FAB LAB DC

Fab Lab DC ~ Bit by Bit & Atom by Atom

2011-12-12T11:55:00.000-05:00

Setting up donated computers @ Fab Lab DC! Thanks to David Whiteis, Anderson Ta, Ed O'Brien, Kashuo Bennett, Josef Fuentes, Stacie Kirby, Dwight Barbour, Eric Mill, Chris Bach, Alex Mayer, Luke Idziak, Sean Kennon, and P. D. Klein.

Sponsorship Opportunities !

2011-10-09T13:50:00.000-04:00

Enjoy the perqs of Sponsorship! Sponsor Fab Lab DC for DCWEEK to help bring fab workshops and activities to as many people as possible! Donate now and receive Sponsor recognition on our website and social media and at all of our events! Click here for details.

Special thanks to our current Sponsors:

November Events

2011-10-09T12:13:00.004-04:00

Join Fab Lab DC for the following events:

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Thursday, November 3rd, 2011~

If you could make 'almost' anything, what would it be?

An Evening with Neil Gershenfeld at the Carnegie Institute of Science Washington, DC,
a benefit to launch Fab Lab DC.   Click here for tickets.

Opening reception ~ 6pm      Presentation ~ 7pm

Special thanks to our sponsors ~ Paul So and Hamiltonian Artists, Sofalab, Sally Coyle, ShopBot, Smith Center for Healing and the Arts, George Mason University, Center for Consciousness and Transformation,MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms, Fab Foundation, Phyllis Klein and Alex Mayer.

SOFAlab:
“Science of Art Laboratory” (SOFALab) is a collaborative project from the Director of Printmaking at George Mason University, Helen Fredrick; the Executive Director of Smith Center for Healing and the Arts, Shanti Norris; and the Founder of Hamiltonian Artists and physics professor of George Mason University, Paul So. The goal of this project is to initiate the spark of communication and to look for commonalities that can bring out new understanding and develop new tools of interactions from both the sciences and arts with the aim that these interactions and findings can affect boarder intellectual and/or social changes. The SOFAlab is generously supported by the Center for Consciousness and Transformation from George Mason University.

Sponsors ~

Center for Consciousness and Transformation:

Initiated in 2009, the Center for Consciousness and Transformation is an interdisciplinary research and teaching center at George Mason University whose mission is to understand the nature and effects of individual and group consciousness and its role in transformative learning and social change. A central premise of the Center is that human consciousness is a key variable in the process of transformative learning for individuals, which in turn can lead to transformational change on individual, organizational, and societal levels. The Center's approach incorporates traditions and practices with modern scientific methods for full exploration of the vast worlds of consciousness and transformation.

http://cct.gmu.edu

Hamiltonian Artists:

Founded in 2007, Hamiltonian Artists is a non-profit art organization with its mission to build a dynamic community of innovative artists and effective visual art leaders by providing professional development opportunities to new innovative artists and by advancing their entrepreneurial success. The competitive Hamiltonian Fellowship Program provides critical exhibition, financial and artistic support to promising emerging artists working in all media and we also offer free professional development lectures and workshops to help area artists build the necessary business skills to help them navigate the ever-changing landscape of their profession.

http://hamiltonianartists.org

Smith Center for Healing and the Arts:

Founded in 1996, Smith Center for Healing and the Arts is a nonprofit health, education, and arts organization with its mission to develop and promote healing practices that explore physical, emotional, and mental resources that lead to life-affirming changes for people living with illness and for the community at large.

http://smithcenter.org

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Saturday, November 5th, 2011~

Fab Lab DC and New Technologies at the Apple Store Georgetown ~

Come learn about the Fab Lab project and see demonstrations of new technologies for designing and making ~ special guests, Kuan Ju Wu, Master of Tangible 3-D Design Fabrication, and Sallye Coyle of ShopBot. Location: Apple Store Georgetown 7pm. Register here for this free event.

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Sunday, November 6th, 2011~

Digital Fabrication Demonstrations + Fab Your...

Please visit the future home of Fab Lab DC and see the Fab Lab equipment in action: CNC routing with ShopBot, laser cutting and etching with Epilog, vinyl cutting & mini-milling with Modela, and 3D printing with the desktop 3D Up!.

Register to personalize your computer, phone, bike, notebook... whatever... using digital fabrication! Generate custom (or pre-designed) graphics, decals, stickers, stencils to apply to your stuff. Make it in DC... Make it Yours!

Location: 1418 North Capitol Street, NW. Time: 10:30am - 3pm.

