Slashdot Ask Slashdot Story | Scientific R&D At Home?

Slashdot Ask Slashdot Story | Scientific R&D At Home?: "An anonymous reader writes 'I'm currently on the cusp of getting myself a new hobby and making some investments. There are a few areas that interest me greatly, from playing with EEG/ECG and trying to put together a DIY sleep lab, to astronomy, etc. I'm somewhat hesitant to get into these fields because (despite the potentially short-lived enjoyment factor) I'm not convinced they are areas that would lend themselves to making new discoveries in the home and with home equipment, which is what I'd really like to do. I've also read quite a number of articles on 'bio hacking,' and the subject seems interesting, but it also seems futile without an expensive lab (not to mention years of experience). What R&D hobbies do Slashdotters have that provide them with opportunities to make interesting discoveries and potentially chart new territory in the home? Do such hobbies exist?'
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Submission: Scientific R&D At Home by Anonymous Coward
Scientific R&D At Home? | Preferences | Top | 253 comments (Spill at 50!) | Index Only | Search Discussion
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* Signal Processing, M'boy by gjyoung (Score:1) Monday May 24, @02:52AM
o Re:Signal Processing, M'boy by kumma (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:24AM
o Theoretical Physics/Maths by Roger W Moore (Score:2) Monday May 24, @04:52AM
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Special Equipment (Score:5, Informative)
by fyngyrz (762201) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @06:14AM (#32316778) Homepage Journal

There's another concern about special equipment as well -- for instance, in the US, some types of glassware needed to explore chemistry, and perhaps to some extent biology, have been classified as 'drug paraphernalia' by our insane government. You can get in some rather severe legal binds because you honestly want to 'do' science if you just go about it like an innocent person would.

One oft-quoted example is that it is illegal in Texas to own anything with a ground glass joint; the rumor is that you can get a permit to get around this, so that's something to try... of course, if they don't issue the permit, you've lost your anonymity and that's the end of anything that requires that type of glassware.

You can be sure there are rules and regulations about chemicals themselves, too. Heck, around here (Montana), if you buy a bottle of NyQuil at one pharmacy, then go to another and buy one, you're going to be arrested almost immediately. They presume, you see, that you are going to manufacture Meth. Apparently our legislators have never experienced cold symptoms. Or maybe they're just fucking retarded (based on other evidence, I generally go with the latter.) In any case, don't assume that you can buy some innocuous thing and no one will pay any attention. There's a whole world of surveillance and paranoia waiting to see what you might do. To you, it's pursuit of science, and noble. To the prosecutor, it's just a feather in their cap. Don't let those two worlds collide, ever.
--
Blog [fyngyrz.com] // also, tee-shirts!

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# Re:Special Equipment by Wyatt Earp (Score:1) Monday May 24, @09:19AM
# Re:Special Equipment by geezer nerd (Score:1) Monday May 24, @10:11AM
# Re:Special Equipment by the gnat (Score:2) Monday May 24, @10:13AM
* Re:Special Equipment by tibit (Score:2) Monday May 24, @01:11PM
# Re:Special Equipment by Anonymous Coward (Score:1) Monday May 24, @10:13AM
+ Re:Theoretical Physics/Maths by thrawn_aj (Score:2) Monday May 24, @10:52AM
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Do what you enjoy... (Score:3, Informative)
by houstonbofh (602064) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @02:56AM (#32315272)
Do what you enjoy first, and the money will come. (For example, it may just be marketing cheaper ways to do an expensive hobby) If you chase the money first, you can forget the enjoyment. Also, you may want to read http://www.amazon.com/No-More-Mondays-Yourself-Revolutionary/dp/0385522525 [amazon.com]

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Re:Do what you enjoy... (Score:4, Informative)
by seanadams.com (463190) * writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:17AM (#32315448) Homepage
You didn't answer his question at all, which I thought was a good one. He said nothing of earning a living but rather to 'make interesting discoveries and potentially chart new territory in the home'. Well, he did say 'make an investment' but I read that as 'in myself / my hobby'.

I don't know the answer. The areas of science that I could imagine practicing at home are well trodden. That's not going to stop me from making electromechanical things for fun, but I don't expect to change the the world with it.

