (How limited?  So far, limited to two. But I’m sure we’ll make another in a couple weeks.)

New This Week:

• 2021 Hackaday Prize: Rethink, Refresh, And Rebuild
• Siemens accelerates digital marketplace strategy with acquisition of Supplyframe

Interesting Hacks of the Week:

• Tiny DeLorean Made From Lighters Is A Total Gas
• A Phased-Array Ultrasonic 3D Scanner From Scratch
  • Mapping WiFi Signals In 3 Dimensions
• Random Robot Makes Random Art
  • Autograph: A String Art Printer
• Reverse-Engineering An Unknown Microcontroller In E Ink Displays
• Play Your Favorite Nokia Game On The Raspberry Pi Pico
• Making Minty Fresh Music With Markov Chains: The After Eight Step Sequencer
  • Remoticon Video: How To Use Max In Your Interactive Projects

Quick Hacks:

• Mike’s Picks
  • Gaming Headset Gets Simple Wireless Charging
  • Repurpose A Monitor Arm As Microscope Mount
  • Projecting Moving Images In Air With Lasers
• Elliot’s Picks
  • Actively Balancing A Robot With A Gyroscope
  • Tape Cutter Makes Short Work Of Through-Hole Resistor Reels
  • Scanner Captures View-Master Discs As Glorious 3D Videos

Can’t-Miss Articles:

• Something’s Up In Switzerland: Explaining The B Meson News From The Large Hadron Collider
• The Mysterious Wobble Of Muons
• Gassing Up: Understanding The Liquid Fuel Distribution Network