Kansas City's Maker community had a loss today. John Kuhns called with the sad news. Mattie was behind the store and killed by a train.

There comes a time in many projects when you need to weld parts together. Unless you weld often, you may want to get some practice or learn the proper techniques and settings for the type of metals you're using. The VRTEX 360 is a virtual realty arc welding simulator made by Lincoln Electric  - www.vrtex360.com. This machine simulates:

• GMAW -Gas Metal Arc Welding
• FCAW - Flux Cored Arc Welding
• SMAW - Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW)

The welding helmet contains video display eyepieces that allow you to see the workpiece plus visual cues to assist in showing you proper weld angle, weld speed, proper distance to work piece and more.

Science City's Town Hall Meeting Room, Saturday March 3 from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

We're continuing a tradition started by the Kansas City Robotics Society (KCRS) of meeting at Union Station/Science City each month for a robotics show & tell.

Young Engineers, Digital Fabrication, Thing-A-Day, Open Projects and more at this month's Make:KC Show & Tell.

Young Engineers Club

Home schoolers and smaller private K-12 schools are looking for innovative ways of incorporating technology into their studies. Tom Collins will discuss the Young Engineers group started at the school his kids attend.

Come join our bi-weekly discussion examining the impact of disruptive technologies on teaching, learning and finding ways to support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) based studies through Life-Long Learning.

Making: The Art of STEM

Plan to attend Make:KC's bi-weekly Robotics meetings starting Wednesday February 22, 2012. If you bring a cheap 2D scanner found at thrift stores, we'll take them apart to explore useful parts you can salvage. Also, if you have a robot you're working on then bring it along and show others. We'll learn how you can build your own custom robot parts at the Fab Lab.

Rep Rap Router

Shocking Science

This month we're taking a look inside a Tesla Coil with Steve Siegel. We're learning about how a Tesla Coil works and what it takes to build one. We're looking forward to finally getting started building our own.

Making: The Art of STEM

STEM, a buzzword used to rally support calling for more Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math in schools. At the core of this movement is the belief our kindergarten through high school students are not being prepared for their future, where the jobs these kids will face haven't been invented yet. Creativity, problem solving, and inventiveness are among the essential skills they'll need. Some criticize STEM for leaving Art out of this mix. Making and the Maker Movement embodies the Art of STEM.