ATX Makers 4 Africa

AM4A is a non-profit charity organization that is organizing the Makers in Austin and later all of Texas to support the growth of Maker Spaces in Africa, starting with Juba University in South Sudan.

[am4a]

Let's stay in touch!

Let's stay in touch! Here's how you can check out the latest AM4A stories and interesting tech reads.

Whether you want to share your ideas, ask questions, or just stay on track with what’s going on at AM4A’s, it’s always a great idea to check out our social media. We post  not only our latest stories but also interesting reads about technological…

View Post

[am4a]

Remember those spatial visualization tests you had to take for engineering? Although those skills are still important, new 3-D modelling software may soon change the game. Dubbed "3-Sweep," this software has swept the tech press with its demo for the upcoming SIGGRAPH Asia 2013 in November.

With just 3 clicks, the user can extract a 3-D model of the selected shape from any image. The model can then be rotated in 3-D, separated into component shapes, resized, copied into other images, and much more.

Despite its shortfalls, such as distinguishing the object from a fuzzy shadow, the software is both simple and impressive for its main functions.

[am4a]

We would like to say Happy 20th Anniversary to Bill Nye the Science Guy! The show first aired on September 10, 1993 and has since then inspired millions of kids and even adults to explore the wonderful world of science.

[am4a]

We’re Are All Makers Here

The Maker Movement harkens back to a time when we made things ourselves, when we were more in touch with how things are designed, made and tinkered with. Now we are reliving this with 3D printing: things are made in smaller batches again. Customized.

“[The Maker Movement is] the story not of tools but of people. A publisher. An entrepreneur. A design professor. A middle school teacher. Two museum educators. And a creative director.

Each provides an important viewpoint on why new technologies such as 3D printing and communities of making are bringing us back to something deeply human.

This awesome video features interviews with people like Dale Dougherty, founder of MAKE Magazine; Raphael Abrams from NYC Resistor, a hacker collective; Randy Hunt from the site Etsy, an online marketplace where handmade items are sold; and Lizabeth Arum, a curriculum coordinator at MakerBot.

[am4a]

Hey everyone!

It's nice to meet you. We're a non-profit organization called AM4A, or ATX Makers 4 Africa.

AM4A is organizing the technical knowledge resources of Austin, Texas to support the people at MakerSpaces in South Sudan, starting with Juba University.

Using internet tools from Google, Apple, and the Open Source community, we will be creating online Hangouts and video conferences between Austin and MakerSpaces in Africa. During our meetings, we provide a forum to exchange ideas, ask questions, and get technical answers so we can support and train the Makers in Africa.

As the program evolves, AM4A will provide support and training for technologies like micro-manufacturing, 3D printing, computerized looms, and CNC milling machines. We also plan to teach South Sudanese engineers, programmers, and other technical personnel how to create specific items, modify code, and build more complex devices. We want to guide the next generations of innovators through the process of enhancing and customizing existing products as well as prototyping and testing new designs.

To put it simply: People helping people.

Special thanks to LoneStar African Works, our sister organization. They're doing some phenomenal work in South Sudan helping local honey producers. Check them out!