LuminAR was designed by MIT student Natan Linder. A robotic lamp built by another MIT alum back in 2007 (the AUR) was designed to follow movements around a desktop which would allow it to change the color, intensity and focus of its light to keep you organized and productive. Linder’s offering is similar to the AUR in those areas. However, it’s also much more complex.

The LuminAR incorporates a pico projector along with its vision system, allowing much more interaction. The lamp “combines a Pico-projector, camera, and wireless computer
in a compact form factor.”

When you plug the LuminAR into a robotic arm, it will look for an uncluttered spot on your desk to project its images, which come from the tiny pico projector. You can point it wherever else you like, or even program it to open something like email on one side and a website on the other.

One of the coolest features of the LuminAR is the fact that it will recognize many different objects. In the demonstration, a can of Coke was placed under the eye of the device. LuminAR recognized that it was CocaCola and pulled up the webpage immediately.

Something such as this can revolutionize the way we work. You’ll be able to use it to illuminate your life and make your research a whole lot faster.

Robotic Desk Lamp LuminAR Built by College Student

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Without a source of heat and light, you will have a difficult time surviving the night. Cavemen used to rub sticks together, creating fiction, and thereby creating fire. For thousands of years, mankind (and women too!!) have relied on fire for heat, cooking abilities, and much more. Fire is essential to our lives, and every Great Indoorsman needs to know how to properly start one!

Normally, I use a night light at the end of the hallway because I’m scared of the dark, but… yeah. The Great Indoorsman strikes again!

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Learn to Start a Fire with the Great Indoorsman

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Most of us don’t even think about what light bulbs we use in our homes… or how we use them. Here are some tips sent in by a community member that may shed a little light on the subject.

• When replacing a light bulb, try to get one that uses less power. We now have the new twisted fluorescent bulbs, and they use less power than their incandescent counterparts… while putting out the same amount of light.
• If replacing a broken bulb, take a potato and cut it in half. Place it on the bulb and apply a little pressure toward the socket. Doing this will allow you to get the parts of the broken bulb that were left in the socket, and remove them. BE AWARE to make sure the light switch is turned off first. Don’t become a crispy critter.
• When putting a new bulb in a socket, rub a small amount of regular bar soap (not the liquid kind) on the bottom of the bulb. This will allow it to turn in the socket more easily, reducing the chances of breaking it.
• Know what type of bulb you need for various lights. Some lamps are better set for two and three-way bulbs. No, those bulbs are not sexual. They are designed to have different output levels per click of the power knob. Some lamps may take a special bulb. Just make sure you know what type of bulb the lamp needs.
• This final tip mainly pertains to theatre lights. After a bulb blows, make sure the bulb has cooled down enough to change it. Household bulbs normally don’t get that hot, but the stage lights DO. If you can still feel heat, give it a little more time to get cooler, or use a good heat resistant glove.

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Light Bulb Ideas