Here at PM, straightforward holiday cooking is uncreative and, frankly, a bit boring—it's a project that needs a DIYer's touch. Here is a recipe and directions for one of the simplest alcoholic brews on the planet: the 30-minute hard-cider variant, apfelwein.

PM walks through the steps to make an extract IPA—in just 3 hours, and without the messy mash.

PM's senior technology editor Glenn Derene is defending his property on mischief night by catching the ne'er-do-wells before they strike—with two high-tech video-capturing pumpkin mods.

The Solar Decathlon competition, run by the Department of Energy (and sponsored in part by Popular Mechanics), pits 20 college teams against one another in a solar-paneled showdown of architecture and engineering. Here are the 20 teams competing.

Not so long ago, American homes were places where nuts and bolts were transfused into a steady stream of machines that needed rehabilitation. Today we live in a throwaway society, but a movement is rediscovering the joy of fixing what’s broken. (Published in the October 2009 issue)