The Life-Size Mousetrap is an annual tradition at Maker Maire (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
New York Hall of Science
47-01 111th St., Flushing Meadows Corona Park
September 20-21, $17.50-$32.50 per day, weekend pass $30-$60
718-699-0005
www.makerfaire.com
www.nysci.org
Now in its fifth year, World Maker Faire New York is an event that should be on your annual radar, regardless of your age, whether or not you have kids, and no matter how much you know (or care) about modern technology. Held at the New York Hall of Science, the two-day fair celebrates “invention, creativity, and resourcefulness,” as more than seven hundred makers will display their cutting-edge work in such areas as 3D imaging and printing (we first saw 3D printing there, four years before its current popularity), electric vehicles, robotics, wearables, drones, kinetic art, open source hardware, gaming, and circuit bending — and boy, do the makers love talking about their projects, so ask away. The self-described “part science fair, part county fair, and part something entirely new” takes place over a huge expanse outside and inside the Hall of Science; in the surrounding grounds, visitors can watch the always awesome giant Coke Zero and Mentos Fountains, check out the Life-Size Mousetrap, participate in the Power Racing Series, and, inside and out, see such speakers as FIRST founder Dean Kamen, Arduino Project cofounder Massimo Banzi, Moog synthesizer cocreator Herb Deutsch, and Science Bob Pflugfelder from The Jimmy Kimmel Show. Below are only some of the highlights of this crazy, fun, and, yes, highly educational party. (Maker Week kicks off September 15 with a free screening (with advance RSVP) of the new documentary Maker: The Movie at Microsoft’s offices, followed September 17-18 by MakerCon at the New York Hall of Science.)
Saturday, September 20
Game of Drones Aerial Sports League, 10:00 am – 6:30 pm
Frank Story, with Jon Ronson, cowriter of Frank and keyboard player in the Frank Sidebottom Band, NYSCI Auditorium, 12:30
Re-creating Historic Coney Island, One Layer at a Time, with Fred Kahl, the Great Fredini, NYSCI Auditorium, 5:30
Saturday, September 20, and Sunday, September 21
Inventing a Better Mousetrap, with Alan Rothschild, including presentation of original patent models from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Saturday at 11:30 at the Make: DIY Stage and Sunday at 11:00 in the NYSCI Auditorium and 3:00 at the Make: DIY Stage
Life-Size Mousetrap, Saturday and Sunday at 11:30, 12:30, 2:30, and 5:30
Coke Zero & Mentos Fountains, Saturday at 1:00 & 4:00, Sunday at 4:00
Making Movies: Behind-the-Scenes with Print the Legend, new Netflix documentary, Saturday at 4:00, Make: Live Stage, Sunday at 5:00, Make: DIY Stage
Arduino + LEGO Mindstorm Robotics — Get Started! with Matthew Beckler and Adam Wolf, Maker Shed “Get Making” Stage, Saturday at 4:30 and Sunday at 3:00
Sunday, September 21
Being Human in a Digital World: Lessons from the Intersections of Technology and Culture, with Genevieve Bell, director of user experience research in Intel Labs, NYSCI Auditorium, 1:00
Makers @ MIT: Admitting & Empowering Technically Creative Students, with Chris Peterson of MIT Admissions, NYSCI Auditorium, 3:30
How and Why You Should Hack Your Brain, with Nathan Whitmore, Make: Electronics Stage, 4:30