Battery Christmas Lights

WonderHowTo is made up niche communities called Worlds. If you've yet to join one (or create your own), get a taste below of what's going on in the community. Check in every Wednesday for a roundup of new activities and projects. This week: Create a redstone calculator in Min ...more

R/C car manufacturer Losi just recently released the LOSI 1/10 TEN-T TRUGGY RTR, which is apparently the world's most advanced radio controlled car. The Ten-T is 18 inches long and 6.2 pounds, and operates like a real race car (but at 1/10 of the size). Check out these specs ...more

Allows a WYSIWIG approach to shooting with strobe LED lights, interesting concept, I guess the advantage is battery life vs using the light continuous.

If you take two flat mirrors and place them front to back and look at them, you can see an infinite number of reflections. While this is a self-replicating pattern and can be somewhat mesmerizing, it isn't anywhere as interesting as looking at the chaotic scattering of light t ...more

This is probably the least "Mathy" thing I will ever post. In my opinion, it's impossible to have architecture that isn't mathematical in some sense, so I am posting it anyway. Two years ago, I made a papercraft version of a cathedral in Christchurch New Zealand (It was severe ...more

Thanksgiving. It's sadly over. But happily replaced by the Christmas season! My apartment complex is already full of the Christmas spirit. Wreaths are tacked up on wooden doors, windows contain strands of bright and colorful lights, and there's even a few nearly decorated con ...more

In this article, I'll show you how to make a glowing orb. The orb is a fun, round flashlight useful for lighting your path in a magical way. Consisting simply of LEDs, a tennis ball, a battery and a switch, it's a great simple project for beginners with electronics. Here's a v ...more

I have an absolutely wonderful time making projects and writing articles for all of you mad scientists! Today, I will bring you behind the scenes for a look at the workbench, tools, and software that make the Mad Science World possible. Above is my beautiful workbench! My who ...more

It turns out that the popularity of soft circuit electronics has leaked out of the interwebs and into the hands of the U.S. military. Soft circuit electronics allow you to literally sew electronics circuits into fabric using flexible conductive thread instead of wire. Soft cir ...more

Just about every household gadget we own runs on 1.5 volt batteries of one size or another. Wouldn't it be great if you could reuse all of those dead AA, AAA, and D batteries after they've passed on? It turns out you can make a simple circuit called a "Joule Thief" to reanimat ...more

Rockets are lots of fun when you are launching them. However, finding them can be an arduous if not maddening task. Fancy space rockets have lots of tracking equipment to make touchdowns as simple as pie. Today, we look at embedding LEDs into your hobby rocket for easy night f ...more

A common misconception is that all car batteries die. This, in fact, isn't true—the majority of "dead" car batteries just don't contain enough juice to power a car, but they can still provide enough watts to keep emergency fans and lighting running, which is great when a power ...more

Chestnuts are roasting on an open fire, which can only mean one thing: Christmas is nearly here. It's the time of year we're supposed to spend with family and friends, but usually we spend it stressing out over what to buy everyone on our list without going over budget, or sho ...more

Afraid of the dark? You're only afraid of things you can't see. Just like an owl, see through the darkness, light up your imagination, and use your own owl eyes to make your very own Halloween hoot. To make this owl, you'll need black foam board, an X-Acto knife, LED lights, b ...more

You've probably tried just about every method of hanging your holiday decorations: nails, thumbtacks, sticky hooks, and, in desperation, even tape. Each method can leave a host of complications when removed, though, from chipping paint to visible holes. Your holiday adornment ...more

The holiday season wouldn't be the same without decorations. Ornaments and fancy lighting brightens up a neighborhood and helps spread the holiday cheer. While decorations and Christmas lights are fantastic, why not get a little more creative and some fun in the process? One ...more

Are you expecting a lot of guests for an upcoming holiday party? To make your home smell like the holiday season, simmer orange peels, cinnamon sticks, cranberries, and cloves with water on a stovetop for several hours to make your indoor space smell really good. You can also ...more

If you're tired of using the same old ornaments on your Christmas tree year after year, then it's time to experiment with borax snowflakes. It's not only a fun decoration to make, it's a great science project to try out with family and friends. All you need for to make DIY cry ...more

Forget those boring evergreen wreaths with the thick red ribbon and the pine cones that everyone else has hanging in their homes. Make your own DIY upcycled wreath using newspaper, paper shopping bags, cardboard coffee cup sleeves, toilet paper tubes, or even that trashy paper ...more

Don't toss out those cardboard tubes just yet. Whenever you have one leftover from a roll of paper towels, toilet paper, or wrapping paper, hang on to it, because it's got some great DIY potential. Cardboard tubes of all sizes can be handy for a variety of uses, from storing ...more

Some people put up their holiday decorations as soon as Thanksgiving is over. Some wait until Christmas Eve. Right now, the only thing in my whole apartment that would tip you off is a tiny little fake tree on the counter. I've been planning on decorating all month, but I have ...more

