When DVD burners opened up to the consumer market a few years ago, I spent a considerable amount of time comparing the +R, –R, RW, formats. I finally purchased my first Sony DVD burner when it was the first that
Category: Engineering
An Engineer’s View of the Situation in Iraq
There’s an old saying, “To a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” History suggests this additional version: “To the leaders of a nation with an overwhelmingly powerful military, every problem looks like it has a military solution.”
Replacement Hand ala Luke Skywalker
A recent issue of Popular Science describes some of the landmark progress with artificial limbs. Researchers in Italy have prototyped the first brain-controlled prosthetic hand (see photo below). The “Cyberhand” is intended to make patients feel as if they have
Department of Perpetual Hype
A recent issue of CIO magazine had an interesting article about the perpetual hyping of video conferencing. It highlights approximately fifteen quotes from various pundits over the last 20 years. An excerpt of some of the prognostications: Sep. 1987 [PC
Directed Energy Weapons
Directed energy weapons are a new category of non-lethal devices developed by the military (e.g., a military vehicle that projects a sonic blast to disperse rioting crowds). This article in National Defense magazine provides a nice explanation about their operation and application.
Suicide Bombers in Iraq
If you’re interested in how the enemy operates in Iraq, you may want to watch this video from Strategy Page (click on graphic below). A suicide bomber in Baghdad attempted to ram his car into an Abrams tank. Since the
Digital Cameras
Some of my friends have asked about my recommendations for buying a digital camera… I certainly don’t claim to be an expert, however, my co-workers tease me about taking so many photos that I often look like a “Japanese Tourist”.
Better than iPod
I know that the iPod is a tremendously popular electronic toy for music… during one of our recent flights for a family “power vacation”, I noticed that my wife didn’t have access to any entertainment. Since I didn’t want her
Wiki for Web-Based Collaboration
An interesting web innovation with a peculiar name is a “Wiki“. The best known application is Wikipedia, which is a web-based encyclopedia where many users collaborate on providing the facts for the various topics. Another fantastic use of the technology
Design for Manufacturing
I have been involved in a funded effort to survey and benchmark design for six sigma efforts in the aerospace & defense industry. It’s interesting to note that many of the aerospace prime contractors espouse their commitment to these principles,