As the holidays are upon us, I’d like to share how grateful I am that we at Make: get to watch, listen and learn from a maker community with so many interesting professionals, hobbyists, tinkerers, crafters, educators and parents. What makers do is more valuable and necessary than ever. It shows our common humanity and can bring us together. I wish you and yours the best for the holiday season. May you find a new tool in your stocking.

Table of Contents

• Handy advice for the holidays

• Mechanical Contraptions

• Greg Leyh on his Plasma Cannon

Handy advice for the holidays

Maker Educator Pam Moran told me that a mother of a 7-year old and 9-year old sent a message to friends and family: “If you’re thinking of giving my kids technology for Christmas, please don’t. Give them something they can do with their hands.”

Jen Blakeslee shared this essay with me:

Mechanical Contraptions

Jim Polk of Canstruct.com occasionally shares his fun, mechanical contraptions with me. His website says that he specializes in mechanical design/build for practical and impractical applications. Here are a few impractical applications. First, a work-in-progress called Learning to Row.

Second, is a colorful carousel.

Greg Leyh on his Plasma Cannon

We were delighted to have Greg Leyh speak at Maker Faire Bay Area on his effort to revive and fire the Lorentz Plasma Cannon. The cannon itself was too big and a bit too dangerous to bring to Maker Faire but getting Greg to talk about it was awesome.

See you in 2026!

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