Beginner Electrical Engineering Projects for Pushing Objects and Lighting Bulbs

I want to make this device which will push paper into a box, but I'm a complete noob on how I would begin to do this, I have the entire idea layed out but I have no idea how to develop such a device. I'm 16 years old and I am graduating next year from high school.

Does anyone know where a noob could find out how to start electrical engineering. I want to start out with some basic projects, even just lighting up light bulbs would be cool to start out, then I want to move on to more advanced stuff when I feel absolutely confident.

Being 16 you are in a great place to start. I taught electrical classes for about 10 years and getting an understanding of the basics now will give you a solid foundation to build on. Even if you decide to do something else in your life the understanding that you gain can help your whole thinking process. Does your school have a club for computers or radios?
Do you know someone who is a ham radio operator? I know there used to be some Boy Scout projects that worked into ham radio. There is a lot of ground to cover in the area you have chosen so it is very helpful to have someone who has an understanding to lead you along. The internet has a huge amount of information available starting at Ohm’s law on Wikipedia. If it’s any consolation there is so much there that most people who read it don’t understand it all. Don’t be disheartened, read and understand what you can. As you get opportunities to apply the theory to practical application pay close attention to the math and how it correlates to what you can actually do with your hands. There are many experimentation boards that are meant for budding scientists that have many small projects that can be done with no soldering and can be great fun, it maybe worth mentioning something like that as a possible gift for your next birthday. Be safe; remember electricity can kill you so if you’re not sure you are safe…stop. I think that fear is why electricity is not emphasized in high school more. If you can find adults that will take the time to teach you what they know you should cherish each one. Each of them has had a different experience and has seen something no one else has. The student who can pull all that out of them enriches himself immensely.

I'm the president of my computer club starting next year and run multiple websites, including one which got 1,000,000 pageviews last year, but no one at school seems to be more knowledgeable than me when it comes to stuff like that. So I have been trying to go online and find forums, maybe email some people who are more educated in what I am interested in. I can't seem to find any breakdown of what each component is, does, and why it exists. I know what a capacitor is, why its used but not how to use it. I don't even know where to buy the materials such as microcontrollers, what are reputable places? Basically, I feel lost by the amount of information out there and have no idea of where to start. I wanna be able to develop some projects just to get the hang of all the components out there. Then move on to bigger stuff when I'm more confident.

hi,

i suggest learn the basic components 1st like the resistor, capacitor, diode and transistor. on how they are used, where they are use, basic capacity of each device. since you already have the inclination to go into electronics, that trait will greatly help you in going thru the rigors of learning.

i can give you many very simple projects, but the question is, would you be able to explain why the end result of such project is like that? why the project used resistors and what does it do there, how the value of the resistor was derive. the same applies to other componentsm used.

Probably not, which is why I don't like projects with no instruction on what everything is. Although, I'm a type of person who learns by seeing, just reading on a capacitor doesn't really help me much if I can't use it for real.