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+ Re:Do what you enjoy... by Anonymous Coward (Score:3) Monday May 24, @04:54AM
# Re:Do what you enjoy... by scdeimos (Score:2) Monday May 24, @10:11AM
* Re:Do what you enjoy... by Sperbels (Score:2) Monday May 24, @01:53PM
+ Re:Do what you enjoy... by plover (Score:3) Monday May 24, @07:19AM
+ Re:Do what you enjoy... by ajlisows (Score:2) Monday May 24, @11:35AM
o Re:Do what you enjoy... by sillybilly (Score:2) Monday May 24, @04:01AM
+ Re:Do what you enjoy... by jdpars (Score:2) Monday May 24, @05:27AM
+ 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
o Re:Do what you enjoy... by Wiarumas (Score:2) Monday May 24, @04:43AM
o Re:Do what you enjoy... by Hurricane78 (Score:2) Monday May 24, @05:51AM
o 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
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Help start the revolution! (Score:5, Insightful)
by FlyByPC (841016) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @02:56AM (#32315274) Homepage
Robotics is always interesting. Servo motors are pretty easy to control, once you learn a little microcontroller programming. All you need is a basic understanding of algebra; write a few timing loops and angle-to-pulse-width conversion routines and you're there. (I've been using PIC16 microcontrollers, which do this sort of thing nicely.)

Besides, that way, you'd have a good chance of being among the first to officially welcome our new robotic overlords!
--
Paleotechnologist [paleotechnologist.net] and connoisseur of pretty shiny things.

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Re:Help start the revolution! (Score:5, Informative)
by negRo_slim (636783) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @02:59AM (#32315300) Homepage
http://societyofrobots.com/ [societyofrobots.com]
--
last.fm/user/milsorgen

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+ Re:Help start the revolution! by sproketboy (Score:1) Monday May 24, @09:36AM
o Re:Help start the revolution! by vanderbosch (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:05AM
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Re:Help start the revolution! (Score:4, Informative)
by zero0ne (1309517) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:22AM (#32315484) Journal

Phidgets [phidgets.com] If you would like a bit of an easier ride.

Version 2.0 of their Phidgets SBC is going to be really slick, but don't expect it anytime soon.

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o Re:Help start the revolution! by Anonymous Coward (Score:3) Monday May 24, @03:30AM
+ 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
o Re:Help start the revolution! by Hal_Porter (Score:1) Monday May 24, @03:38AM
o Re:Help start the revolution! by imag0 (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:43AM
o Re:Help start the revolution! by ma1wrbu5tr (Score:1) Monday May 24, @03:48AM
* Whoa there Dr. Octopus by negRo_slim (Score:1) Monday May 24, @02:57AM
o Re:Whoa there Dr. Octopus by Beezlebub33 (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:53AM
o 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
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Absolutely (Score:4, Insightful)
by b4upoo (166390) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @02:59AM (#32315296)

The prime frontier is in software. New concepts and applications based upon scientific discoveries are all over the world of software.

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o Re:Absolutely by Grampa John (Score:1) Monday May 24, @09:57AM
o Re:Absolutely by geezer nerd (Score:1) Monday May 24, @10:34AM
o 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
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Astronomy! (Score:5, Insightful)
by Colonel Korn (1258968) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:00AM (#32315306)

Only a few hundred planets outside the solar system have been discovered. Some of those were found from backyards by amateurs.

Check out The Sky is Your Laboratory by Robert Buckheim. It's a ~$30 book that will show you how you can participate in meaningful astro research with no equipment beyond a stopwatch for the simplest stuff. Later chapters get increasingly complex and show you how to do things that be pretty big contributions to the field.
--
'If you die the Octomom will have another baby and replace you.' - elucido (870205)

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Re:Astronomy! (Score:5, Informative)
by Random Walk (252043) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:24AM (#32315498)

In all fairness, if you want to make a contribution that is worth co-authorship of a paper, you might need at least a good amateur telescope (maybe on the order of 10 inch aperture) and a CCD camera.

With such equipment, and clear skies, you can do photometric monitoring of stars (e.g. for outbursts, or planet transits). Asronomers always have the problem that big observatories focus on big telescopes, and it's difficult to do things that require small telescopes, but long-term monitoring.

One example would be monitoring of the transits of extrasolar planets, to detect timing anomalies (which could be caused by undetected additional planets). Or monitoring stars with planets detected by radial velocity variations, to discover eventual transits. Or monitoring of ongoing gravitational lens events... there are quite a few oportunities for amateurs.

