Electrons go 'round

We have started a new class this semester called "Interaction Design 3: Sensors and Senses". The first laboration turned out to be a real hands-on experience: we were asked to get us some soldering irons and ditto paste, and before we knew it, we were putting together our very own Arduino boards! Not everone had used a soldering iron before, and for me even, it was a very long time ago, but with the assistance of our bearded Spanish teacher, it turned out to be a breeze.

With this little micro-controller, we will be able to control things like LEDs, robot arms, or even MP3-players. Anything we can concieve of. You plug it in to your USB port, write and upload code using the processing/wiring language, and you have a compact, computer-independent prototype to present to art galleries and investors.