Technabob » africa

Mad Max Motorcycle Built from Car that Broke Down in the Desert

Conner Flynn — Wed, 23 May 2012 22:00:16 +0000

For most of us, if our car broke down in the desert, we would have no choice but to just walk or pray for rescue. Most of are not so technically inclined to take our cars and build something else out of the parts. Well, Emile Leray is far more resourceful. When his Citroën 2CV car broke down in the middle of the Sahara Desert, he supposedly converted the car into a Mad Max style motorcycle.

The desert he was in was somewhere in northwest Africa. He got stopped and was told to go any further due to some military conflicts in the area. He decided to go around, through the desert. It wasn’t long before he snapped a swing arm on his vehicle, leaving him stranded. He did what any manly man would do. He disassembled his vehicle and created a motorcycle from the parts.

This guy is officially the real world MacGyver. Unless this is some kind of a hoax, he did this totally un-prepared. It seems like he managed to drill holes by bending metal and sawing at it, then un-bending it to be flat again, which makes sense. It took him twelve days to construct this vehicle. Sure, it sounds fishy, but like Fox and Mulder, I want to believe.

[via Reddit via Hack A Day]

African Entrerpreneur Making Wooden Outlet Strips

Technabob — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:50:52 +0000

Here in the U.S. and in much of the Western world, we take many of the little things for granted. For instance, if you want a power strip, you just head down to your local Best Buy or other mega-chain store and buy one. But in some parts of the world, even relatively small stuff like that is out of the reach of many households and neighborhood businesses.

While it’s an unusual concept, it’s not a surprise that one young entrepreneur in the Kiandutu slums of Kenya has decided to build his own power strips. Amos Njoroge really wanted to be a professional an electrical engineer, but lacked the resources to go to school and earn a degree. Instead, he decided to take his self-taught skills and set up a small assembly line where he churns out wooden power strips that he sells in his neighborhood. I love how he calls his tiny start-up “Gigantic Electronics.” Think big, Amos. Think, big.

Like me, your first reaction was probably that a wooden outlet strip is probably not the safest way to distribute electricity – especially in damp environments. But as long as it remains dry, wood is nearly as good of an insulator as plastic or ceramic, so I don’t think it’s dramatically more of a shock hazard. They are painting them with something in the video, so that might help seal out the moisture too. On the other hand, my scientific instincts tell me a wood outlet strip is way more of a fire risk than a plastic one, but that’s just me.

On the other hand, this self-taught skill and spirit of ingenuity is helping Njoroge and his co-workers make a living in one of the poorest parts of the world, while at the same time providing his community with a product that’s in demand. Hopefully, any fears about safety will be unwarranted, and Amos will continue to see success in his budding endeavor.

[via Afrigadget via Reddit]

Robot Built From Used Television Parts Inspires People, Old Tvs

Lambert Varias — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 11:53:22 +0000

A young Togolese man named Sam Todo made a humanoid robot “almost entirely from old television sets.” Todo built the robot as a way of encouraging his fellow Africans to become more interested in science and technology. The hearts of hundreds of millions of dusty, unused and ignored TVs from around the world were also filled with hope at the thought of being reincarnated as a freakin’ robot.

Despite its impressive current state, Todo will continue working on the robot, which he named SAM 10. He wants it to be able to greet people, avoid obstacles and calculate its distance from an object. I wish Todo could teach me how to do those three actions as well.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Maybe we should send Todo all of our unused TV sets so he can turn them into an army of robots. If that doesn’t inspire people, then nothing will.

[via Gizmo Watch]

Cherrypal Africa $99 Netbook: Too Cheap to be True?

Lambert Varias — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:43:42 +0000

Cherrypal specializes in selling cheap computers, and their latest product is testament to that. The Africa is a 7-inch netbook equipped with a 400 MHz processor, 256 MB of RAM and 2 GB flash memory, and runs either a Linux OS or Windows CE. Yes, I said CE. Depressing specs, but with a $99 (USD) price tag the Africa will still attract customers. Probably. And Cherrypal, I’m not sure if describing your product as “Small, Slow, Sufficient” is such a good idea.

Thankfully the Africa can handle Wi-Fi, even if it’s only IEEE 802.11 g. It also has an Ethernet port, 1 USB 2.0 port, 2 USB 1.1 ports, and an SD/MMC card slot. Cherrypal says that the netbook’s battery lasts up to 4 hours in-between charges.

Orders can be placed at Cherrypal’s online store. But before you check the store out, Ars Technica commenter IHATENAMES claims that Cherrypal failed to deliver their order. I don’t know if that’s been resolved or what steps were taken to resolve the problem though. If you do check out Cherrypal’s store you’ll also find that they’re selling Apple computers, specifically the 17-in MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air. They’re being sold at discounted prices – $1,823 and $1,540 respectively – but the original prices stated for both are incorrect. Weird. Soooo… any of you have a Cherrypal computer?

Playpump Helps Quench Thirst the Fun and Simple Way

Lambert Varias — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:40:01 +0000

According to Playpumps International, more than one billion people in the world do not have access to clean water. Water-related diseases are responsible for 80% of sicknesses and are the leading cause of death worldwide. In response to this urgent problem, Playpumps International are helping many communities in Third World countries to have an simple and easy to operate mechanism to obtain drinking water.

The Playpump, to quote gizmag, is “essentially a windmill on its side, driven by children, not wind.” The Playpump is installed near schools so it also serves as a roundabout that children can play with. It can gather up to 1,400 liters of water per hour at 16 rpm from a depth of 40m, and it’s good for up to 100m. In between the pump and the faucet is a tank, meaning children can play on the pump for a while without wasting water.

Some of you might be thinking that it’s unfair for the children to work for their community’s supply, but it’s actually not that simple. First of all, without the Playpump, these children would still work to fetch water. Some have to travel quite a distance to get water, and all of their bodies are strained by their heavy load. So spinning on a pump is really nothing compared to the alternative.

Second, some schools don’t even have a playground for these children, so it’s a good way for children to have fun and yet help their families at the same time. And obviously adults can always step in to help with the pumping.

The Playpump is driven by ads that are placed on the water tank. The ads also pay for the maintenance of the pump. But Playpumps International knows that it will take more than the ad-revenue to achieve their dream of bringing clean water to 10 million people by next year, so they’re asking for donations. The bottled water you see above is coming out in the US this spring; 100% of the Love One water’s proceeds will be used to fund Playpumps.

Spread the word or donate if you can.