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+ Re:Astronomy! by DerekLyons (Score:2) Monday May 24, @06:35AM
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Re:Astronomy! (Score:4, Informative)
by Xolotl (675282) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @07:08AM (#32317220) Journal

Since it's astronomers that build and operate the observatories, and we've discovered, among other things, exoplanets from long term monitoring programs at said observatories... your statement makes little sense.

Given the low cost of high end amateur grade scope, if useful science could truly be done on it, where are the ongoing proposals from the astronomers that such things be be built/obtained?

-

GP is correct. The long term monitoring for exoplanets was done at professional observatories, but using what are now considered 'small' telescopes, equivalent to large-ish amateur telescopes . But there is only so much money and so much professional manpower for these. Amateurs with a good location, telescope and camera and some care can indeed contribute to real, published research, monitoring comets, asteroids, variable stars of all types, exoplanets and stars which might have exoplanets, or looking for supernovae. It's a very good field for amateurs.

here are some (non-exhaustive) examples and discussion:
http://www.aavso.org/aavso/about/pro_am.pdf [aavso.org]

(disclaimer: I am a professional astronomer)

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# Re:Astronomy! by honkycat (Score:2) Monday May 24, @01:10PM
+ 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
o Re:Astronomy! by MadMorf (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:28AM
o Re:Astronomy! by sjames (Score:2) Monday May 24, @06:18AM
o Re:Astronomy! by kurokame (Score:1) Monday May 24, @06:18AM
o 2 replies beneath your current threshold.
* Homemade science by thms (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:04AM
o 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
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Einstein had no lab (Score:3, Insightful)
by ThreeGigs (239452) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:04AM (#32315336)

Einstein didn't have a lab. His lab was his brain, and his 'thought experiments' were obviously productive.

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o Re:Einstein had no lab by sillybilly (Score:2) Monday May 24, @04:45AM
+ Re:Einstein had no lab by sillybilly (Score:2) Monday May 24, @05:01AM
# Re:Einstein had no lab by sillybilly (Score:2) Monday May 24, @06:01AM
o Re:Einstein had no lab by Hurricane78 (Score:2) Monday May 24, @05:55AM
o Re:Einstein had no lab by EagleFalconn (Score:1) Monday May 24, @10:04AM
o 2 replies beneath your current threshold.
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Well, it would seem to me... (Score:5, Insightful)
by taoboy (118003) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:04AM (#32315344)

...that you're more interested in the recognition than the achievement. Most folks I know who make real breakthroughs in a discipline are genuinely interested in the discipline.

I occasionally teach and mentor in a doctorate program, and my essential observation is that those who are interested in the topic have a higher probability of finishing than those who are 'chasing the paper'. Even those of the latter category who finish the program eventually find such a perspective catches up with them in the workplace or in academia.

I don't mean to sound trollish here, but you need to search your motivations and go for the thing that really interests you. That'll render reward far past achieving 'just something, anything' And that motivation will overcome obstacles such as home-based, etc. You'll find a way, if it interests you...

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o Re:Well, it would seem to me... by Z8 (Score:3) Monday May 24, @04:39AM
+ Re:Well, it would seem to me... by ceoyoyo (Score:3) Monday May 24, @05:37AM
# Re:Well, it would seem to me... by taoboy (Score:1) Monday May 24, @08:34AM
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You totally picked the wrong optical hobby, dude (Score:5, Interesting)
by vlm (69642) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:07AM (#32315372)

... lab, to astronomy, etc....

You totally picked the wrong optical hobby dude. Unless you live in some sort of paradise, its either going to be too cold, too hot, too rainy, too buggy, too cloudy, too windy for lightweight mounts, or bad temp inversions, about 99% of the time. Now, a microscope, on the other hand, maybe with a cam attachment hooked up to a PC, with some image analysis software, that could be big fun under any weather condition. And they both cost about the same, less than a car payment for junk, about a single monthly mortgage payment for the good stuff, and about one decent used car for used pro-grade hardware.

Also, we all look at the same sky. That means intense competition. But we all have different dirt and ponds. Yet another vote for microscope.

I'm not convinced they are areas that would lend themselves to making new discoveries in the home and with home equipment, which is what I'd really like to do.