Holidays can be challenging, especially around Christmastime—but not if you invoke your inner MacGyver spirit. In my latest "life hacks" guide, I show you 10 amazing tips and tricks that'll hopefully make your holiday season a little more merry. Video: . If you're in need of s ...more

Broken glass Christmas ornaments? Evergreen wreath falling apart? Before you throw away or donate Christmas decorations you no longer need, see if you can reuse or recycle them for better use year-round or for next year's holiday season. Christmas ball ornaments can be used t ...more

This year, there's no need to waste time and energy stringing colorful Christmas lights all over your home and yard. All you need is the Circuit Marker from AgIC, a Japanese technology company, and you're ready to deck the halls. Video: . The marker, along with special circuit ...more

If you want to avoid the hassle of going out on New Year's Eve, you can always host your own New Year's Eve celebration at home—and it doesn't have to cost a lot, either. A few basic tips: Host your party after dinnertime so guests don't expect full entrees. Limit your guest ...more

Want to liven up your game of beer pong? You could always add more cups or play with paddles, or you could make your own custom table with 500 LED lights that flash in sync with your favorite tunes like Redditor did. Video: . First come the lights. This one was done by hand, b ...more

Plastic red cups are synonymous with college parties, beer pong, and generally a good time. The reason these cups are so rampant in the party scene is because they're cheap, easily disposable, and, well... who wants to drink out of a blue cup?!? Oh, to be young and in debt. O ...more

You've found the perfect tree — or so you think. As hard as we try to display an ideal tree each year, both plastic and pine can disappoint, especially when you're shopping on the cheap. Whether you use an artificial or authentic Christmas tree, sometimes you discover gaping, ...more

No matter what your holiday preference, you're probably aware that Christmas is now just days away. By now, you've already decked your halls with boughs of holly (either physically or virtually), thanks to our last holiday app roundup. With that in mind, let's take a look at ...more

The concept and structure of Christmas hasn't changed much since its inception. In its infancy, Christians recruited Roman pagans by associating Christmas with the Saturnalia, an ancient Roman festival in honor of the deity Saturn (also held in December). The pagans had long w ...more

Riding your bicycle at night is dangerous on busy streets, especially if you've got no bike lights. In most states, it's illegal to ride your bike at night without any lights because drivers on the road won't be able to see you until it's too late. Plus, how is anybody going t ...more

While the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has an integrated LED for notifications, it only works for a few things, like charging and low battery, and it only flashes two main colors (red and blue) when the screen's off. As someone that usually has their phone on silent or vibrate, it's ...more

Individually addressable LEDs, also commonly called "NeoPixels" after the popular Adafruit product, are a bright and colorful way to get started with basic Python programming. With an inexpensive ESP8266 or ESP32 microcontroller, it's easy to get started programming your own h ...more

While the Apple Watch does have up to 18 hours of battery life each day on a full charge, your results will vary depending on how often you use it and what you're actually doing with it. If your Apple Watch isn't lasting all day long, we've got some battery-saving tips you ca ...more

You can carve a pumpkin that smokes, has an LED display, or even one with the President's face on it, but if you want your jack-o'-lantern to really stand out—make it sing the Ghostbusters theme. Video: . The team over at Minion City made these animatronic pumpkins with their ...more

The new OnePlus One packs a 3,100 mAh battery that promises to last all day and night. While that will work for most, some of us don't quite know how to put our phone down and save some juice. If you're looking to help your battery out and possibly squeeze an extra hour or tw ...more

Advancements in technology have made it perfectly possible to make a short film or even an entire movie with your iPhone or Android — as long as you've got the right gear. Lenses, stabilizers, tripods, lighting, microphones, chargers, and cases can make the difference between ...more

After years of rumors, we got our Apple Watch, and we have our anniversary iPhone, so now everyone has moved on to a new Apple rumor obsession: Apple smartglasses. And, in keeping with Apple rumor tradition, we're getting some pretty imaginative ideas of what the next big Appl ...more

The new Moto X may not have a lot going for it when it comes to hardware, but there are some pretty cool software features that makes it a tempting device. One of these cool features is its Active Display notifications that appear on the lock screen. This feature gives immedi ...more

Being Jewish is kind of tough this time of year. Folks are putting up their lights, stringing popcorn and cranberries, and decorating trees. Those of us who don't celebrate Christmas start to feel a wee bit left out in the cold. Yes, some families give out presents on each of ...more

Christmas is just a few weeks away and the decorating has already begun. The centerpiece for most home during the holiday is, of course, the Christmas tree. But let's face it—that tree can be a big pain in the ass to decorate. You'll run out of tinsel, your lights will be too ...more

At night, it can be pretty difficult to see what's inside drawers and cabinets, unless you have night vision or something. Sure, you can turn on the light, but sometimes you're in such a hurry that you don't have 5 seconds to walk over to the light switch and turn it on. Perh ...more

If you ride your bike at night frequently, you've probably had at least one close call with a car, pedestrian, or some other moving obstacle because of reduced visibility. Not only is it dangerous to ride at night without lights, it's illegal in a lot of places. Make sure no o ...more