The concept of persistence-of-vision (POV) is quite simple - by using a single row of lights or LEDs and moving them quickly, you can give the appearance of a much larger display. You can do this by either holding something and running with it, or attaching it to a skateboard or vehicle. Another option is to create a rotary version, and this has been demonstrated by Yoni Magner.
Yoni's version of a rotary POV display has the entire circuit and Arduino mounted on the motor and the whole thing rotates very quickly, however the simplicity of the hardware makes it easy to learn how it all works, and along with his instructions you can recreate it very easily. The results of which are shown in the following video:
Just be sure to check the whole thing can't fly off the axis when rotating! Nevertheless you can learn how it's done in the project page. And for more, we're on twitter and Google+, so follow us for news and product updates as well.
If you're interested in experimenting with Arduino, LEDs and more - but not sure how to learn - order one of our Experimenter's Kit for Arduino:
The package includes a wide variety of parts, sensors and modules including: a servo motor, lights, buttons, switches, sound, sensors, breadboard, wires and more. Furthermore a Freetronics Eleven Arduino-compatible board is included to make this an extensive hobby experimenter, inventor and starter kit.