HacDC Turns Five Years Old
By Katie Bechtold
Category Makers 
Five years ago, hackerspaces in the U.S. were few and far between. HacDC (“the capital hackerspace”) celebrates and reflects on five years of our space and what we’ve accomplished. 
Here are some of the things we’ve done in our half decade of existence:
- Held classes and workshops on robotics, AVR microcontrollers, bicycle maintenance, electron tubes, Python, visual communications, LED cubes, Scheme, tea, artificial intelligence, disassembly, and many other topics
- Launched—and retrieved!—five high-altitude balloons, a.k.a. spaceblimps, the latest reaching an altitude of 118,533 ft
- acquired 501(c)3 nonprofit status, meaning your donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law, so donate now!
- Hosted six rounds of Lightning Talks
- Formed W3HAC, an ARRL-affiliated, FCC-licensed amateur radio club
- Set up 3D printers, a CNC mill, a lathe, a drill press, and a fully automatic espresso machine with plans underway to acquire a laser cutter
- Hatched GrindDC, a weekly “meatup” where biohackers research topics like materials biocompatibility and neurostimulation
- Developed Project Byzantium, a live Linux distribution that delivers easy-to-use, secure, and robust ad-hoc wireless mesh networking
I
operate an interplanetary spacecraft, help direct my local hackerspace,
and practice chado, the Japanese Way of Tea. I like to explore new
social structures including hackerspaces, which I’ve found are great
places for learning useful skills and meeting awesome people. Apropos of
social structures, social justice is important to me, so I try to
engage with issues of race, gender, disability, class, and other social
justice issues within the geek/hacker/open source community as my time
and ability allow.
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