Friday, December 21, 2012

New York Hall of Science Hosts 2012 Maker Faire


New York Hall of Science
Calling all inventors, curious minds, creatives, entrepreneurs, and dreamers. If you identify with any of these or are fascinated with what the future may hold, then the Maker Faire may be for you.

Maker Faire is a two day festival celebrating science, engineering, invention, and art. It is a family friendly event and has something for everyone. The Maker Faire happens once a year in New York City, Detroit, and the Bay Area. Mini Maker Faires are popping up in places like Houston, TX and Santiago, Chile. As Maker Faire becomes more popular with inventors and fans around the world, I hope to see more Maker Faires hosted in different cities. The Maker Faire is in its sixth year and started in San Mateo, California.

The 2012 Maker Faire in New York City was hosted at the New York Hall of Science in Queens. I snagged a discounted ticket through Living Social. I recommend attending the Maker Faire even if you have to pay full price. It is an excellent family friendly event. Even if you don’t have kids in tow, the Maker Faire is still very entertaining. It is inspiring to see what new ideas are flowing out there and what people can do and  make with whatever resources they have available to them.

The Replicator Makerbot
Can make this
Out of this (plastic)
Two trends I noticed at the Maker Faire were 3D printers and robots. Makerbot printers were everywhere and what people were designing included everything built from plastic to furniture sculpted out of wood. The small basic printers created jewelry and art pieces. Large scale 3D printers had the capability to sculpt intricate details. If machines were not present, then robots were. Legos and programming went hand in hand as people created robots that could pick things up. One robot could even help around the house! My favorite robots were programmed to dance to Gangnam Style!


The Maker Faire was jam packed with activities, presentations, and interactive displays. There was something going on everywhere from cupcake cars driving around and a life size Mousetrap replica to a Mentos Coke Zero explosion and a go-cart race. Young minds were encouraged to test their creativity and engineering skills by designing their own wooden car and seeing how far they would go on a car roller coaster based on aerodynamics.

Designing cars
Electrical Cupcake Car
New York Hall of Science
Last but not least, the Maker Faire was hosted partly in the New York Hall of Science. This gave everyone the opportunity to explore the recently renovated center. Some might say that the Hall of Science is really for children under the age of 12 but I beg to differ. The Hall of Science is so educational and captivating that anyone, whatever age, would find it an interesting place. I had a blast with the hall of mirrors, giant Plinko type wall, and thermal imagery you could create. I look forward to visiting again and can’t wait to see what the inventors come up with next at the next Maker Faire. 


New York Hall of Science
47-01 111th Street
New York, NY 11368

3 comments:

  1. Well, the electric cupcake car has all the right to be included in that fair! Aside from the ingenious concept, it also looks adorable. And it’s a perfect solution to parking problems since you can park two cupcakes in one parking space! [Patrick Gauer

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  2. Cupcake cars!! :D Isn’t it nice to see something like this in such events? It’s like a festival full of cool inventions! You could probably say that electrical cars are one of the best innovations you should watch out for! ;)

    Nicole Vickers

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  3. I just hope that the electric cupcake car is out in the market, once it is I’ll rush to buy one of these. Haha! Science events are really exciting since they’ll bring you to the magical world of inventions. I just hope I can catch an event like this in the future.

    Ashely Redden

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