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With technology and science for all: the Fab Lab
Posted Apr 6, 2010
These days anyone can become anything - or so we're told. Technology is all around, and as knowledge and interest in the matter develop so should opportunities to use it. That is where the Fab Lab comes into play. Its mission statement is "for ordinary people to not just learn about science and engineering but actually design machines and make measurements that are relevant to improving the quality of their lives."
The Fab Lab is the Massachussets Institute of Technology's brainchild, born from the belief of Neil Gershelfed, head of the Center for Bits and Atoms, that "the whole range of modern means of invention" should be available to kids, small businesses and budding inventors alike "in an accessible community scale."
While it started out in Boston it is now a worldwide phenomenon, with Fab Labs opening in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle-East. Not just a bunch of toys for the rich and idle then but a truly democratic initiative. Democratic means sheep-tracking devices for sheperds in Norway, it means refrigeration systems powered by exhaust gases in Ghana , and other such real inventions by and for real people.
For all you know these two might be plotting world domination (which technically is against the rules as the Fab Charter mentions inventions can be "anything that doesn't hurt anyone").
The rules are straightforward: one comes in and is expected to figure out how to use the equipment and techniques, as well as to contribute to the exchange of information and documentation in order to achieve a proper educational environment. There is no knowledge requirement, no approval needed... A deliciously nerdy hub of innovation and inventivity.
Then again not everyone is interested in saving the world... Just wondering whether comfortable five-inch stilettos might constitute acceptable usage of lab time.
Sources and credits: MIT's Fab Lab, Fab Lab Manchester
TAGS: fab lab technonolgy mit inventions cba fab lab manchester science
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