Chinese DIY Inventions

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2013/05/chinese-diy-inventions/100511?re&utm_source=buffer&&utm_content=buffer3141e

by jnazario • 13 years ago

233 77 13 years ago

theatlantic.com

chewxy• 13 years ago

The Chinese seem to have an obsession with submarines. I wonder why

klez• 13 years ago

Article's selection bias?

hammock• 13 years ago

Because the water is too polluted to explore via swimming.

clicks• 13 years ago

Particularly interesting is #32, Sun Jifa. He couldn't afford prosthesis arms so he built his own. They were apparently so good that others who'd lost their arms requested him to make them prosthesis arms as well, so he made a business out of it, and now sells them at very reasonable prices.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22660393

noonespecial2• 13 years ago

The caption says that he lost his arms in a dynamite fishing accident! Losing a limb is a terrible thing, but if you have to be handicapped, that is one hell of a back story.

andreyf• 13 years ago

Mr. Jifa is obviously very inventive and resourceful, but dynamite fishing is actually quite detrimental to underwater ecosystems, kills more fish than are harvested, and because of this, is illegal in most of the developed world.

"Underwater shock waves produced by the explosion stun the fish and cause their swim bladders to rupture. This rupturing causes an abrupt loss of buoyancy; a small number of fish float to the surface, but most sink to the sea floor. The explosions indiscriminately kill large numbers of fish and other marine organisms in the vicinity and can damage or destroy the physical environment, including extensive damage to coral reefs" [1]

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blast_fishing

westiseast• 13 years ago

wait...he built himself a pair of replacement arms...without any arms? Geez...

shabble• 13 years ago

The caption for #32 includes "He spent two years guiding his two nephews to build him prostheses from scrap metal, plastic and rubber."

That noted, there are some pretty incredible achievements by people missing both hands/arms. One that springs to mind is Jessica Cox[1] (via reddit iama[2]), who is both a black-belt in Taekwondo, and has a pilots licence.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Cox

[2] http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1ad6n0/im_the_worlds_o...

DanBC• 13 years ago

Prosthetics for developing world is an interesting problem.

Here is a story about a UK teen who asked a Formula One team to help him with a fake arm. They didn't give him any money, but they helped with fundraising and engineering and he has an amazing arm now.

(http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2098108_f1_boss_helps_fun...)

Compare that to this YouTube video of people making false arms out of old soda bottles.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yvev6shNvSg)

(http://blog.makezine.com/2009/02/05/plastic-soda-bottle-pros...)

dchichkov2• 13 years ago

I don't like the look of that helicopter with flimsily attached wooden rotor blades. Even on the ground it would be ridiculously dangerous to run. And everyone on these photos near this contraption are truly Darwin Award candidates.

edit: I actually have some rights to have an opinion, as I'm a licensed pilot and an experimental aircraft owner.

geon• 13 years ago

I suppose if he was to actually start it up, he would ask people to stay away. He is just sitting in it for the photo shoot.

And wooden blades might not be so crazy. Apparently, the Bell 47 heli uses wooden blades, and the Kaman K-MAX use a wood/fiberglass construction for the rotor: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaman_K-MAX

Smaller props for airboats and such are sometimes made of wood, but the stresses involved might be different.

I know model RC helis often use wooden blades too, but the difference in scale and safety requirements would make that a moot point, I guess.

chenster• 13 years ago

Video of Wu Yulu's walking robot and other his invention. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49MoNLYFk_k

noonespecial2• 13 years ago

There used to be a saying, "only in America". Its starting to feel like maybe we replaced that with "if you see something, say something." How many of these things could you realistically build in your back yard without a come-to-Jesus meeting with homeland security resulting?

There's a little sign up the the tax assessor's office here that says something to the effect of if you're about to do something around your house and you're not sure if you need a permit, you probably do.

So, "only in China" then?

pnathan• 13 years ago

I would entirely agree. So many regulations in the US! So many of these things would not be legal. What are we stifling in the US by prioritizing safety and security over freedom?

knowaveragejoe3• 13 years ago

Parent's comment is a little overblown, there are plenty of people in the US who build all sorts of things just like this and have no trouble(helps to be away from populated areas). Regulations aren't necessarily a bad thing. For example, I'd hate to be in the crowd of onlooker when something explodes/comes flying off, or to have my property crashed into by a DIY helicopter or some-such. Note the kids just feet away from the rotor assembly in picture #37.

dchichkov2• 13 years ago

Nah, it's not that bad. Here's Homebuilts at AirVenture 2009 gallery for your enjoyment: http://www.eaa.org/apps/galleries/gallery.aspx?ID=258

Aloisius• 13 years ago

The vast majority of them could be built in the US with no involvement from the government (excluding busy-body local government called by your neighbors). Actually, I'm not sure any of them couldn't be built in the US. China doesn't have a monopoly on questionably safe experimental craft. Now selling them, that's another matter.

