Duckweed and String Algae

The video above is one of the best for both duckweed and string algae.

String Algae may begin to grow in your system.  Its not all bad because it can be useful as a fish food, but it tends to clog the system.  If your fish dont keep it under control a small amount of salt in the water will kill the string algae.

There are many varieties of duckweed.  I have two, but one or the other will tend to prevail depending on the time of year.  Duckweed can be rinsed and used in salads and it provides good protein for your fish.    Under ideal conditions duckweed will double its volume in just a few days, but you will probably have to raise your duckweed separate from your fish because they will eat it faster than it reproduces.

Duckweed cleans the water, but it can also exclude oxygen if it grows too thick.  It prefers warm water, and seems to grow out of control when the conditions are right.  Creating the right conditions can be difficult, so I spread it around various areas and let it grow where it wants to grow. 


Good article about Duck Weed
http://www.fao.org/Ag/AGAInfo/resources/documents/DW/Dw2.htm

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Like Arduino Like Python Check Out Micro Python

My knowledge about electronics and microcontrollers (MCUs) leaves a lot to be desired. My knowledge about computer programming, and Python in particular, leaves even more to be desired. However, if you like MCUs and Python, you might want to take a look at Micro Python, as Im doing tonight.

Micro Python pinout (from Kickstarter)

A Design News article from July 17 that I saw gives a brief overview of Micro Python. One of points of interest for me on this board is that the MCU is from STMicroelectronics. The only other blog post Ive written about an STM board is the June 22 one about the $50 Lab-in-a-box. That board also had an STM32F4 MCU.

"The Micro Python board is based on the STM32F405 Microcontroller. It comes ready for Python programming...running 168MHz, with 1MiB Flash and 192KiB...The Micro Python board has a built-in interface for USB and functions much like a storage device. Programmers can write their Python scripts directly onto the battery-operated board and once stored, the Micro Python board will function entirely independent of a PC...the micro Python board comes pre-loaded with a micro SD slot, four LEDs, a clock that functions in real time, accelerometer, switch, and 30 I/O pins, including USARTS, SPIs, 12C buses, DAC and AC pins, and four powered servo ports...it functions right out of the box, as its pre-installed with Micro Python...What’s really unique about this board isn’t the board itself, but the program upon which it’s based...Python can write functions, execute string processes, write classes, create lists and dictionaries, read and write files, create a generation

Packing Micro Python for shipment (from Kickstarter)

system, execute closures, design list comprehensions, and deal with execution handling. The Micro Python software is a leaner, cleaner version of Python intended for the microcontroller, but it actually works for PCs, too...Micro Python software is already available to the public through the MIT open-source license..."

The development of Micro Python board was completed with funding from a Kickstarter campaign that was successfully funded on December 13, 2013. The campaign generated more than six times the initial funding goal of £15,000 set by its founder, Damien George, an Australian theoretical physicist at the University of Cambridge. In Damiens latest update on the Kickstarter site (June 21), he says they just finished sending out the last of the kits and boards to his Kickstarter supporters. The picture above looks like he had a pretty crowded apartment or house when they were packing everything up for shipment! An interesting Kickstarter side-note is that another campaign on there, SliceCase, leveraged the popularity of Micro Python by offering a case for that board as one of the SliceCase rewards. The SliceCase campaign only asked for £1000 and got 9X the original ask.

Micro Python SliceCase

The SliceCase / Micro Python synergy brings up a revenue opportunity that takes advantage short term trends. In my recent post about Spark.io, two principles I mentioned for the Humboldt tech, innovator, maker and entrepreneur (TIME) community to leverage are (1) focus on emerging technologies and trends (e.g. Python language and the maker movement) and (2) use Kickstarter and similar sites to launch products and gain visibility. In this instance, SliceCase no doubt benefited from the buzz that Micro Python had generated. It would be fun to launch a Humboldt Crowdfunding Entrepreneurs Meetup group, where half the purpose is to take an abundance economy approach (a rising tide floats all boats rather than I want my piece of the pie) to Kickstarter and Indiegogo and people in the Meetup group would help each other become more successful at crowdfunding campaigns. The other half of the groups purpose would be to monitor crowdfunding projects on Kickstarter, Indiegogo and elsewhere, and to quickly and efficiently build crowdfunding campaigns that leverage publicity and successful funding of other crowdfunding campaigns.

