# Ep 168: Math Flattens Spheres, FPGAs Emulate Arcades, and We Can't Shake Polaroid Pictures

- Show: [Hackaday Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast)
- Published: 2022-05-13
- Length: 53m
- Episode: 168
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi
- Listen: https://hackaday.libsyn.com/ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pictures

## Summary

Hackaday Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney review a week of hardware hacks, focusing on retro computing and FPGA education. They highlight Mr. Retro Wolf’s project to clone arcade games like Tank Battalion on an FPGA, a nearly all-new Commodore 64 built by Retro Shack, and a DRM-free label printer by Michi Martini. The hosts also discuss Nervous System’s mathematically flattened sphere lamp, Wyman’s Workshop’s ducted fan aerodynamics, and deep dives into 1950s television technology and modern smartphone optics.

## Chapters

- [0:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=2) Introduction: Hackaday Podcast Episode 168
- [1:32](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=92) Mr. Retro Wolf: Cloning Arcade Games on FPGAs
- [9:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=595) Retro Shack: Building a New Commodore 64
- [14:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=858) Nervous System: Mathematically Flattened Sphere Lamp
- [17:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=1057) Michi Martini: DRM-Free Label Printer
- [22:45](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=1365) Wyman’s Workshop: Ducted Fan Aerodynamics
- [30:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=1830) 1950s Television: How It Worked
- [35:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=2118) Quick Hacks: LCD Sniffing, ESP32 Sensors, and Hexablade
- [41:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2022-05-13-ep-168-math-flattens-spheres-fpgas-emulate-arcades-and-we-cant-shake-polaroid-pi#t=2486) Can't Miss: Smartphone Block Diagrams and Polaroid Chemistry

## Topics

- [Fabrication & craft](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/fabrication-and-craft)
- [Microcontrollers & dev platforms](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/microcontrollers-and-platforms)
- [PCB design & layout](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pcb-design)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Chips, FPGAs & semiconductors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/chips-and-fpgas)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)

## Most relevant to

makers and hobbyists

## Mentioned

- Mr. FPGA (product)
- Atari ST (product)
- Commodore 64 (product)
- Retro Shack (company)
- Nervous System (company)
- Michi Martini (other)
- Wyman’s Workshop (other)
- Polaroid (company)
- SX 70 (product)
- ESP32 (chip)
- Intel 8080 (chip)
- 6502 (chip)
- SID chip (chip)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Apple HQ and Vintage Arcade Games - The Mothership Manifesto](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-06-15-apple-hq-and-vintage-arcade-games-the-mothership-manifesto) (The Amp Hour)
- [Arduino Plug and Make Kit, FPGA mixing console on 1990s OS/2, and much more!](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-electromaker-show/2024-07-26-arduino-plug-and-make-kit-fpga-mixing-console-on-1990s-os-2-and-much-more) (The Electromaker Show)
- [An Interview With Todd Bailey - Embedded Embrasure Engineering](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2014-04-16-an-interview-with-todd-bailey-embedded-embrasure-engineering) (The Amp Hour)
- [044 - Scots Army Knife](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2021-01-03-044-scots-army-knife) (Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast)
- [052 - Twitter Is My Lab Notebook](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2021-10-26-052-twitter-is-my-lab-notebook) (Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast)

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