Man of a Thousand Hobbies…
Since life isn’t already complicated enough, I’ve been fooling around with Arduino. This is a micro-controller platform aimed at enabling regular folks to play with interactive electronics/art. Well, moderately computer literate folks anyway, but really, it’s actually pretty easy if you just stick to it. The Arduino platform consists of an IDE or integrated development environment, and the Arduino circuit board, in one of several flavors.

Coding Made Easy
IDE is just a big fancy way of saying a programming tool for writing code and putting it on the board, the big deal here is that the Arduino IDE is *really* simple and the “sketch” language is a simplified version of C, which makes it more accessible to non-programmers, but also allows for hackerfolk to go crazy with full blown C code if they want to.

Openness FTW!
The board comes in many flavors, partially due to it being open hardware, that anybody can copy, alter, expand etc. There are versions that are small, large, interface easily with breadboards for prototyping, etc etc. This is a lesson in the viability of the open platform model. Although the Arduino folks gave away the platform, tons of folks are buying their boards from them as they have the distinction of being the folks in the know, the source. Which has something to do with the power of the one, but I digress… So while there are lots of clones out there, some of which are also selling, particularly if they offer something different like size or form that works, the Arduino guys in Italy are doing just fine, as the platform has taken off huge, in no small part due to the open model.

So Many Ideas, so Little Time…
So what can you do with one of these suckers? Well any job that can use a bit more brains than just a regular circuit, and can be handled by something that’s less than a desktop computer, might be appropriate(it’s about as powerful as the old apple ][). Ever wanted just a gadget that does what you want, for a one-off solution? Might be just the thing. It has digital i/o pins(think control relays, LED’s on an off etc), pwm(like a fadable output) some A/D inputs(sensors!), and speaks a few different serial languages, which is often useful for utilizing devices that are now on the market like GPS, i2c thermosensors, mp3 player modules etc. And you can use the A/D’s to look at a variety of other sensors, everything from light, sound, distance, color, EMF, the list goes on and on. They’ve been used as synthesizers, robot brains, monitoring devices (power useage etc), even as an autopilot for a do-it-yourself drone/RC plane (more on that below). Another version that’s taken off big, is *sewable* electronics, via the Lilypad Arduino. It’s designed to be integrated into textiles or clothes. Lots of folks have made “turn signal” enabled biking jackets.

It can be interfaced with everything from LED’s to small LCD screens, even touch screens that plug right on to it. They’ve been used to control servos or even larger motors with the right additional components. It has been used for CAD/CAM rigs, Like milling machines and 3D printers, that’s something that will likely be increasing in the future. Make magazine showed off one dubbed the “garduino” for gardening, for moisture/light control. I’ve read how to make your own moisture sensors with two big nails and some plaster of paris, thinking I’m gonna make some of those for the yard when we’re done landscaping.

Allow me to be your Shield…
Often the additional capablities for handling large currents or other add-ons come in the form of an “Arduino Shield” which plugs right on top of the Arduino board for ease of use. It also allows you to use an Arduino for multiple projects, just plugging it into a different setup as needs must. Multiple boards can be used at once in most cases, i.e. Ethernet and a lcd screen can be combined (somebody recently did that to have a network monitor device independent of their laptop). The mash-up possibilities are endless.

So far I’ve gotten my Arduino Mega board to play the imperial march on a small speaker, flash it’s onboard led, and even print data to an LCD display(“Zombies Ahead!” and “Status: Bunnies” are really funny on a red LCD for some reason). Tomorrow my legions of robotic minions will take over the world. Right after I get them to do the housework.

ArduPilot!

I also have an ArduPilot board, an Arduino based autopilot for RC planes/drones. I’m waiting for more parts before I try messing with that though, I need the GPS and horizon sensors still. My eventual hope is to build my own UAV/drone. This would be a small/light flying wing, just big enough to loft a small camera for video/photo applications. With a horizon sensor, gps and an RF serial link (and the usual R/C parts so I can fly it manually) I’m hoping to have a platform capable of going a few miles and doing aerial photography, and returning to base with no intervention needed until landing. Since I’m probably going to have to build a new wing from scratch to do this right, I’m not holding my breath on this, it might be post-remodel. I gotta lotta other projects to do first, like building my secret laboratory/shed. With Arduino based security system of course…

Or we’re all totally screwed, not just the polar bears.