I know a couple people who have built and flown questionably safe ultralights without a knock from homeland security and many, many people who have built gigantic contraptions/vehicles for Burning Man that are just as crazy as anything presented here.

spamizbad• 13 years ago

In Chicago, I've seen hipsters zipping around in contraptions more dangerous than that Uighur's bike. The requirements for a road-legal vehicle (Assuming you're not mass producing and selling them) in Illinois are pretty spartan.

DIYers have a ton of freedom. As soon as you start commercializing and selling them- that's when you run into red tape.

PeterisP• 13 years ago

When you start selling them is exactly when "only in America" mattered earlier - it makes the difference between a hobby and a business innovation, free market and all.

csomar• 13 years ago

I'd prefer that there is no invention by this guy, than I (or anyone) get hit by some of these inventions and become handicapped for life.

dsirijus• 13 years ago

If everyone was thinking like you, science would be handicapped. Explore Newton, for a prime example.

venus• 13 years ago

It's always good to see people building stuff - anything! - but many of these are less original, viable inventions and more just plain models. Number 34, for example, is quite obviously not a serious attempt to build a working aircraft. In fact I wonder how he managed to spend so much ($6,400) on such a piece of crap.

Some of the other pictures, like the artificial arms, are far more worthy of merit.

andyl• 13 years ago

Some of those gadgets would be right at home at Maker Fair.

knowaveragejoe3• 13 years ago

It's striking how many of these mention the creator did not complete <some level of education>.

auctiontheory3• 13 years ago

In some cases their schooling might have been derailed by the Cultural Revolution.

ckannan90• 13 years ago

The three primary needs in China appear to be aircrafts, submarines, and... floating spherical homes.

ww520• 13 years ago

Or what the article wants to present by selecting them.

jdietrich• 13 years ago

I think there's something of an ulterior motive behind these stories.

They present Chinese ingenuity in a charmingly harmless way - uneducated but plucky tinkerers, building some madcap machine out of scrap. In doing so, they subtly misrepresent Chinese industry by omission. China is rapidly transitioning away from low-skill, low-margin manufacturing to high-skill, high-margin R&D. The old jokes about Chinese R&D being a photocopier are wearing increasingly thin, as firms like Huawei become global players.

The article opens with the line "One visible sign of China's recent economic growth is the rise in prominence of inventors and entrepreneurs.", as if the photos that follow are in any way representative of invention in China. The real story is that Chinese R&D investment now amounts to over $160bn/yr and is set to surpass that of the US within the decade.

I'm reminded of the aphorism "First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win." It seems we're still laughing at the 700m Chinese citizens who are uneducated peasants, rather than preparing to fight the 700m who are urbanised and increasingly well-educated.

CamperBob23• 13 years ago

Indeed. I'm old enough to remember when everybody in the US laughed at Japanese cars and the idiots who were foolish enough to buy them.

kiba• 13 years ago

Why fight when you can co-opt them?

Rather than thinking the chinese as just competition, we should also think of them as a world asset.

sliverstorm2• 13 years ago

Rather than thinking the chinese as just competition, we should also think of them as a world asset.

I'm sure it'll be great for the world and all, but what happens when they aren't quite as thankful for you as you are for them?

westicle• 13 years ago

Why exactly do you want to fight them?

auctiontheory3• 13 years ago

This is Hacker News. And these are some pretty darn impressive hacks.

Why not just appreciate what they've accomplished by their ingenuity, without adding all this geopolitical drama?

yread• 13 years ago

This is Hacker News. We're critically thinking individuals. When somebody tries to spin a story for geopolitical goals it is fair to call it out.

mc-lovin2• 13 years ago

What exactly is the Chinese threat you are alluding to? What is going to happen when China does start working on high skill high margin stuff? And why would The Atlantic want to distract people from this?

