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    This Could Be Big

    A Keyboard Made of Bananas & Play-Doh

    By Bill Weir, C. Michael Kim, David Miller, Justin Bare & Brad Marxer | This Could Be Big – Wed, Jul 18, 2012

    Even though MaKey MaKey was designed by two Ph.D candidates from MIT, their goal was to make something for the kindergartener in all of us.

    It's a device that allows you to turn anything that conducts electricity into a functional computer key. It looks like it might be difficult to hook up, but it's actually very simple - so simple a 4-year old was able to do it without trouble.

    The team, Jay Silver and Eric Rosenbaum, have dedicated themselves to designing easy-to-use invention kits. "We believe that everyone is creative, inventive, and imaginative. We believe that everyone can create the future and change the world."

    Even the most jaded technology enthusiast can't help but chuckle when they hook up a banana to an alligator clip and use it to scroll through their computer. But the beauty is that it's up to you to decide what to turn into a key.

    In Jay and Eric's video they play Mario Bros. with Play-Doh, Dance Dance Revolution with buckets or water, the piano with a staircase, and allowed a cat to take a photo of itself by hooking up a bowl of water to the MaKey MaKey.

    The project was launched on Kickstarter with an initial goal of raising $25,000, charging $40 per MaKey MaKey, but the blew past that figure in a day and by month's end they raised over $500,000.

    MaKey MaKey starts shipping in August and we look forward to seeing what kind ideas people come up with. When you get yours, take a video of what you come up with and send us the clip.

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