The Micro Python is open source. Heres the GitHub project site to check out if thats of interest to you. I was glad I took a look at the GitHub site because it showed me that at least one GitHub site has a wiki component. I know less about GitHub than I do about microcontrollers and Python (sensing a theme here??), but I have several reasons to learn how to use GitHub effectively. One of those reasons is because the Humboldt Laser Harp (HLH) project code repository is being put on GitHub. I like wikis for aggregating and organizing technical information, and Im looking forward to giving the wiki component of GitHub sites a look to see if has benefits for the HLH project.

In addition to finding out about wikis on GitHub, tonights blog post also made me aware of a tech acronym that I either havent seen before (which is hard to believe) or just dont remember. That acronym is MiB. And it doesnt mean "Men in Black." What it does stand for is mebibyte, where mebi is a binary prefix which means 2 to the 20th power. It is apparently used as a more accurate alternative to megabyte (MB). The Wikipedia entry for mebibyte says:

She turned me into a newt!

"1 mebibyte is 1048576bytes...The unit has been accepted for use by all major standards organizations, appears increasingly in scholarly literature and is part of the International System of Quantities. Many Linux distributions use the unit, but the unit has not been widely accepted in the computer industry or popular media."

Micro Python has enough visibility that it was written up in Wired in December 2013, and in June 2014 there was a blurb about it in InfoWorld. With Python currently being "the most popular language for teaching introductory computer science courses at top-ranked U.S. departments," and with a relatively active community on GitHub with 31 contributors, 2544 commits and 1082 stars, the Micro Python project stands a decent chance of building critical mass and being around for a few years. Lastly, if youre interested in learning more about the creator of Micro Python, theres a Hack A Day interview with him from November 2013.

If you want to play with a Micro Python board, you can sign up on the projects website, although I didnt see any estimated shipping date for people who werent Kickstarter supporters.

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How To Make a Check Valve

Check valves are handy but they can be expensive.
Here are two similar ideas that you can build for very little cash.

How To Make a One-Way Check Valve - For Cheap!!

 

Making A Zero Back Pressure Check Valve

 

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Contests Saving Money RFduino Road Tests Special Buys And Reduced Prices

Tonights post has four items that may be of interest to someone who wants to build something cool or save a few dollars on parts for MCU projects. First, we have two build something cool opportunities.

RFduino

Symmetry Electronics and their ecommerce division, SemiconductorStore.com, are sponsoring a design-build contest called "We Know RFduino." The idea is to design and build something with RFduino, make and upload a video about your project, then promote the heck out of your project to get a lot of people to watch your video. The video with the most views in September 2014 wins $1000. There are also 2nd and 3rd place prizes. Everybody who participates gets a $25 store credit at SemiconductorStore.com when the contest finishes. (Heres a link to their Kickstarter campaign for a little background on the component.)

Four reasons for Humboldt microcontroller users to consider entering this contest are:

1. Just for participating, youll get a $25 store credit at the SemiconductorStore.
2. If you win 1st, 2nd or 3rd place, you could win some cash.
3. If youve been wanting to build an MCU project with wireless, this could be a good excuse.
4. Having Humboldt people participate in this contest is a good way to promote the microcontroller community in the area. Even if you dont win, you might meet one or a few new people from Humboldt who are interested in MCUs.

The second contest type MCU activities are the Road Tests at element14. The Road Test webpage at element14 says:

"RoadTest is a group dedicated to testing and reviewing new products. RoadTesters are chosen from element14 members who apply to test equipment and volunteer to write a review. The equipment provided to reviewers is mainly development or evaluation kits for microprocessors from manufacturers such as Texas Instruments, Freescale and Microchip. Test equipment is also occasionally featured with equipment from Agilent, Fluke, TTi and Tektronix. More recently the reviewers have been given other demonstration boards from traditionally analogue manufacturers like Analog Devices, Linear Technology and Maxim."

