General Documentation

Arduino Starter Kit

This page describes how to set up the Arduino starter kit.

Getting Started with Arduino

An introduction to using the Arduino with Manylabs lessons, including how to install the WireGarden plugin.

Getting Started with the LilyPad

The starting point for using the Protosnap LilyPad from Sparkfun with ManyLabs lessons and tools.

Sending Weather Data to Weather Underground

Connect your weather station to Weather Underground.

Uploading Data With Python

This page describes how to send data to a data set using python

Using Python with Arduino

This page describes how to interact with an Arduino from Python code.

Using the Arduino Programmer

This is an overview of how to program an Arduino Microcontroller with the Arduino Programmer.

Using the Data Flow Editor

This page describes how to use the data flow editor.

Using the Sensor Plotter

A guide on using the Sensor Plotter tool to view real-time data from an attached Arduino.

Teacher Documentation

Bioluminescence Lesson Documentation

Setup documentation for the Bioluminescence lesson.

Getting Started with Teacher Tools

An introduction to using the teachers tools for managing student accounts. These tools let you monitor student performance.

This is the main documentation page for the STEM Cart

Editor Documentation

This page provides detailed information about the building blocks for our templates. Each block has a set of attributes. Some blocks also have functions (methods) that can be called via JavaScript.

For Programmers: Libraries

This page documents various functions that are available within JavaScript code in the templates.

Getting Started

An introduction to using the lesson authoring system. This documentation describes the full lesson editor, not the simplified quiz editor. We recommend that you start with the quiz editor.

Programming Introduction

Once you are familiar with the our templating language, you can go a step further by inserting JavaScript code into the templates. This page describes that process.

Template Code Examples

This page provides a couple examples of lesson templates.

Template Language Introduction

An introduction to the language used for describing lessons. Each lesson has a set of templates. A template consists of a set blocks.

Project Documentation

Air Quality Measurement Station

This page describes setting up an air quality monitoring station. This is a work in progress; we're currently creating prototype systems.

Air Quality Station with WiFi

This page describes setting up an air quality monitoring station using a CO2 sensor, dust sensor, and WiFi shield

A Mini Heliostat

This project page describes how to make a sun-tracker (heliostat) using a solar panel, current sensor, servo, and some other parts.

This project describes a sensor-based aquaponics system. The sensors measures water levels, water quality, temperature, humidity, and light. The system can sound an alarm when these variables go outside pre-specified ranges. It can also control pumps, lights, and other equipment.

Balloon Data Recorder

This project provides a data recorder for a high-altitude weather balloon. The recorder stores sensor values and GPS coordinates onto a data flash module.

Biometric Sensors

This page describes how to set up a biometric monitor that measures galvanic skin response, heart rate, acceleration, and position via GPS. This could be used, for example, as the basis of a personal fitness tracker.

Cart and Track

This page describes how to set up a cart and track for motion experiments.

Current Sensor

How to use the current sensor to measure current and voltage.

Data Scavenger Hunt

The page describes how to create a data scavenger hunt using a portable data recorder with sensors and other devices.

Electromagnetism Kit

This page describes the assembly of the electromagnetism kit.

Exoplanet Measurement

This page describes how to do measurements of a mockup exoplanet using a light sensor and light bulb.

Fish Tank Monitor

This page describes how to set up a fish tank monitoring system. It measure water temperature, pH, air temperature/humidity, and light levels. It transmits the data via a WiFi or Ethernet connection (depending on the version) into a Manylabs data set.

Force Sensor

This force sensor uses a linear potentiometer to measure the displacement of a rod connected to a pair of springs. The displacement is related to the force applied to the rod. With known sample masses, the sensor can be calibrated to provide numerical measurements of the force on the rod.

Freezer / Incubator

This page describes how to build a freezer/incubator using a thermoelectric device.

This project describes the construction of a gel box for gel electrophoresis. This can be used, for example, to separate DNA and RNA fragments by length.

