Those who are so eco-conscious that they turn to environmentally-friendly alternatives for every kind of consumable energy can now have an option for short-distance travel. Check out the Solar Powered Trike, the ride that can let you be as green as you can be. More details in the full article.

Fancy getting your very own video projector without having to shell out a ton of cash? Then you may want to check out a DIY guide we picked up, which allows you to build your own for just US$ 50 (At least in the builder's case). Details on what you need are available in the full article.

Want to create something that you'd be proud of, and get addicted to as well? Why not try out this DIY handheld game project, a handy electronic rock, paper, scissors game? More details about this neat creation in the full article!

Full-on biometric charging might still be a thing of the future, but some enterprising individuals have started working on DIY projects that use basic human activities as a source of electrical power. Take this breath-powered USB charger on Instructables, for instance.

If you're reading this, chances are you're alive and breathing. Got a USB-chargeable gadget lying around? Thanks to jmengel's guide, you can now make a device that will charge your USB-capable pieces of technology through some good old-fashioned breathing. Hey, maybe in the future we can use something like this to power our uber-cool robotic exoskeletons or something.

According to the brains behind this gadget, this proof-of-concept is currently putting out around 50mW. The currents are on the order of 25mA. The creator also said that he'll only make an enclosure for the charger once he comes up with something smaller that can put out around 500mW or more.

Needless to say, this project is a bit complicated, but if you're looking for something to keep your hands and mind busy, click on the read link below to find out how to make one for yourself.

Tired of gazing at the same old monitor every single day? Want to buy rotating monitors to give your work (otherwise known as random net surfing) a little zing but you don't have any money for those expensive stands? Well, odrarek's handy little project may just save us from the ho-hum hours of sitting right in front of our computers.

Basically, odrarek has created a DIY project on making our very own rotating/pivoting stand for LCD monitors. As odrarek himself pointed out, this is "very useful in rotating 90 degrees your monitor in order to see or read documents in a portrait fashion." The materials needed are pretty easy to get hold of and the five-step procedure is fairly simple to follow. Follow the read link below to check the step-by-step process. Here's the list of the tools you'll need:

• Wood, 4 pieces, (1 column, 1 base, 2 pivots)
• lazy susan or turn base,
• 4 screws for the monitor
• 3 metal angles
• 12 wood screws

Odrarek says it helps him a lot with his work. We say this one's worth a try if only for the simple pleasure of surfing QJ.net left/right side up.

A bit scared of DIY? Taking up that soldering iron and doing something yourself enough to make you cry in a corner? Well, the guys at MAKE has just released a podcast that would "encourage" some people to try out DIY robotics.

Now don't go thinking about those robot gladiator shows on TV. These solar powered robots are a long way from the ones in Robotica. The robots (dubbed Beambots) are tiny and mostly composed of a solar panel, capacitors, and a motor. You can dig those up from you garage or salvage them from old toys. There are also kits you can get over the interwebs. So hopefully, armed with your soldering iron and wit you can make your own army of tiny robots.

You can check out the podcast if you're free for the weekend for some elbow grease and make your own Beambot.

We've posted about DIY robots before, but they usually came as a complete set of ready-to-assemble parts. The ones that Carnegie Mellon University researchers have developed don't, though, but they are simple enough to build with off-the-shelf parts. Plus, these sophisticated little machines can connect wirelessly to the internet.

The whole kit, called the Telepresence Robot Kit (TeRK), is composed of a single piece of hardware and a set of "recipes" that robot enthusiast can follow to build their own robots. TeRK was developed by Associate Professor of Robotics Illah Nourbakhsh and members of his Community Robotics, Education and Technology Empowerment (CREATE) Lab.

As such, the robots created using TeRK can take a variety of forms. Parts can be bought at hardware and hobbyist stores. The hardware that controls the TeRK robots is called Qwerk, a unique controller that combines a computer with the software and electronics necessary to control the robot’s motors, cameras and other devices. It also allows the robot to connect wirelessly to the 'net, letting users control their creations through any Internet-connected computer.

TeRK recipes currently available include one for a small wheeled robot armed with a video camera. Other recipes under development include environmental sensors for air quality and sound pollution, and there's even one that can control a stuffed teddy bear.

Oh-kaaaay... We weren't sure what to make of this at first glance but we're sure rattled and harassed parents would thank the Toy gods for this one. The Wurlybird is set to keep your tykes out of your hair at least until they get bored, get thrown off the machine, or get too sick from spinning around.

Kidding aside, the Wurlybird comes in two versions: the DIY Wurlybird Junior (rated for three to eight year olds) and the fully assembled Wurlybird Flyer (rated for 3 to 10 year olds). It's totally kid powered, (see those cranks?) has safety harnesses, and comes with a "Buddy bag" as a counterweight for solo riders. We think this should also come with a Wurlybird barf bag for queasy flyers, especially after watching the video (below).

Safety-wise, the Flyer set seems to have the upper hand as it features snap-around safety cage, safety harnesses, superior blow-mold seats, and foot supports on sprung legs as opposed to the Junior set's shoulder harnesses, designer high-sided seats, hand safety holding bars, foot rests, and rubberised non-slip feet on sprung legs.

The Wurlybird launches this spring, though there haven't been any announcements regarding pricing. Hmm... Maybe you can strap on a gyro somewhere there and let your Energizer bunny kids generate some electricity.

Thinking about making your own robot? Here's the perfect project to get you started: the Bioloid Humanoid Robotics Kit.

The Bioloid Humanoid Robotics Kit is a highly-customizable Korean DIY robot kit that can be configured as the default human form or assembled into any one of dozens of different robotic creatures. The Bioloid has 18 servos, a full motion editor and visual programming environment that allows you to make the Bioloid interact with its surroundings.

The kit also comes with several programs to make it walk, avoid obstacles, and interact with sound. The sensor module in the head of the robot features an IrDA receiver, three proximity sensors (left, right, and front), a mic for sound detection and a piezo-electric speaker. The Bioloid's brain is a CM-5 module that runs an Atmel ATMega128 based mcu. It's housed in the same molded plastic enclosure that also houses the robot's 9.6V rechargeable battery pack.

Please note that this thing's a kit and requires assembly. There's no soldering needed, but you do need some minor knowledge of how a screwdrivers works, as well as a good grasp of reading and following instructions. To see the Bioloid in action, just give the "via" link below a click. You can also order the whole kit for US$ 899.99 through the "via" link.

Remember Benjamin Heckendorn's almost-DS-sized Atari 2600 mod? Well, apparently he decided to put the thing side by side against Nintendo's chart topping hand-held. The results are more than amusing.

You'd have to admit that Heckendorn's skill is worth praise. He took an aged, yet still loved console and put it into your pocket. If every schmuck has the skill to do what he did, we'd probably be posting this as a DIY, thing is, would you really want to tinker that much?

For more images of the DS vs the VCSp Rv. 7, just click on our read-link below.