Saturday, December 21, 2024
Of Angry Neighbors, Black Mold, & Lawsuits
Thursday, December 19, 2024
Tuesday, December 17, 2024
How Much Radioactive Material is Missing in New Jersey?
- NJ mayor links drone sightings to missing radioactive material And mayor's off the cuff remarks link him to missing cranial material. Still, the article does give the name of the radioactive source:
- General Electric Medical Source HEGL-0132 (inset pic), a 55MBq calibration device. What's a MBq? How does this compare with a smoke detector's source? How's it work?
- Becquerel, the SI unit of radioactivity, article a Wikipedia.
- A smoke detector has about 37kBq, according to this source. (a surprisingly difficult number to find in a pile of "This Is Completely Safe!!! Do Not Ask Further!!!" search results) 55x10^6/37x10^3 = 1486. Think of it as a 12 wide by 11 high by 11 deep display stack of smoke alarms.
- How Germanium-68/Gallium-68 generators work, also at you-know-where.
- Just for completeness, here's the NRC's "uh, we lost something" paperwork on the incident.
- Finally, a J-school article Missing Radioactive Material in New Jersey Not as Bad as It Sounds.
Are Bubble Lights Dangerous?
Monday, December 16, 2024
Picking a AA Battery
Sunday, December 15, 2024
Radio Free Carrabelle Strikes Again!
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Book Mention: 7 Seconds to Die
Monday, December 2, 2024
Saturday, November 30, 2024
On This Last Day of Hurricane Season
BTW, if you're interested in getting your amateur radio license, here's a how-to link. You've got time to get this done before the festivities resume next June.
Thursday, November 28, 2024
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
Wilderness Missing Persons Cases Adequately (if imperfectly) Explained
Monday, November 25, 2024
Busy Lately
Monday, November 18, 2024
So Much for That One
I still twitch a little bit about these late-season storms. Hurricane Kate in 1985 – on Nov. 19th! – was particularly bad, and late October Hurricane Zeta in 2020 was just plain unexpected.
Sunday, November 17, 2024
Across Franklin County via 80m
Saturday, November 16, 2024
Wonderfully Dark Humor
Tuesday, November 12, 2024
No, Really, I'm Good on Gear
Monday, November 11, 2024
Thursday, November 7, 2024
As a matter of fact...
Tuesday, November 5, 2024
On This Election Day...
- Voting machines that are easily tampered, and that use closed-source software. There is no reason whatsoever for insecure machines running mystery meat software to still be in use after the questions that have continually arisen since the 2000 presidential election.
Monday, November 4, 2024
Thirty Years of Mountain Biking
This is the bike I really learned to ride on, and ride it I did: first race (shown), Crested Butte, Moab, Homochitto, Oak Mountain, etc. Then about a year and a half later, a screaming deal on this bike crossed my path:
Now this was the bike. By the time I was done with it thirteen years later, the frame and the cranks were the only original parts, having gone through two forks, five wheels, several complete brake sets, and a half-dozen drivetrains. With 1.5" of extremely simple rear suspension, it was all the cush needed in the local woods trails. The only bike I ever raced to first place, in an adventure race at Chicasawbogue in 2001. Still, technology marches on, and at some point "repairs" become more of "restorations" as the NOS parts bin drew empty of good 26" ceramic-rimmed wheels for the V-brakes.
Geometry sorted out, this 29er fits and carves like the 2000 STP and rolls even better. Tons of new tech on this bike: 1x12 drivetrain, dropper post, tubeless tires, and carbon fiber everywhere. Parts supply train updated, this'll probably be viable for a decade or so. It was a true dream ride in this year's OMBA Epic.
Friday, November 1, 2024
Seafood Festival!
Hurricane Helene, Western North Carolina, and Radio
Winter Field Day Commeth
- Event times have changed, and the event has been extended beyond 24 hours. Start time is now 11am EST Saturday and runs through to 4:59pm EST on Sunday. This really stretches things into Monday if you're out camping, although nothing says that you can't leave early.
- Location do not have to remain fixed during the entire event. This could be due to safety, weather, or other considerations. Sensible, especially in the frozen wastelands north of I-10.
- Objectives (previously called bonuses) are now multipliers. More on this below.
- Several objectives have been added, and these are pretty cool. Again, more below.
