CAIRO: Engineers, programmers and artists gathered in Egypt's capital city to share their creations and innovations at the third annual event organized by Maker Faire Africa 2011. The event took place at the American University in Cairo's (AUC) new campus in New Cairo last weekend, October 6-8. Individuals, organizers and curious visitors interacted with one another, unified with the desire of creation and innovation. The event took place in an open space, with open cubicles and tables set up, presenting the maker members' different projects. One cubicle was set up with meter-long model airplanes arranged on the tables and on the floor. Egyptian makers Amr Khalil, Mahmoud Shams and Mostafa Gamal are three students from Ain Shams University, majoring in mechatronics and engineering, all with a passion for aviation. The three of them were active in their cubicle, explaining the principles of aerodynamics to interested passerby. Amr Khalil explained how their project, the Aviation Zone, was created because there is no faculty of aviation in Ain Shams. They took matters into their own hands by creating a club with workshops in which they make their own model planes, including air gliders, control-line planes and radio controlled planes. Their goal is to be the second best aviation research center after NASA. Another maker, Norbert Okec from Nairobi, Kenya, stood tall next to his innovation, a solar-powered LED traffic light system. Okec happily explained how the LED traffic lights work with a simple solar-powered battery, and the advantages of his creation and the money it would save compared to cable-charged traffic lights. Egyptian maker Mohamed Saad modestly sat next to his artwork, hung on his cubicle wall and small copper sculpture. Saad recently graduated from the Faculty of Arts at Helwan University and he looks forward to have his blend of geometric and organic drawings to design comic book characters and environments. Among other projects were electricity-generating speed bumps, small gadgets called the Brain Machine that helps meditation, and a 3D printer. Two tents were set up to hold different workshops and discussions. Workshops included how to solder, scarf paint and make wire-jewelry. Discussions included lectures about do-it-yourself biotechnology and personal genomics. There was a small stage set up near the entrance, where several performances were presented over the three days of events, ranging from poetry readings and stand-up comedy to music bands and dance routines. Performances included stand up comedians Kareem Ahmed Helmy and Mohamed Shaheen, poets Mohamed Hammad and Omar el-Masry, and singers and bands, including Akram Abdel Sattar, Hany Mustafa and even Ramy Essam - nicknamed the "revolution singer" - as the ending performance of the event. Maker Fair Africa was hosted in Nairobi, Kenya in 2010 and in Accra, Ghana in 2009. This year's sponsors include AUC, the Rockefeller Foundation, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the African Innovation Foundation and Asha Jadeja, who founded Dot Edu Ventures in 2000 to fund innovative technologies from top U.S. universities.
