Multimachine -- truck-parts-based machine shop for Africa
Mike sez, "The multimachine is a milling machine, drill press, and lathe all in one machine that is made from old truck engines and other scrap parts. The very making of it imparts the skills needed to use it. It's of the 'teach a man to fish' school rather than the 'here, have a fish' school. Some hand tools are required to build it. I'd love to see a group handing out the tools needed to build one and the manual all over Africa.
"Right now if a NGO gives a well pump to a village in Africa, what does the village do when it breaks? With a multimachine, or tools like it, they can fix it themselves."
Link to PDF of manual, Link to Yahoo Group
(Thanks, Mike!)
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Cory Doctorow
Upcoming appearances
* Feb 9, 2012, DeKalb, IL: Day of Doctorow, NIU
* Feb 10-12, 2012, Chicago, IL: Capricon 32
* Feb 13, 2012, Arlington, TX: UT Arlington College of Engineering Distinguished Speaker Series
* Feb 16, 2012, Victoria, BC: 13th Annual Privacy and Security Conference
Recent books:
* Context (essays)
* With a Little Help (short stories)
* For the Win (YA novel)
* Makers (adult novel)
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