John Herman Randall described Aristotle’s scientific investigation as “the passionate search for passionless truth.” Many histories of science fail to capture the passion for discovery that motivates most scientists in their work. Lucy Jago’s The Northern Lights: the true story of the man who unlocked the secrets of the aurora […]
Electromagnetics
174 posts
I’ve long wondered if the modial interaction of magneto-reluctance and capacitive directance might have practical application for energy conversion on long duration space missions. Now, an inventor claims to have actually reduced this to practice in in a conventional automotive transmission application! The inventor calls it a “Turbo Encabulator.” I […]
One of the pioneers in ultra-wideband (UWB) real-time location systems (RTLS) is Æther Wire and Location, Inc. In the Æther Wire approach, an antenna differentiates current pulses so as to yield equal and opposite impulses time-spaced according to the duration of the current impulse. This produces a time varying series […]
I’m taking a moment this morning to share some good news from my Q-Track colleagues. Q-Track’s Dosimulation™ System was the focus of the “Nuclear Training Process Award” bestowed by the Nuclear Energy Institute. Dosimulation™ Systems provide realistic radiation training for routine maintenance tasks to be performed within nuclear power facility […]
The Air Force launched a satellite with hyperspectral imaging capabilities this weekend, according to Popular Science. Hat Tip: Glenn Reynolds.
Last week, I shared a photo (right) with my Facebook friends of my “guest lecture” to my daughters’ kindergarten class. I had a request for more information, and since I had already written out my lecture plan, I thought it would be fun to share what I taught. In addition, […]
In his guest post last week, The Rise and Fall of UWB, Kai Siwiak traced the history of wireless – from the original wideband spark transmissions, to narrowband carrier signals with compact modulations, coming full circle back to spread spectrum and ultra-wideband signals. This history is correct in its description […]
Updating last week’s post on the Rise and Fall of UWB, the Huntsville Times reports that Time Domain’s new president, Adrian Jennings, is upbeat about the future. Update: a slightly reworked version is here.
Some updates on items previously discussed or mentioned on AetherCzar: The “Froot Loops” plaintiff also had a law suit alleging false advertising. Believe it or not, there is no such thing as a “Crunch Berry,” and no real berries in the eponymous cereal. Alas, his appeal was dismissed for lack […]
A few quick picks… Austrian physicists claim ball lighting is an optical illusion induced in the visual center of the brain by the intense magnetic fields of lightning. PatentlyO on the USPTO’s proposal to create a “slow,” “standard,” and “fast” lane for patent applications. Applicants will pay more for a […]
[iframe: src=”http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=uwbantennacom-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&m=amazon&f=ifr&md=10FE9736YVPPT7A0FBG2&asins=0470859318″ frameborder=”0″ width=”120px” height=”240px” scrolling=”no”] AetherCzar is grateful to Dr. Kai Siwiak for his comment provoking guest post on ultra-wideband (UWB) technology. In thanks for his contribution, we’d like to draw our readers’ attention to Kai’s excellent introductory UWB technology text (by way of a review originally posted at […]
Guest Post by Kai Siwiak, TimeDerivative, Inc. Unless otherwise indicated, all quotes are from: K. Siwiak and D. McKeown, UWB Radio Technology, (Wiley, 2004) We pause to reflect on the rise and fall of ultra-wideband (UWB) technology, and especially on the recent reorganization of Time Domain Corporation, a UWB pioneer […]
A few quick picks… The National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA) is welcoming public comments on dealing with contraband cell phones in prisons. Submit your comments before June 11. Hat tip: Ars Technica. Elliot revisits the cell phone ban on airplanes. Chiropractor in Frederick, MD cleanses “EMF toxins” using ancient […]
Annually FierceWireless picks its list of fifteen “Fierce” wireless start-ups. The 2010 honorees are a diverse lot, including a VC firm, suppliers of wireless applications for niche markets, and a company trying to bring comic books to smart phones. My personal favorite is an outfit called “PowerMat” which offers inductive […]
A few quick picks: A new radio direction finding system for deployment on Humvees was introduced last week by Southwest Research Institute. Claire Berlinski reporting in City Journal reports a surprising lack of interest in a couple of Russian exiles with copies of the Kremlin’s secret archives needing translation and […]
While I’m on the subject of antennaphobia, the following excerpt from R. N. Vyvyan’s Wireless Over Thirty Years (London: George Routledge & Sons, Ltd., 1933, pp. 19-20) may be of interest:
T-Mobile needs to add capacity to its San Fransisco Bay Area networks. The Boy Scouts have a camp on an elevated site perfect for a tower. And a little cash to keep their camp maintained wouldn’t hurt, either. T-Mobile offered to pay $2200/month for a 30-year lease to the tower […]
I first heard about the “Tin Disease” when I was reading Isaac Asimov’s science essays in junior high school. He described how the tin organ pipes in St. Petersburg mysteriously lost their shine during a cold winter and transformed into a crumbly gray powder. Thus (Asimov said), was it discovered […]
“Is Induction Cooking Ready to go Mainstream?” asked the New York Times last month. An induction range uses a rapidly varying magnetic field to induce electric currents in steel pots and pans – causing them to get hot very rapidly. Induction cooking appears to be coming back into vogue… again. […]
From the July 1927 issue of Popular Science, the ‘latest’ thinking on “Wireless Power Transfer.” The article quotes contemporary expert opinion from such luminaries as Steinmetz, Tesla, and Marconi. As Marconi noted: “the transmission of power by electrical waves awaited only the perfection of devices for projecting the waves in […]
Scientist Clive Wing claims to have invented a plasma based light source that mimics sunlight but without the heat. Unfortunately technical details are sketchy. Press report here. Some technical data are here. It looks promising, if it works as claimed.