For more details, go to the Road Test webpage, look over the different Road Tests that are currently open, and if none of them sound right for you, keep an eye on new ones that come up.

Ed Smith made a good comment to me when we were talking about one of the MCU-related contests. He suggested that before you enter a contest, make sure the benefit you can get from participating in it is worth the cost. If you get a free $20 part and end up spending a bunch of additional money and / or time that you otherwise might not have spent, maybe the contest wasnt worth getting into. Caveat emptor.

In the saving money category for tonights post, the first item is Jamecos Special Buys Outlet. I got an email today from Jameco promoting their Special Buys. I looked at some of the stuff in their outlet, but I havent done enough electronics to know if those are good prices for things lots of people actually want, or if its clearance racks for items which have very narrow appeal. Check it out and see if there are any items you cant live without...

The other saving money item for tonights post is another element14 item -- their reduced prices on popular development kits & evaluation boards special deals. John H sent me a link to this, so I wanted to pass it along to others who might benefit from it. The primary items I thought may be of interest to people in the Humboldt Microcontrollers

TI HAP-TOUCH BoosterPack

Group are the two Texas Instruments (TI) BoosterPacks. At least Ed and Nick have worked with the TI MCUs and these might be good prices for the HAP-TOUCH and Fuel Tank BoosterPacks if theyre something theyve been wanting to get. Again, my lack of electronics buying, or at least price-watching, means I dont know if these are super deals or just ok prices.

If you know of other MCU-related contests or good component pricing that you want to share, please send links to arcatabob (at) gmail {dott} com. Thanks!

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Monday 6th December WELCOME

Instead of getting the Blog done, Ive been watching "Good Morning Vietnam" so now I have to stay up till the early hours doing this. What a Numb Skull I am. But enough about me. Lets see what we can dig out for you guys.......

How to build a basic Aquaponics System, A basic video guide on how to build your own Aquaponic system. This is sytem is based on the barrel ponic and S&S setup and was built by me in the summer of 07?.

 The first two items are from the Aussie King and the U.S. Queen of Aquaponics. First Murray Hallum has just sent out his latest Blog - Practical Aquaponics gems.CHOP Mark2 TotePonics (IBC) Powers On.

And close on his heels Slywoman has, as I was typing the first lines to this issue, posted the following: 6 Great Ideas for Aquaponics Holiday Gifts And why not sign up for their blogs....Made sense to me.

2010: Top year for Aquaponics, growing fish and veggies together: Growing fish and vegetables at the same time in a system called “Aquaponics” (a blend of hydroponics and aquaculture) has taken off this year.

space fish: After not one but two people said to me that it would be grossly, GROSSLY negligent to not make a stronger attempt to keep my fish warmer as the winter gets colder I had to make a decision:

Aquaponics Guidebook in PDF, a multiversity textbook and DIY magic carpet Sequatchie Valley Institute. All of us who are guaranteed Aquaponics Europe The ultimate ...

Plus several others for your downloading pleasure...

First European Aquaponics School
1e Europese MBO-opleiding Aquaponics genomineerd voor de prijsvraag: "Groene Urgentie"

PARADISE LOST: Im speaking of aquaponics, an ancient technique of utilizing aquatic animals and vegetation which allows both to thrive. The process has...

 BACKYARD AQUAPONICS:This is part three of an instructional video showing how to install one of our aquaponics kit systems.

Today I happened across the heiroglyph for tilapia, which inspired me to generate a cartouche for aquaponics. I have a cartouche that I wear always - my sister got it for me in Turkey back in the early 1990s. ...

Aquaponic farm opts for solar source

By Scott Rochat
© 2010 Longmont Times-Call
LONGMONT — Forget greenhouses. Grow Your Own Meal is going solar.
Next Generation Energy of Lafayette will help design and build a solar system for GYOM’s planned aquaponic farm, to be built at Longmont’s wastewater treatment plant.

