(first published on Needhamia.com in 2007)

I find the rose windows of Gothic cathedrals awe-inspiring. From the rigid formalism of Chartres to the flamboyant explosion of Tours, their marriage of geometry, philosophy, and aesthetics with stone and glass is awesome. Built at a time when science and spirit weren’t as divided as today, each window is a statement of the beauty, order, and harmony in the world. Using only a pair of compasses (dividers) and a straight-edge (an unmarked ruler), the Gothic architects created myriad lace-like designs, making stone hang in the air and glass sing.

Continue reading Geometry, Gothic Architecture, Rose Windows, and Christmas Ornaments →

Projects

Build a minimal Weather Underground station

16 July, 2018 bneedhamia

Today’s post is a How-To for a project I recently completed: a temperature-only Weather Underground Personal Weather Station made from an ESP8266, a MAX31820 temperature sensor, and a few miscellaneous parts. The whole project fits inside a 3D printed project box for mounting on an exterior wall that is sheltered from the weather.

The open source project files are in my MAX31820WeatherStation Github repository.

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Projects

The 25 Lotus Leaves puzzle is up!

7 March, 2018 bneedhamia

After obsessing like a Lotus Eater for a week, I’ve finished my newly-invented (I hope) 25 Lotus Leaves puzzle!

The open source 3D Printer files are on Thingiverse; I’ve also written a How To sheet, with instructions and challenges. I modestly ;-) hope it’s as mathematically interesting as the famous 15 Puzzle… we’ll see!

Projects

The newly-invented, trivial, Ginkgo “puzzle”

1 March, 2018 bneedhamia

For years I’ve been scribbling doodles of a Combination Puzzle I’d like to create, with ginkgo-leaf-shaped pieces that turned in place to allow or prevent their neighboring pieces from turning.

Continue reading The newly-invented, trivial, Ginkgo “puzzle” →

Projects, Technology Tips

Lunar Clock: Designing a 3D Printed clip

14 January, 2018 bneedhamia

In my previous post, I replaced the electronics of my several-year-old lunar clock design with modern parts. In this post, I’ve replaced the laser cut parts with 3D printed parts, with particular attention to the clip that holds the photo interrupter in place.

Continue reading Lunar Clock: Designing a 3D Printed clip →

Projects

Well Depth Sensing: Soldering, Soldering, Soldering!

26 November, 2017 bneedhamia

In my previous post, I designed a 3D printed sensor junction box for my well tank depth sensing project. In this post I solder… a lot.

Continue reading Well Depth Sensing: Soldering, Soldering, Soldering! →

Projects

Well Depth Sensing: Mechanical Design

19 November, 2017 bneedhamia

In my previous post, I finished the Web Service that the ESP8266 uses to upload well tank temperatures (and eventually a depth estimate) to a cloud database. In this post, I turn to the mechanical design of the case for the RJ45 jacks for the 1-wire interface.

Continue reading Well Depth Sensing: Mechanical Design →

Projects

Well Depth Sensing: Temperatures are in the database

5 November, 2017 bneedhamia

In my previous post, the ESP8266 Arduino Sketch was reading 12 temperature sensors. In this post, I describe the progress on the web side of things: the PHP web service that stores temperatures in an SQL database.

Continue reading Well Depth Sensing: Temperatures are in the database →

Making

Making a Jack O’ Lantern (Old School)

31 October, 2017 bneedhamia

At this time of year when Sparkfun, AdaFruit, and Arduino tweets are filled with high-tech Jack O’ Lanterns, I thought I’d document the making of an Old School Jack O’ Lantern.

Continue reading Making a Jack O’ Lantern (Old School) →

history

My 2014 Desk

23 October, 2017 bneedhamia

If you liked my 1984 desk, you might appreciate these less-olde-timey photos, of my 2014 and 2016 desks.

Continue reading My 2014 Desk →

The Independent Nation of Needhamia

Geometry, Gothic Architecture, Rose Windows, and Christmas Ornaments

Build a minimal Weather Underground station

The 25 Lotus Leaves puzzle is up!

The newly-invented, trivial, Ginkgo “puzzle”

Lunar Clock: Designing a 3D Printed clip

Well Depth Sensing: Soldering, Soldering, Soldering!

Well Depth Sensing: Mechanical Design

Well Depth Sensing: Temperatures are in the database

Making a Jack O’ Lantern (Old School)

My 2014 Desk

Et proiectus est talpa – "and the mole was cast out"