Contributors

Philip Ross (Home Mycology Lab) is a San Francisco Bay Area artist who makes sculptural artifacts using living organic materials, including fungus, shellfish, plants, and compost. Through the design and creation of highly controlled environments he manipulates, nurtures, and transforms a variety of living species, much as one might train the growth of a Bonsai tree. In his spare time, he is currently gardening, working on a video about slime mold, and making weird driftwood art.

Hacking is a relaxing hobby, and John Maushammer (Videocam Rocket) always enjoys figuring out how other people have tackled problems. When the first “single use” digital camera appeared, he couldn’t resist the challenge of making it reusable. While not technically a rocket scientist, John has designed satellite electronics. Other hobbies include photography, writing, and exploring new places. His long-term goal is to be able to operate every type of vehicle ever featured in a James Bond movie ... just in case.

Leah Fasten (Proto photography) studied economics in college and approaches photo shoots in much the same way she tackled econometric modeling. Each shoot is a giant puzzle. “I’m fascinated by the way environments evolve around the people that inhabit them,” she says. “I love what I discover when I’m invited in.” Leah lives in Boston with her DNA-replicating scientist husband, her 2-year-old son, a gender-neutral cat, and a geriatric dog. Check out more work at leahfasten.com.

Colin Berry (Soap Box Derby) is a journalist, memoirist, fiction writer, and radio commentator. In 2004, his creative work was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Spinout follows an earlier memoir, Shattered, published online at onthepage.org. In 2000, Colin and his wife left the hustle and bustle of city life for the serene redwoods of Guerneville, Calif., where he’s currently writing a book called Urban Emigrants. Colin likes to keep in motion topic-wise, having published pieces on everything from technology to cooking to film reviews. He blogs about the weirdness of country life at colinberry.com.

Howard Cao (Biology section photography) lives for the three B’s: Birdies, Big Macs, and Bigfoot. He’s also been known to take a few pictures from time to time. When he’s not shooting, Howard can be found golfing on the historic links of San Francisco, researching UFO sightings, racing R/C monster trucks, or whatever ends up becoming his “passion of the month.” Visit his tasty goodness at howardcao.com.

Carlo Longino (Beer Cooler) lives in Austin, Texas, with his girlfriend and an orange cat named Boo. He generally spends his free time in search of the perfect barbecue, drinking beer, and sweating. His working hours are spent following the mobile telecommunications industry as an analyst for Techdirt Corporate Intelligence, as well as for his own blog, mobhappy.com.

When Ty Nowotny (MAKE engineering intern) isn’t building cigar box guitars and bottle rockets in the MAKE Lab, he’s back in school getting a master’s in mechanical engineering. Originally a painter and interactive sculptor, he realized that art and engineering aren’t all that different: “Art is still my first love, but we agreed that we should both see other disciplines for a while.” He recently reverse-engineered a beloved pair of pants so he can craft them in leather. Anyone have a free leather couch handy?