For my outreach event, I combined several interested parties into one session for a tutorial and printmaking workshop. I’m going to talk about each of the participants and their varied interests below.
Hannah, a fellow RA, had seen 3D printing videos on YouTube, but had no idea that JMU had its own 3D print lab. She was very curious about the technology and the process, so she and I spent about a half hour talking about the software and hardware in addition to the safety prep I did for all of my workshop participants. Hannah wanted to print a JMU cube as a way of seeing how the process worked. When she left, she told me how fascinated she was with the print, and that she hoped to be involved with something again!
Hannah, while her cube was still printing.
Connor, another fellow RA, is a math major who had heard about using 3D prints as a way to visualize complex geometry and equations. He was very familiar with the theory behind the technology, but had never used it before. Connor wanted to browse Thingiverse for an item to create, and we had an interesting discussion about supports that the printer built – as he initially picked out a beautiful but very complex vase. After our discussion, he chose to print a figurine from one of his favorite video game series. The doll printed in two halves to avoid that very issue of support, but Connor, who preferred not to be photographed, is working on the assembly now!
T, the scene shop supervisor for the School of Theatre and Dance, was already very familiar with high-powered drafting programs like AutoCAD. The scene shop recently got the newest model of MakerBot printer, and T was excited to implement the machine into part of his drafting curriculum. T is already familiar with how to draft and craft items, and does so frequently with wood and metals. While Connor and Hannah were printing, T and I talked about the best comparison programs to use for drafting, and how to transport AutoCAD files into printable files. This required a bit of digging, but is very rewarding. T and I will continue our 3D printing collaboration together next semester in the scene shop.
All three of my workshop participants informed me that they left the room feeling fascinated and excited about exploring knowledge of 3D printing – I’m excited to see where they take their efforts.
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