🌱Hydroponics: Starting Small

Hydroponics is gowing​ plants without soil.

Instead of soil providing nutrients, A & B nutrient solutions (the 2 bottles pictured) are mixed together.

The proportions are changed to target vegetative growth and flowering at different stages of a plant's life.

It means providing the plant with exactly what it needs, including water, eliminating waste.

It is easier than ever with the cost of efficient grow lights, nutrient solutions, and other items necessary to grow using hydroponics - including videos and guides online.

Each set up requires tuning to make sure the lights aren't burning the plants, ventilation is sufficient to prevent mold or overheating.

Start small and work your way up and don't be put off from initial setbacks.

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💡Applied 3D Printing: wall mounts...

A cheap Minecraft-style rechargeable torch toy with a fold-out mounting arrangement came with adhesive pegs to mount it anywhere you want;

But because we don't want it stuck on the walls and ripping off paint and possibly to move it to other locations, we 3D designed and printed a mount that works with PVC electrical conduits throughout the room;

We also mount things like smoke detectors and smart home control panels and sensors with similar 3D printed mounting systems which used bolts and can be moved anywhere there is conduit;

🌱Hydroponics​ update...

Because of extreme heat in the room we initially tried to grow in, sprouts weren't surviving.

By creating a small test grow box and placing it in a cooler room which uses air conditioning much of the time, this batch of test sprouts are turning into larger plants.

The next step will be to test whether or not once started, the plants can survive in the bigger grow area despite the heat of the room it's in.

🤖 Applied​ Artifical Intelligence: Generating Images for School Projects

▪️AI tools like Gemini include powerful image generation capabilities you can use to create covers for videos, concept designs for real-world projects but also images for school projects like coloring pages and worksheets, diagrams, and material for larger projects and presentations;

▪️This one involved different animal habitats (forest, desert, jungle, ocean, & arctic) with AI creating a consistent design in terms of size & style for both the background/ground and cut-out animals in the environment you couldn't get through traditional internet image searches;

▪️The final presentation's​ consistency would only have been possible previously if the animals and environments were custom drawn before AI tools became available;

▪️This is a simple example of how AI tools can be used for creating real world projects using a printer and common school materials;