bunnie Huang discusses the Dabao campaign with the Baochip-1x

Andrew ‘bunnie’ Huang provides a comprehensive update to the CrowdSupply campaign for the Dabao Evaluation Board using the Baochip-1x microcontroller.

Major topics:

• The Baochip-1x’s key differentiating feature is the inclusion of a Memory Management Unit (MMU).
• The core argument as to why a “mostly open RTL” SoC is the right thing for this moment in time.
• “Hitchhiking” on a 22 nm chip designed primarily by Crossbar, Inc.
• Bringing the Baochip-1x into the market

Read all the fascinating details here.

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Making a 4116 dynamic RAM tester

Alexander Tsidaev posts a minimalist tester for 4116 dynamic RAM chips.

No relays, protection resistors, or control buttons. Built with point-to-point wiring; +12 V and −5 V are supplied by inexpensive DC-DC modules. Pinout allows connecting socket pins 2–6 directly to Arduino board holes.

Two output modes: LCD display or serial console. Without a display, status can be read from the board LEDs: steady on — chip OK, five short blinks — fault.

Aimed at quick chip verification without elaborate assembly or an enclosure.

See more on GitHub in English and Russian.

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MS-DOS 2.0 on the Apple IIe

Seth Kushniryk has been porting MS-DOS 2.0 to the Apple IIe using the AD8088 Plus coprocessor card. It’s an 8088 CPU on an expansion card with its own RAM and ROM. The card shipped with CP/M-86, available from nanja.info.

The original ALF advertising materials suggest there may have been an MS-DOS port at some point (they write about it in future tense, so I don’t know if it ever actually happened), but the original OS disks aren’t shared to any of the usual places. I decided to start my own port because I like directories and object-oriented Turbo Pascal, neither of which CP/M-86 supports. Today I got it to boot.

The Apple II bridge loads IO.SYS and MSDOS.SYS into 8088 RAM, then hands off to the 8088. The BIOS reads the BPB from the disk image boot sector, SYSINIT prints the copyright, COMMAND.COM loads and prompts for the date and time.

Check it out in the post here.

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PlasmatronX Built a CT Scanner to See Sound

PlasmatronX’s DIY scanner is wild. Like, mind melting and expanding wild. Check out the video on YouTube and see more on GitHub.

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Women’s History Month at NYPL

NYPL has a multitude of free events celebrating Women’s History Month. Click here to see what’s planned for the next day or 2 or browse through all the NYPL Women’s History Month events here.

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About NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program

NASA is leading the way in the future of air travel Via NASA.gov

Advanced Air Vehicles Program (AAVP) studies, evaluates and develops technologies and capabilities for new aircraft systems, and also explores far-future concepts that hold promise for revolutionary air-travel improvements.

The latest news from NASA’s Subsonic Vehicle Technologies and Tools (SVTT) project is available here and check out NASAs AAVP YouTube playlist!

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Chef vs. Robot: Will Automation Compliment or Displace the Restaurant Industry?

Traditional Wok vs robo-Wok, image via Sam Yellowhorse Kesler/NPR

 

On NPR’s Planet Money they dive into the growing world of robot chefs and what they mean for the restaurant industry. In a head to head competition a wok-bot goes against an award winning [human] chef with 13 years of experience. Along the way they explore the economic forces of robots in the industry: who are the winners and losers when robots come for the jobs?

Automation has changed many industries. But automation only started entering restaurant kitchens in the past couple decades. Which raises the question – what will robots mean for the restaurant industry? How will automation change jobs and how will it change the very food we eat?

Listen below!

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