Blackberry REACT July 2009 NewsletterQuick ClicksIMPORTANT QUESTIONWe have had a member ask if our meeting night could be changed from Wednesday. We discussed this at the meeting on July 1, and it turns out that someone can’t make it every night of the week. So the query then turned to “Can more people come on a Tuesday or Thursday night than Wednesday?” This is an official poll: If we change our meeting to the first Tuesday or first Thursday of the month, would_you_come? It would be an expensive undertaking to change the meeting as all our materials and online information give our meeting as the first Wednesday, so don’t answer the poll lightly. If we change our meeting date, would you come to the meetings? If so, which day (Tuesday or Thursday) would you come. Implanted defibrillator in actionAt 15 seconds in to the video, you see the heart attack victim lying on the field jerk. $200 laptop runs on AAsThis is a basic laptop from Thailand running Ubuntu Linux. It is powered by 8 AA batteries. They predict 4 hours of run time on the set of batteries. The CPU and RAM are on plug-in modules, which allows you to upgrade or replace them as you will. I’m very happy to see a laptop that runs on AAs, since you can get them almost anywhere and won’t need a working mains outlet to get the computer charged again. Lithium-Sulfur batteries taking to the roadLithium-sulfur batteries have more energy and are lighter than Li-Ion batteries of the same capacity, and sulfur is cheaper than the component it replaces in Li-Ions. Photo tour of Soviet nuclear power plantThe text says this was being built when Chernobyl melted down, so they stopped with three reactors instead of the planned four. I don’t know how anyone understands what’s going on in a control room. Edwardian steampunkWell, not really steampunk, but actual products of times gone by. This photo is of a tea kettle; the alarm clock strikes a flame which heats the water in the kettle. When it boils, the steam lifts the kettle and pours the water in your tea cup. Other devices include a sliced bread slicer from the depression so you could make each slice into two, hand-cranked food processors, and a combination iron and tea kettle. Shuttle mounting pointI have to say I never thought about how they mount the shuttle for launch – it always just sort of sat there. So here’s a photo of one of the mounting points. Space suit designEarly space suits were based on deep sea diving suits, and astronauts had to worry about the bends going from the space capsule to the lower pressure soft suits. Soft fabric suits had to be relatively low pressure or the astronauts wouldn’t be able to bend the joints. Lots of interesting things you’d never think about. 13-year-old gets a Sony WalkmanKey nugget: “It took me three days to figure out that there was another side to the tape.” Very funny review of the cassette player of the Seventies as seen by a kid today. MFJ-706 Grab-and-go comm centerThis is a grab and go box specifically for the Icom 706. The Web site says this box will turn your radio into a fool- proof communications center. I don’t know – foolishness has no limit, in my experience. This is a metal box that contains a circuit that lets you plug into a cigar lighter then feed your Icom 706 a constant 100 watts (using capacitors) based on the radio’s demands. This might prevent burning out your lighter, which is a good thing. The box also contains an automatic antenna tuner. The 706 has a remote control head, so you can put the MFJ box and radio anywhere you like while keeping the control head at hand. The box has a handle on top; put your radio in, close the lid, and grab and go. All yours for only $400. The container, of course, isn’t worth it. The question is whether the power circuit and antenna tuner are. Battery recycling now too expensiveThe federal Department of Transportation has issued regulations that require dry cells to be in individual plastic bags or that both terminals be taped over. Our city accepts batteries for recycling, but this new requirement may make it too expensive for the city to ship the batteries to the recycler. We’ll have to see what the outcome is. And you thought radio wiring was complicated
Events
UpdatesKen Della Santina will bring refreshments for the August meeting. If you missed Eric’s presentation on Net Control Operators, please visit it online at the Blackberry Web site – it’s well worth reading. Programs
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