Hardware Hack Night: Hidden Potential Theme
Theme: Hidden Potential
There are millions of brilliant minds held back by lack of opportunities and circumstance who have potential on this Earth. We focus on many people who have overcome barriers to reach their potential and enrich the lives around us, especially in the areas of engineering, mathematics and the arts!
William Kakwumba
"William Kamkwamba ’14 built a wind turbine to bring power to his village. Now he’s powering up an innovation center for Malawi’s youth." - Call to lead
The inventor William Kakwumba had to drop out of school during famine, but he ended up persisting, seeking out books from a local library and inventing a windmill to provide power for his village in Malawi. He went on to attend university abroad and inspire inventors around the world by creating innovation centers for underprivileged youth.
Hack on Anything and Everything
○ Projects: can range from building course materials for teaching local kids electronics to a robotic arm that draws, to light projection art, to people building their own microchip boards! We provide the space, tools and peer learning – you bring your project and enthusiasm!
○ Group Sewing: Learn to do simple mending or get help with technical fabric and textile projects. In addition to regular machines our Sewing Lab features heavy-duty industrial sewing machines and sergers. Our in house sewing guru CC has worked for Academy or Art College, Tesla, SuitX, and Zipline and has vast sewing machine repair and maintenance experience; bring your own machine to tune up for tip-top operation and sew alongside others.
○ General Repair: Fix it Clinic’s weekly Oakland residency: bring your broken, non-functioning things – electronic gadgets, appliances, computers, toys, sewing machines, fabric items, etc.– for assessment, disassembly, and possible repair. We’ll provide workspace, specialty tools, and guidance to help you disassemble and troubleshoot your item. First-time repairers and “Fixing Families” are heartily invited. Learn more at https://www.fixitclinic.org/