Yeah well you're about to learn the hard part is not deciding what to buy, or even whipping out a credit card, the hard part is figuring out how you'll determine its something new. Pretty easy if you want to discover something new to you, look, an algae species I've never photographed before. Pretty hard if you want to darn near prove a negative, prove no human being has ever photographed that particular species of algae before.

Something New is not necessarily discovering a new individual thing. Something New might be using yer computer and some homemade software that emulates a red blood cell counter to chart the population of algae per sample vs ... something, to make interesting predictions, or discover a new effect. Or turning your computer-microscope into the worlds weirdest spectrophotometer, to measure ... something.

What R&D hobbies do Slashdotters have that provide them with opportunities to make interesting discoveries and potentially chart new territory in the home? Do such hobbies exist?

On the other hand, one good thing about the astronomy hobby is the AAVSO, American Association of Variable Star Observers. You'd never guess that their URL happens to be:

http://www.aavso.org/ [aavso.org]

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o Re:You totally picked the wrong optical hobby, dud by Ifandbut (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:13AM
o 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
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I've often pondered... (Score:5, Interesting)
by skids (119237) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:07AM (#32315376) Homepage

...building a 'museum' of silly 'perpetual motion' machines from designs on the web.

As far as serious 'science' might I suggest this -- while groundbreaking research is mostly hi-tech requiring expensive equipment, one thing that doesn't get done much anymore is well within reach: verifying or debunking claims about various products. This can range from, say, taking time lapse photos of -- oh, I don't know, the progress of competing wart removers -- to basic qualitative chemical analysis of product ingredients (is that fish oil actually mercury-free).

Another idea might be designing coffee table doodads that show off scientific phenomena or engineering tricks.
--
Someone had to do it. [github.com]

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Re:I've often pondered... (Score:4, Informative)
by phantomfive (622387) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:51AM (#32315702) Homepage Journal

I don't know, the progress of competing wart removers

I really like your idea, but I want to make a comment on the difficulty of this one. I had three warts that I wanted to remove, but I wasn't sure how well the salicylic acid would work, so I only tried it on one of them. Weird thing is, as soon as it worked on one, the other two warts disappeared on their own, without anything. So to be sure, you would want to apply the treatments on different people. Maybe you could do an internet request to find people who have warts, want to get rid of them, and are willing to go along with the experiment.

Incidentally, compound-w freeze off actually made my warts bigger. Stay away from that stuff. (YMMV)
--
World Peace is Easy [p5y.org]

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+ Re:I've often pondered... by skids (Score:3) Monday May 24, @03:57AM
+ 2 replies beneath your current threshold.
o Re:I've often pondered... by FlightlessParrot (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:10AM
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What are the chances? (Score:5, Insightful)
by Mindcontrolled (1388007) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:07AM (#32315380)
The probability of you making a significant discovery at home is close to zero. That is not meant to disencourage you. I spent enough time in professional labs myself to know that you can work for years on end on a scientific topic professionally without making any significant discoveries. However, home science is fun, so, by all means, go ahead with it! Just don't choose your field on the vague possibility of discovering something of greater meaning, just pick something that is actually FUN to you.

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o Re:What are the chances? by BioStatMatt (Score:1) Monday May 24, @03:20AM
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Re:What are the chances? (Score:4, Informative)
by Councilor Hart (673770) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:30AM (#32315532)
Sample bias.

For every Edison, Tesla and others, there are thousands and thousands of unknown people.

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+ Re:What are the chances? by grizdog (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:52AM
+ Re:What are the chances? by geezer nerd (Score:1) Monday May 24, @10:45AM
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Re:What are the chances? (Score:4, Informative)
by hey! (33014) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:20AM (#32315476) Homepage Journal

The probability of a scientists making a significant discovery in his lab isn't much better than zero. The Flemming 'Gee this moldy stuff might kill germs' is not even a once-in-a-career moment for the vast majority of scientists. Scientists work in a community, and the majority of them advance that community by applying tiny deltas to the scientific consensus.

I think if you want to be an amateur scientist, you might find it most rewarding to choose a branch of science with an enthusiastic amateur community, such as comet hunting or meteorology.
--
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.