- Operate away from home, x3. Entirely reasonable, kind of the reason for this being a "field day."
- Operate 100% on alternative power, x1. You're not really in the field if you're still on grid power.
- Deploy multiple antennas, x1. Necessary anyway if you're going to work HF and VHF/UHF.
- Make an FM satellite contact x2. Probably not this year, yet again.
- Make a SSB or CW satellite contact, x3. Even harder of a probably not.
- Send or receive at least one Winlink email, x1. Very sensible from an emcomm point of view.
- Copy the WFD Special bulletin, x1. Also fits with the emcomm theme, and very cool.
- Operate on at least six different bands, x6. This is huge! Something of a challenge too. I wish it was incremental, i.e., add one multiplier for each band worked. OTOH, putting in the 6 bands = x6 step function puts some heat and challenge on the operators, so that makes sense.
- Use multiple modes, x2. Voice, CW, or digital, pick any at least two. Gets an operator out of a rut.
- Operate QRP, x4. I've done it before, and it is a worthwhile challenge. However if I'm going to work any VHF/UHF in the woods of north FL, QRO is the only path forward.
- Operate six continuous hours during the event, x2. Show that you've got the butt power to stick with the radio in a real emergency! Bathroom breaks are not mentioned in this, so set up with a convenient bush within radio operator earshot.
Thursday, October 31, 2024
A Creepy Tale for This Halloween Evening
Tuesday, October 29, 2024
Two New Tasks
We've all heard of "Herculean task" and "Sisyphean task," but today I found two new terms:
- Icarian task: When you have a task that you know you're going to fail at anyway, so you decide to have some fun with it before the tenuous wax of ideas holding it together melts and the whole mess crashes back to Earth.
- Cassandrean task: When you have to deal with people who you know won't listen to you, despite your having accurate information on and/or extensive experience in the matter, and then having to watch them fumble around after you told them the solution from the start.
Huh. Useful terms.
Monday, October 28, 2024
Holy Cosmic Bat Nebula, Batman!
Sunday, October 27, 2024
Saturday, October 26, 2024
This Banner...
Friday, October 25, 2024
Phil Lesh Checks Out at 84
Wednesday, October 23, 2024
Let's Look at That One More Time
Monday, October 21, 2024
Monday at Wright's Lake Trail
That's all for today. Just another hike.
Sunday, October 20, 2024
Reminder to Self for Next Year
The Radio Club of Tacoma cordially invites all amateur radio operators around the world to seek out the elusive "BIGFOOT" to celebrate National Sasquatch Awareness Day on October 20th! We are sure there will be multiple sightings of the BIGFOOT special event stations, but the challenge will be to contact ALL the special event stations W7B, W7I, W7G, W7F, W7O, (stations must work W7O at least twice on 2 different modes, bands, or Zulu days) and W7T to claim the coveted BIG STOMP on the BIGFOOT Certificate! ANYONE can apply for the certificate - even if you only worked one of the stations.
Radio Club of Tacoma (W7DK) club members will be operating BIGFOOT callsigns starting on October 16th at 0000 Zulu, and the special event will end on October 21 at 2359 Zulu. Stations will be using CW, phone, FT8/FT-4, and RTTY modes, and will be operating on 80, 40, 20, 15, and 10 meters at various times throughout each day.
Book Mention: Forbidden Area
Saturday, October 19, 2024
With All This Going-to-the-Woods...
Time to re-watch The Blair Witch Project while sorting out camping gear. It's so much more relaxing than dealing with the actual monsters that come to play in my neighborhood.
High Bluff Thursday
Stay tuned, because the cool hiking weather's just begun.
Sunday, October 13, 2024
SpaceX Starship Booster Launch & Landing
Saturday, October 12, 2024
Cooling Down
Note how the hot stripe starting in the Yucatan Strait has largely fallen apart, and the overall surface temperature is down. Hopeful signs, even if it's still a long way to December.
Friday, October 11, 2024
Reason #284 You Need a Good Cooler
“This man survived in a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced mariner," said Lt Cmdr Dana Grady, chief commander of the St Petersburg sector.
"To understand the severity of the hurricane conditions, we estimate he experienced approximately 75-90mph winds, 20-25ft seas, for an extended period of time to include overnight.
"He survived because of a life jacket, his emergency position indicating locator beacon, and a cooler."