Video Below:
Is it possible for a simple home color computer printer or copier to be a tool to invade our privacy? The answer is yes and it has been occurring since the 1980’s! Here is the way in which I have determined that it happened and why the practice is not on everyone’s mind.
In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s laser color copiers were becoming not only popular, but they were providing clear and very accurate photo copies. The government, particularly the treasury department was concerned that it would become easy for counterfeiters to locate linen paper and produce good quality money. So, they either asked, or more likely told manufactures to come up with a way to identify every printer that they made with a code to track the manufacturer, date of the print, and by extension, who purchased that machine. And so the system was developed to place very tiny yellow dots in a code that could be read perhaps by an overlay or an algorithm. But the real question is that once the threat of phony money passed, why would the government continue wanting to track information on us? Because, that is what they do best! Perhaps if someone printed and distributed “dangerous” material or leaflets they could be tracked. But why invade the privacy of the rest of us when there is no law or legal basis to do so? 
So, be aware that big brother is watching and if you by a copier or laser printer with a credit card, you are easy to track if the images produced go anywhere in the public space. One experiment that I have yet to try is to find a color laser print online and see if that contains the yellow dot signature. Even with cash, the purchase is bar coded and theoretically could be tracked. One thing that we can all do is email the printer manufacturers and tell them we will stop buying their merchandise and spread the word. Or, just print everything with black printers only.
The Electronic Forum Foundation (Here) is running an experiment to get as many readers to submit samples to decode and identify which printers are coded. I inadvertently referred to them in the video as the Freedom Foundation because to me they are trying to protect our digital freedom. But the link will be clear.
Below are the photographs, video, and a link to my video covering the conversion of a webcam to a microscope (Link Here). (For the video, the webcam was defocused by about two turns to move the lens farther away from the image element). Enjoy and please comment as always.
 

At one time there were a fairly large number of magazines that featured amateur and hobby electronic projects. This began long before the internet and its deadly impact on print publications. But in the long history of DIY electronics, Popular Electronics was a really big deal.
There was an interesting convergence of events that led to the extreme popularity of home electronic projects. First, there was the invention of the transistor in 1947 at Bell Laboratories. Second, Heathkit began selling kits to the general public so that they could build everything from oscilloscopes to robots! Heath actually began in 1912 selling aircraft parts but recognized the post-war economic growth and came to the table with a very successful business model. But it was apparent that there was a market for wide scale dissemination of electronic projects and technology was moving quickly. And, Popular Electronics began to fill that need.
Of course there were magazines that covered electricity and particularly, radio. After the widespread introduction of radio broadcasting, the field of radio transmission expanded to include amateur radio and related interests. The early 20th century was a great time for beginning experimentation. But, it was a time that had somewhat of a limited focus, and in time, that would change.
In 1954, Ziff-Davis Publishing introduced the world to Popular Electronics, a monthly magazine with electronic projects, access to parts, (by mail of course), and ideas to stimulate the budding hacker. It was the “World’s Largest Selling Electronics Magazine” with a circulation in 400,000 by 1963. A competitor, Rival Electronics World, merged with Popular Electronics in 1972. The magazine underwent some changes in name and then ceased publication in 1985. But, it was bought by Gernsback Publications and came back in 1989. But, once again the magazine stopped publication in 1999. And like the Phoenix Rising, it ended with the name Electronics Now, and its final issue was in 2003.
 But, the story actually has a good ending as there is now a complete archive of all of the issues over the entire time span of the publication’s life. All issues are available in PDF's complete with advertisements. But, be careful when ordering as many of the companies are out of business! The link is here. Time to warm up the soldering iron!

 

Video Below:

Biomimetics or biomimicry is the imitation of the models, systems, and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex problems. More simply, it is the adaptation of the natural movement and habits of plants and animals to solve human problems. A good example of this adaptation is the loops and hooks of the popular material Velcro. It mimics the action of burrs and the way they stick to each other. Almost everywhere we look in the natural world we can see models worth copying. From the way snakes use serpentine movement and muscle contraction, jellyfish propel themselves, and the action of light on plants to provide growth, we are surrounded by fascinating motion and function.
One of the earliest attempts at replication was the flight of birds. I can imagine that the very earliest humans on the planet must have wanted to fly. Over 400 years ago, Leonardo da Vinci designed many types of flying machines using birds for his inspiration. One of the most popular was the ornithopter, which is the basis for the toy in the attached video. In the 1980’s a French patent was filed by Brevet with the design for this toy bird that also has US patent coverage. You can see the patent at Google patents under 5,163,861. (Best to copy and paste). I have been fascinated by biomimicry for a long time and thought that this toy was a good example of the process. Enjoy the video and the close up photo of the mechanism.


 

Over the past four years I have posted a variety of projects and information that I thought may be useful to my readers/viewers. Some have been very well received as was the “Anodizing Aluminum without Battery Acid” and it has been translated into at least 15 languages around the world. The post on “Reusable Molding Material” also received many comments and community response. Also, the “Static Electricity Detector” was read frequently. But others either have generated none or very few comments. So, I am not sure if my efforts are wasted, no comments necessary, or useful in any way. So, I am reaching out to you for some feedback and direction.
Despite the fact that I maintain four separate topic pages, the Science and Technology page is my main interest. I have been pursuing what I hope will be interesting, entertaining, and informative posts. But it would be helpful to know if you want chemistry, physics, electronics, or other types of projects. So, I would appreciate the time it takes to write a short comment to guide me in my choices of science topics.
Some of my projects take time to research, develop, and test. I try to offer some originality and versatility and I frequently have failures. (Don’t we all?) I could copy other sites but there is little value if the project requires no thought process. I usually have some pretty bazaar ideas and they may fall outside of what you may want. For example I am working on an infrasound project, (sounds below human hearing), and a silk screen photo emulsion made at home. But maybe you want something else and I could use the feedback to craft new science fun. I am also open to guest posts if you have a project that you would like to share. Leave a comment and I will post my email so we can chat! Thanks, Ken…