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+ Re:What are the chances? by pete-wilko (Score:3) Monday May 24, @05:51AM
+ Re:What are the chances? by femtoguy (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:04AM
# Re:What are the chances? by Mindcontrolled (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:46AM
# Re:What are the chances? by rjiy (Score:1) Monday May 24, @01:33PM
o Re:What are the chances? by TombGuard (Score:1) Monday May 24, @07:29AM
+ Re:What are the chances? by Mindcontrolled (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:38AM
o Define 'significant' by edremy (Score:2) Monday May 24, @11:29AM
* ASTRONOMY. by Higaran (Score:1) Monday May 24, @03:08AM
o 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
* community colleges by Takichi (Score:2) Monday May 24, @03:09AM
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Sounds like you need a collaborator (Score:3, Interesting)
by damn_registrars (1103043) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:11AM (#32315406) Homepage Journal
I would suggest you check with your local university or public research institution to see who is involved in fields that interest you. You may be able to catch a talk where they say something like 'I have found XYZ but I don't have a way to monitor or experiment on BCD', where you may be able to find an angle that you can assist with.

If you read into the history of Medtronic (and the pacemaker itself) you'll find that their beginnings weren't too far from what I just described - an inventor with an interest working with a physician researcher with a need.
--
Slashdotters who favor murder [slashdot.org]

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o Re:Sounds like you need a collaborator by EagleFalconn (Score:1) Monday May 24, @10:13AM
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Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever existed) (Score:3, Insightful)
by Faizdog (243703) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:11AM (#32315414)

It's great that you'd like to tinker around and play with stuff at home. You may learn some things, and it will definitely present with some interesting engineering problems. But true scientific R&D, where you discover something new, forget about it for the most part.

The only domains where a lone tinkerer can still make an impact and 'discover' something new is in pure math, or algorithmic research. And even there, it's a rare thing.

The days of the lone researcher are long since past, if they ever really existed in modern history. Sure during the Renaissance and through the 1800s and early 1900s a lone researcher could discover/invent something new. However, even during the latter part of the aforementioned time period, the individuals in questions (Maxwell, Faraday, Watt, Bell, etc) often had years/decades of experience and/or education in the fields they made discoveries in. And the myth of the lone inventor during this latter part wasn't really true, for example Edison had a large lab full of employees for his research.

In the contemporary time period, it's HIGHLY unlikely (I'm just reluctant to say impossible). All the low level hanging fruit in most fields has been mined. There's a reason that PhDs take a long time, there's a lot to learn and catch up on. Also, most discoveries, especially in basic science ( Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy) require lots of expensive capital equipment and labs to do. And often, it's not just one scientist, but an entire team of collaborators working on a problem from many different angles.

Now, there may be some interesting inventions/engineering solutions a lone inventor can PERHAPS come up with, but they wouldn't be new scientific discoveries. Also, as another refinement of my point, there are some things an individual can still do, like say perhaps discover a new species, but not in their backyard (unless you live in Brazil). Even then, you need a commitment of resources and time to explore the still hidden parts of the world, in the rainforest, or deep under the sea.

So, while the concept of the lone scientist is romantic, exciting and inspiring, in the modern era it's unrealistic in my opinion.
--
-'Those who fought today will die tommorow.'-

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o Re:Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever exist by fuzzyfuzzyfungus (Score:3) Monday May 24, @04:08AM
+ Of course there are opportunities. by fyngyrz (Score:2) Monday May 24, @06:35AM
# Re:Of course there are opportunities. by poliscipirate (Score:1) Monday May 24, @06:50AM
* Re:Of course there are opportunities. by plover (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:31AM
* Re:Of course there are opportunities. by fyngyrz (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:46AM
o 2 replies beneath your current threshold.
o Re:Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever exist by Ceriel Nosforit (Score:3) Monday May 24, @04:09AM
o Re:Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever exist by Anonymous Coward (Score:2) Monday May 24, @05:25AM
o Re:Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever exist by phantomfive (Score:2) Monday May 24, @07:59AM
o Re:Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever exist by QuestionsNotAnswers (Score:1) Monday May 24, @09:35AM
o Re:Days of Garage Inventor long gone(if ever exist by RandCraw (Score:1) Monday May 24, @11:17AM
o 3 replies beneath your current threshold.
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Ask A Radio Ham (Score:3, Interesting)
by Ganty (1223066) writes: Alter Relationship on Monday May 24, @03:14AM (#32315426)

I do research into high IP3 HF receiver front ends, other radio hams are working with software defined radios, recovering digital signals from noise, DSP chips and even the way the brain perceives sound.

Ganty HA5RXZ

- Sent using Google Toolbar"