This from moveon, but I can say independently that they’re right. This is the time for us to push hard on this issue so that we can survive. I’ve been tracking the science of climate change for decades, and it has never been so clear that things are worse than we think, even if you’re a greenie. I walk the halls at UCB, and I see the data from all sorts of departments, it’s really not good. As in, either we change our society, or it will be changed by harsh circumstances, i.e. holocaust.

On that cheery note, here’s the good word:

Dear MoveOn member,

It’s 2009. Democrats have ample majorities in both houses of Congress. President Obama campaigned on the promise to tackle climate change and boost our economy by investing in clean energy.

So why on earth is Congress considering an energy bill that:

* Would weaken current law, repealing President Obama’s authority to crack down on dirty power plants,1 and
* Doesn’t actually require the creation of new solar or wind power? (The Union of Concerned Scientists has concluded that the clean energy standards won’t make power companies produce more clean energy than is already in the works.)2

Why? Because Big Oil and Coal have teamed up with conservatives in both parties, and they’ve been successful in weakening the bill.

These are major flaws, but the bill has a lot of really good provisions, too. The key thing is that Congress can still strengthen it—if there’s a public outcry. But we don’t have much time: Congress is expected to vote on this bill in less than three weeks.

Can you sign this petition to Representative Barbara Lee today? Eighty thousand MoveOn members have already signed. We need to double the number of signatures by Wednesday—that means we need 245 more signatures in Oakland. MoveOn members will personally deliver this petition to many congressional offices the next day. Click here to add your name:

http://pol.moveon.org/cleanenergy/

The petition says: “We need a stronger energy bill to fulfill Obama’s vision of a clean energy economy. Congress should strengthen the clean energy standards and restore Obama’s authority to crack down on dirty coal plants.”

Congress must change the energy bill to require power companies to produce more clean energy for America. Wind and solar create more than twice as many jobs as coal and oil.3 And Congress needs to hold polluters accountable by restoring President Obama’s current authority through the EPA to crack down on global warming pollution from power plants.

The Union of Concerned Scientists analysis finds that the current version of the clean energy standard “won’t require utilities to use any more renewable electricity than…would be generated as a result of state renewable electricity standards already in place and the recently enacted stimulus package.”4

If we just sit back, we’ll miss our chance to go big with wind and solar—and we’ll lose the jobs those industries would create. Big Oil and Coal will keep getting billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies. And President Obama will be powerless to stop more than 100 new dirty coal plants, which will crowd out the clean energy growth we need to boost our economy.5

There are some good parts of the bill, but these are significant problems. As the Sierra Club’s Carl Pope writes, the bill establishes strong long-term goals for cutting carbon pollution and very strong energy-efficiency investments, “but in its present form, it won’t do all that’s needed. The oil, coal, and dirty-utility interests…were able to prevent enactment of President Obama’s much bolder vision…Yes, they will try to kill the green-jobs recovery in its cradle, and yes, they will try to block our clean-energy future.”6

Please urge Rep. Lee to fight for a stronger energy bill. Clicking here will add your name to the petition:

http://pol.moveon.org/cleanenergy/

Thanks for all you do.

–Anna, Michael, Joan, Noah and the rest of the team

Sources:
1. “Bill Needs Strengthening to Guarantee Necessary Carbon Reductions, New Green Jobs and Consumer Benefits, Science Group Says,” Union of Concerned Scientists, May 14, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51475&id=16315-5184359-vCH18Ox&t=6

2. “EPA urged to act on climate, not wait for Congress,” Associated Press, May 18, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51479&id=16315-5184359-vCH18Ox&t=7

“American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009,” Library of Congress, May 15, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51482&id=16315-5184359-vCH18Ox&t=8
3. “Green Recovery: A Program to Create Good Jobs and Start Building a Low-Carbon Economy,” Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, September 2008
http://www.peri.umass.edu/green_recovery/

4. “Bill Needs Strengthening to Guarantee Necessary Carbon Reductions, New Green Jobs and Consumer Benefits, Science Group Says,” Union of Concerned Scientists, May 14, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51475&id=16315-5184359-vCH18Ox&t=9

5. “Stopping the Coal Rush,” Sierra Club
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51483&id=16315-5184359-vCH18Ox&t=10

6. “So How Good Is This Climate Bill, Anyhow?” Sierra Club, May 22, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51478&id=16315-5184359-vCH18Ox&t=11