Roland Vinyl Cutter, Modela Mini-Mill, 3D Up! Desktop Printer, ShopBot CNC Router, Epilog Laser Cutter

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Sunday, November 6th, 2011~

Architects, Designers, Techies, and Artists Make ~

An opening reception for an exhibition of works by several members of the new DC Fab Lab creative community, who are using state-of-the-art technology and changing the way we think, learn, and make. Includes works by Kashuo Bennett, Chris Bach, Erick Katzenstein, Niell Duval, Sarah Geitz, Luke Idziak, P. D. Klein and others. Location: 1418 North Capitol Street, NW Time: 4pm - 6pm RSVP here.

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Monday, November 7th, 2011~

The Future (of Products) is Personal ~

Join in a lively evening of networking, state-of-the-art digital with 3D technology demonstrations and a presentation by Sherry Lassiter, of MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms and the Fab Foundation. Learn about new opportunities for personal expression, small business incubation, new product development and a new community resource for innovation. Networking reception. Location: Room&Board, Penthouse, 1840 14th Street, NW

Time: 7pm RSVP here.

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Monday, November 7th through Thursday, November 10th, 2011~

Digital Fabrication Demonstrations, Exhibition, and Conversations @ Fab Lab DC for DCWEEK

Don't miss this chance to visit the future home of Fab Lab DC to see the Fab Lab equipment in action: CNC routing with ShopBot, laser cutting and etching with Epilog, vinyl cutting & mini-milling with Modela, and 3D printing with the desktop 3D Up!. Talk with Sallye Coyle of ShopBot, and other makers, see projects from local creatives, and see how you can be involved in the Fab Lab Project. Location: 1418 North Capitol Street, NW

Daily, November 7th through November 10th: 10:30am - 3pm RSVP here.

Roland Vinyl Cutter, Modela Mini-Mill, 3D Up! Desktop Printer, ShopBot CNC Router, Epilog Laser Cutter

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Friday, November 11th ~

Digital Fabrication Demonstrations w/Fab Lab DC + ShopBot @ Artisphere for DCWEEK (register for DCWEEK here).

See the rapid prototyping equipment in action: CNC routing with ShopBot, vinyl cutting with Roland, and 3D printing with the desktop 3D Up!. Talk with Sallye Coyle of ShopBot, and other makers, and learn about Fab Lab Project. Location: Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Boulevard

Arlington, VA. More information.

Walking as Drawing ~ Billy Friebele & Civilian Art Projects

2011-06-26T11:22:00.000-04:00

From Civilian Art Projects & Billy Friebele:

Please join artist Billy Friebele and Civilian Art Projects for "Walking As Drawing" followed by a talk with the artist about the project and his exhibition "New Loops" on view until July 23, 2011.

"Walking As Drawing" will involve participants in a mapping excursion that will result in a collective time-based drawing. Using the boundary of the surrounding blocks of the gallery, participants will walk anywhere within the contained space for exactly 30 minutes, thinking of the path as a drawn line.

Details will be explained at the beginning of the event. For more information, please visit:

http://walkingasdrawing.blogspot.com/

Block by Block: Transformation ~ 1400 block North Capitol Street, NW

2011-06-26T00:42:00.004-04:00

Fab Lab DC, in conjunction with local artists/makers and commercial property/business owners, will be using digital fabrication + high/low tech to create a series of artfully conceived and specially designed installations, which will be strategically placed on store-front facades and other areas of North Capitol Street to stir a sense of welcome, playfulness, and place. The initial target area is the 1400 block of North Capitol Street, NW. Plans also include a mini-festival & 'pop-ups.' For more info, email: fab@fablabdc.org.

Awesome Foundation DC Launch Party warmly welcomed in District

2011-03-31T11:02:00.001-04:00

Over the past year, the Awesome Foundation has been growing globally, providing micro-grants for creative genius in multiple continents. Last night, hundreds of people bought “Tickets to Awesome” and joined the DC chapter of the Awesome Foundation at a launch party in One Lounge in Dupont Circle.
Party goers mixed and mingled with the DC chapter’s microtrustees, including this correspondent, and checked out exhibits and demonstrations from the first four recipients of awesome grants. DC FabLab, Ward 8, Petworth and Counterpoint were in attendance for awards ceremony. Bonnie Shaw (@Bon_Zai), DC’s “Dean of Awesome,” gave a brief speech at the launch party ceremony... (read more)

FAB LAB DC wins first AWESOME Foundation DC award

2010-12-30T22:56:00.000-05:00

After reviewing over 70 applications and with much passionate discussion, the DC Awesome Foundation board came to a completely unanimous agreement for the winner of the first Awesome Foundation DC grant.