Affnans Aquaponics: Asparagus Update
By Affnan
skip to main | skip to sidebar. Affnans Aquaponics. Amateur Urban Aquaponics, if I can do it, you can do it too..:). Asparagus Update. Asparagus has germinate , this photo....

Community Forestry Team - Aquaponics Forum
By admin
Aquaponics is becoming a great part in the green movement.? Besides being the worlds most sustainable food source, there are many benefits to setting up your own system in your back yard.? Your plants grow 50% to 75% times faster, ...

Should i do water changes when cycling an aquaponics system?

by admin on Sunday, November 28th, 2010 | 1 Comment

I have just set up an aquaponics system. It is a 10 gallon tank stocked with 2 goldfish and a pump that drains into 10 pounds of gravel, which then drip drains back into the tanks. Everywhere that I look that describes cycling of a standard fish tank says to do 20% water changes weekly.

3x5 Aquaponics: The Future of Farming
By Meg Stout
Search 3x5 Aquaponics. Loading... Blog Archive. ? 2010 (19). ? November (18). The Future of Farming · Tilapia - Legal in Your Town? Things Egyptian · That was Easy · Moving this sucker · 

Eco-Cycle Aquaponics and Habitat Systems:Combining modern technology with sustainable food production to solve world hunger, one family at......

Fron The Geneticengineer: aquaponics:ok here i am. i do aquaponics and i started some threads on here about various things including "aquaponic cannabis".

Well, thats another one put to bed, Sure hope it meets your needs. Until Wednesday, I wish you Good Gardening (In your little Puddles) and be good to each other....

OZZIE 

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Peak Oil got you depressed Check out Fuel

Fuel, the film, available on Netflix
Josh Tickell has been a bio-diesel advocate for over a decade. In his 2008/9 documentary Fuel, Josh goes way beyond bio-diesel to show how the world can realistically become petroleum independent and go carbon neutral.

This film is a pleasure to watch - it has:

• Beautiful graphics,
  
• A David versus Goliath personal story,
  
• Comments from the rich, famous, and learned,
  
• A message that not all need go dark when fossil fuel runs out.

Oh, and lovely music, sung by Joshs now-wife, Rebecca Harrell.

The diesel engine was originally designed to run on a vegetable oil-based fuel. Ford originally designed his cars to run on ethanol (derived from corn). But the availability of inexpensive fossil fuel and the distribution might of Standard Oil combined to make fossil-based products the fuel of choice.

Interesting tidbit - Josh Tickell makes a case suggesting Prohibition in the United States may have become law because it made ethanol illegal. Henry Ford continued to offer the ethanol-compatible version for several years, but finally folded to economic necessity in 1932 and gave up offering the ethanol-fueled engine option. Coincidentally, Prohibition was allowed to be repealed the following year.

Josh also lays out the idea that the recent US war in Iraq was motivated by oil. This isnt a new idea, but he does a particularly good job of connecting the dots.

Back to how we move past fossil fuel towards a sustainable future - bio-diesel is a clear winner, requiring only 1 part energy to produce 3 parts diesel (ethanol requires 1 part energy to produce 1 part ethanol, and fossil fuel requires 1 part energy to produce 0.8 part fuel). Solar and wind can work, where conditions are adequate. Theres even mention of trees that were designed to remediate contaminated soils that grow to maturity in 3 years and regenerate from a cut stump, making wood-based energy creation a viable green option as well.

My only complaint is the discussion of wind didnt show my favorite wind turbine, the vertical Windspire. Traditional wind turbines kill birds due to the high differential pressures at the blade tips, not even counting the birds killed by being hit by a blade. The Windspire doesnt have this problem.

So, if talk of Peak Oil and/or soaring energy prices get you down, take a breather and watch this film. It wont make the immediate crisis go away, but does offer hope that there is a future, even after cheap fossil fuels go away.

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