Grove Physics Kit

This page provides documentation for the Grove Physics Kit from Seeed Studio. The kit is designed for teaching physics in classrooms. It includes a force sensor, pulley rotation sensor, laser gate, sonar sensor, accelerometer, and compass.

Kickstarter Kits

This page describes the rewards for our science kit Kickstarter.

Laser Timing Gate

This project describes how to build a device the measures when an object passes. Using two of these gates you can measure the time it takes for an object to pass between two points. It uses a beam of laser light to detect the passing object.

Linear and Rotational Actuators

This project describes linear and rotational actuators that can be used to move cameras and other hardware.

Mobile Sensors with Bluetooth

This project introduces the Bluetooth Mobile Sensor kit and shows how to interact with an Arduino and sensors in real-time.

Other Project Ideas

This page is a list of assorted project ideas.

This page describes how to setup and calibrate a pH sensor.

This project covers the construction of a microcontroller monitored plant growing box. The microcontroller monitors the temperature, humidity, soil moisture, and light inside the plant box.

Plant Watering Kit

This page describes how to build a plant watering system.

Portable Air Quality Measurement Station

The page describes a portable air quality measurement station. It allows you to measure dust, CO, and NO2.

Portable Data Recorder with GPS Device

This page describes how to set up a portable data recorder using a SODAQ board and a Grove GPS device. The goal is to record data from sensors and then transfer the data to the web for analysis.

Pulley and Pendulum

This page describes how to assemble and use the pulley and pendulum kit.

Pulley Rotation Sensor

The sensors attached to this pulley can be used to measure the rotation of the pulley and the linear motion of a rope passing over the pulley. This pulley can be used as part of an Atwood machine.

Satellite Sensing: Temperature and Reflectance

This page describes how to use an Arduino, sensors, and cell phones to make measurements that are analogous to measurements made by earth science satellites.

Science Robot

This project describes a computer-controlled robot that can take measurements or perform science experiments. The default configuration is an autosampler, with a sensor attached to an X-Y-Z positioning mechanism. You can also attach a pipette or USB microscope to the device.

Sodaq Board

This page describes how to set up a portable data recorder using the Sodaq board.

Soil Moisture Sensing

This project describes how to build a soil moisture sensor.

Solar Power Measurement

This page describes how to set up a solar panel for power measurement.

Spectrophotometer

This spectrophotometer project uses a diffraction grating to split white light into separate wavelengths. A mechanically actuated slit selects a single wavelength to pass through a sample and into a high-accuracy digital light sensor.

Test Tube Color Sensor

This page describes how to setup a test tube color sensor.

Thermocycler

This prototype thermocycler controls the temperature of a set of tubes, rapidly heating and cooling through a specified sequence of temperatures.

Two-Wheeled Robot

This project describes how to use the Grove Motor Shield to drive a pair of motors. It includes a sample Arduino sketch. Later we'll expand this project include building a simple sonar-based or line-following robot.

Using a Bee Device with a Sodaq Board

This page describes how to use a bee device (e.g. BLE Bee or WiFi Bee) with a Sodaq board.

Using a Dust Sensor to Estimate Particulate Levels

Low-cost optical dust sensors can be used to estimate particulate pollution levels.

Water Sensors

This project is an overview of a portable system for measuring water pollution that we're currently designing and testing. It includes sensors for dissolved oxygen, salinity, temperature, pH, and turbidity.

Weather Station

This project guides you through the construction of a microcontroller based weather station that can monitor temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, barometric pressure, and rain.

Wind Turbine Power Measurement

This project shows how to measure the current, voltage, and power produced by a KidWind wind turbine.

Wireless Egg Drop

The wireless egg drop kit allows you to view and record data from a wireless accelerometer.

Lesson Wiki

PCR instructions

Complete PCR instructions for use with Carolina Haplotyping Kit