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Ferndale 'Hackerspace' Makes Red Bull Creation Finals

The Ferndale "hackerspace" i3 Detroit announced Monday that it had advanced to the third and final round of the Red Bull Creation Challenge, an initiative aimed at hacking the past with the future, with nine other U.S. teams.

Finals will take place in New York City July 6-9 followed by an unveiling of the final 10 projects on July 10 to the public.

The i3 Detroit team advanced to the finals with their project the Chronotune, a custom recreation of a Philco-style Cathedral radio. The radio was filled with electronics to power its functionality. Instead of changing frequency, turns of the dial change the date and play a recording from that historical time period. The recordings span from the beginning to the end of time. Footage includes classic archived recordings as well as custom re-enactments provided by voice actors of Ferndale's Go Comedy, a theater offering improvisational and sketch comedy.

The remaining i3 Detroit members will support the New York City team remotely in Ferndale. The team is building a NASA-inspired Mission Control war room and will be staffed around the clock to provide critical information to team members, such as where to find a local hardware store and answer any technological questions they might have. The public is welcome to join the team in the war room and cheer on the only Michigan-based team to victory.

I3 Detroit is a member-run, non-profit organization dedicated to creating a collaborative environment and fully equipped facility for the exploration of technology, art and culture. The facility is 8,000 square feet and offers such professional fabrication equipment as a Laser Cutter, CNC Mill, TIG Welder, SMD Station, and industrial sewing machine.

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