I'm just not getting your point here.

kamaal3• 13 years ago

>>What is going to happen when China does start working on high skill high margin stuff?

Chinese manufacturing was a threat, Indian outsourcing industry was also a threat. But the nature of threats was different. Chinese manufacturing and Indian software services was a threat ONLY because of their cost factor. And that was hardly any advantage these big nations had over the US, and the US didn't care because the day a cheaper alternative was found- It would mean the end for both China and India.

The scary situation is when you find populations of the scale of China and India. With all their human resources, desperateness, passion and energy attack the big-ticket problems in the world.

That is the kind of scenario which builds next super powers which replace the existing super powers.

benjamincburns• 13 years ago

To borrow an analogy from the art world, I'd agree with this if there was some well of 'negative space' in this article which was shaped like Chinese manufacturing. There isn't. The article also didn't discuss Indian ingenuity - is there something going on with that as well?

To me this is article is utterly inspiring. This is about the hope of the individual. It's about a bunch of smart, motivated people taking big risks to better themselves and the people around them. They're thinking big, dreaming big, doing big, and surely ignoring the people around them who are telling them that they can't. Are some of them missing the mark? Absolutely! But if there's a statement being made here, it's an incredibly positive one.

rvasa• 13 years ago

Why are there so many submarines?

DaBooDah• 13 years ago

They're used to harvest sea cucumbers, which I'm guessing is a culinary delicacy.

gbog3• 13 years ago

Sea cucumbers are very expensive, and the taste is so-so. As the story goes, an emperor did not have offsprings, and his physicians said he should eat those sea cumcumbers in large amounts, and his chefs managed to make some eatable recipes out of this thing, which became a part of the Chinese Imperial Cuisine.

waterlesscloud• 13 years ago

Why not?

Don't you want your own submarine? I do.

Check out this homemade Russian sub. Great pics.

http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/home-made-submarine.html

auctiontheory3• 13 years ago

Maybe they can offer their services to the Spanish Navy: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/24/spain-submarine-s-8...

victorhn• 13 years ago

#14 would be the least "politically correct" of these as the working robot seems to be modeled with the appearence of a black guy.

worldimperator• 13 years ago

It's interesting that they have a strong preference for spheres as the basic shape of many larger builds, apparently.

epsylon• 13 years ago

It's funny they don't mention the reason why the people in picture #11 wear these weird masks. In China, tanned skin is the distinctive sign of low-status people (farmers who work outside). Paleness is seen on the other hand as a sign of beauty and wealth. The health benefits of protection against UVs are only a side effect.

Aardwolf• 13 years ago

There are a lot of super cool things in there!

However, two remarks:

1) That first plane really does not look like it can fly (and it also says the test flight failed). Thin carboard wings!

2) The riksha pulling robot: What is that between its legs? :)

leke• 13 years ago

Number 17. It's just so funny. Everyone's faces, apart from the rock luncher guy.

Lerc• 13 years ago

The designs seem to show an interesting facet of DIY design. It's better to focus on what something should do rather than what it should look like. The most hopeless of the designs are those that try to mimic the appearance of a successful design.

I suspect the hopeless cases are vastly over-represented because they make for an easy news story fluff piece. Actual innovation is frequently subtle and boring unless you look at the detail.

I think jdietrich has a point about the implication that this is a Chinese specific phenomenon. Every country has people working on projects like this. I'm in New Zealand and we got jetpacks and cruise missiles made by guys working in sheds. Neither the crazy people nor the brilliant geniuses are representative of the population as a whole.

quackerhacker• 13 years ago

3! I think is the best one! I'd be on an elevator all day just to "take the stairs," down :)

Politics aside. DIY still implies the same thing as it would in Popular Mechanics here in the US (something simple that all of us can do, under a budget).

5 reminds me of the Red Bull Flugtag

bennyfreshness• 13 years ago

This is state sponsored entrepreneurial propaganda IMO, reflecting the Chinese regime's push towards a more entrepreneurial focused free market. And I love it, I'm hoping Chinese individuals continue inventing products to help all of humanity.

sytelus• 13 years ago

The DIY welding mask is pretty brilliant. However that walking robot looks highly suspicious because there is plenty of research that this is hard problem. It's even harder problem if robot is pulling a taxi while walking. It makes me think if this is some kind of propaganda spread by Chinese govt. This kind of information and photos would not be possible to compile without govt support/contribution in China, right?

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