So what is this Fab Lab and why is it AWESOME?
Phyllis Klein, the powerhouse behind the application, is currently operating a mobile Fab Lab over on 14th St. The Awesome Foundation grant is going to help her activate their new bricks and mortar space on North Capitol Street, NW. Here’s her proposal for an awesome grant:

In the spirit of MIT’s Fab Lab community outreach project, Fab Lab DC will create a high-tech, fabrication laboratory/community workshop in the heart of the Nation’s Capital to advance creativity, innovation, and collaborative projects. Fab Lab DC will serve and foster the creative community by providing access to digital fabrication technology, rapid prototyping, and the global Fab Lab network.
Fab Labs enable people to use technology to create, experiment and produce, shifting the paradigm away from people merely “consuming” technology toward using technology to create solutions.

With a focus on life-long learning and emphasis on investigative teamwork, Fab Lab DC plans to provide a range of educational programs for people of all ages, including access to the international Fab Lab network and Fab Academy, which extend opportunities for information sharing, research, and broader social impact.
Fab Lab is for local community members, life-long learners, inventors, entrepreneurs, creatives, and professionals.

With its location within view and walking distance of the U. S. Capitol Building, Fab Lab DC will also serve as a model for the nation’s leaders in policy, government, and industry, to experience, first hand, Fab Lab’s proven grass-roots approach in developing technical education and literacy, promoting innovation, launching inventions, and incubating new businesses.

If you would like to get involved, your support, in the form of monetary donations, supplies, and sponsorships, is warmly welcomed. There will also be opportunities for people to volunteer their time and talents to help launch Fab Lab DC. For more information, or to help out, please get in touch with Phyllis.

But wait! There’s More!
We have also decided to award an honorable mention to the Kitchen Classroom Project. Though we can only award one cash grant, we hope you will help us to help the folks at Walker Jones public elementary school get the cooking equipment they need to keep their kitchen classroom going over the winter.

2010-06-29T23:18:00.002-04:00

Folding Mechanism Mobi Cell

2010-06-29T23:02:00.000-04:00

Folding Mechanism Mobi Cell from Mendel Heit on Vimeo.

2010-06-29T22:59:00.000-04:00

DMY Maker Lab from Mendel Heit on Vimeo.

More about FAB LAB DC

2010-06-03T20:06:00.000-04:00

Read our FAB LAB DC postings (articles & videos)
by clicking onto this link.

USA Science & Engineering Festival

2010-04-13T23:10:00.001-04:00

Festival Dates: 10/10/10 - 10/24/10

Expo on the National Mall: October 23rd and 24th, 2010

The Inaugural USA Science and Engineering Festival will be the country’s first national science festival and will descend on the Washington, D.C. area in the Fall of 2010. The Festival promises to be the ultimate multi-cultural, multi-generational and multi-disciplinary celebration of science in the United States. The culmination of the Festival will be a two-day Expo in the nation’s capital that will give over 500 science & engineering organizations from all over the United States the opportunity to present themselves with a hands-on, fun science activity to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.

Get involved now: join the over 400 organizations that have already signed up to host an Expo exhibit, become an official Festival Partner, organize a Satellite Event in your community, host a Festival Event, check out our cool school programs like Nifty Fifty and Lunch with a Laureate, volunteer, donate, become a sponsor, participate in one of several contests, buy a Festival T-shirt, follow our blog, and stay on top of it all by signing up for our bi-weekly e-newsletter. Will you be there when science takes over the National Mall?

http://www.usasciencefestival.org/

Building A Wireless Network Out Of Junk - NPR All Things Considered

2010-04-12T17:47:00.001-04:00

NPR All Things Considered 4-12-10

Volunteers with MIT's Fab Lab program, which is part of the school's Bits and Atoms lab, helped create a Wi-Fi network in Afghanistan. They call it FabFi, and they made it from junk: wire, a plastic tub, USAID vegetable oil cans. Amy Sun, a research assistant at MIT's Fab Lab, talks to Robert Siegel about the project. Click here.

MTRAN3 Modular Robot

2010-04-12T11:49:00.002-04:00

Mobile Fab Lab (Summer 2007)

2010-04-12T11:47:00.001-04:00

Maker Faire 2010 Schedule

2010-04-12T11:43:00.002-04:00

www.makerfaire.com

In the Next Industrial Revolution, Atoms Are the New Bits

2010-04-12T11:41:00.000-04:00

In the Next Industrial Revolution, Atoms Are the New Bits

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Neil Gershenfeld on Fab Labs

2010-04-12T11:37:00.002-04:00

Bristle Bots Workshop / Fab Lab Amsterdam

2010-04-12T11:32:00.001-04:00

FAB LAB is coming to DC.... Stay tuned....

2010-04-12T11:21:00.001-04:00

What is FAB LAB??

2010-04-12T11:16:00.000-04:00