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Thought for the day...
- Thread starter Wendy
- Start date
It's all fun and games till someone loses an eye.
and sometimes, dreams into nightmares.
"Remembers why decisions were made in 2018."
No. Gary's memories go back to at least the late 1980's.
And, these memories include what Henry taught him about decisions prior to that.
Henry died on the shop floor around Y2K. It wasn't an accident, just old age.
I have watched institutional knowledge evaporate after a merger or acquisition -- through layoffs or forced retirement of the oldest (or, longest employed) employees by the new organization.
It's a sad sight -- especially when a culture of excellence goes with it.
From LinkedIn:
Electronics Notes by Ian Poole:
Edwin Armstrong: the wronged genius
Every time you listen to static-free FM radio, use a modern receiver, or tune into Wi-Fi and cellular networks, you are benefiting from the genius of Edwin Howard Armstrong.
Yet, despite being one of the most prolific electrical engineers in history, his story ends in one of technology's greatest tragedies.
The Genius
Armstrong didn’t just make incremental improvements; he fundamentally created modern radio architecture:
* The Regeneration Circuit (1912): Transformed Lee de Forest's Audion valve into a practical amplifier and oscillator, making long-range wireless reception possible while still an undergraduate at Columbia.
* The Superheterodyne Receiver (1918): Solved high-frequency amplification by down-converting signal frequencies to an intermediate stage—the core architecture used in virtually every RF receiver today.
* Superregeneration (1922): Allowed simple circuits to achieve massive signal amplification.
* Wideband FM (1933): Defied the established consensus of the era by proving that varying frequency rather than amplitude could completely eliminate static interference.
By his 30s, Armstrong was a millionaire, a Columbia professor, and widely celebrated across the engineering world.
The Downfall
When Armstrong demonstrated FM, radio giants like RCA saw a massive threat. Millions had been invested in AM infrastructure, and FM required a total redesign of broadcast gear and consumer receivers.
Instead of embracing the technology, corporate players fought back:
1. Regulatory Shifts: The FCC was lobbied to move the FM spectrum band from 42–50 MHz up to 88–108 MHz overnight in 1945. This rendered Armstrong's existing network of alpine FM stations and thousands of consumer radios instantly obsolete.
2. Patent Wars: Corporate rivals infringed on his FM patents, withholding royalty payments while tying him up in marathon legal battles that dragged on for years.
Determined to defend his intellectual property, Armstrong spent his fortune fighting endless depositions. The strain destroyed his finances, his health, and his marriage.
In January 1954, exhausted, financially drained, and broken by litigation, Armstrong took his own life.
The Legacy
Shortly after his death, his widow Marion pursued the litigation, eventually winning victories and settlements against major corporations—proving that Armstrong’s patents were valid all along.
Electronics Notes by Ian Poole:
Edwin Armstrong: the wronged genius
Every time you listen to static-free FM radio, use a modern receiver, or tune into Wi-Fi and cellular networks, you are benefiting from the genius of Edwin Howard Armstrong.
Yet, despite being one of the most prolific electrical engineers in history, his story ends in one of technology's greatest tragedies.
The Genius
Armstrong didn’t just make incremental improvements; he fundamentally created modern radio architecture:
* The Regeneration Circuit (1912): Transformed Lee de Forest's Audion valve into a practical amplifier and oscillator, making long-range wireless reception possible while still an undergraduate at Columbia.
* The Superheterodyne Receiver (1918): Solved high-frequency amplification by down-converting signal frequencies to an intermediate stage—the core architecture used in virtually every RF receiver today.
* Superregeneration (1922): Allowed simple circuits to achieve massive signal amplification.
* Wideband FM (1933): Defied the established consensus of the era by proving that varying frequency rather than amplitude could completely eliminate static interference.
By his 30s, Armstrong was a millionaire, a Columbia professor, and widely celebrated across the engineering world.
The Downfall
When Armstrong demonstrated FM, radio giants like RCA saw a massive threat. Millions had been invested in AM infrastructure, and FM required a total redesign of broadcast gear and consumer receivers.
Instead of embracing the technology, corporate players fought back:
1. Regulatory Shifts: The FCC was lobbied to move the FM spectrum band from 42–50 MHz up to 88–108 MHz overnight in 1945. This rendered Armstrong's existing network of alpine FM stations and thousands of consumer radios instantly obsolete.
2. Patent Wars: Corporate rivals infringed on his FM patents, withholding royalty payments while tying him up in marathon legal battles that dragged on for years.
Determined to defend his intellectual property, Armstrong spent his fortune fighting endless depositions. The strain destroyed his finances, his health, and his marriage.
In January 1954, exhausted, financially drained, and broken by litigation, Armstrong took his own life.
The Legacy
Shortly after his death, his widow Marion pursued the litigation, eventually winning victories and settlements against major corporations—proving that Armstrong’s patents were valid all along.
Who at google thought that was good idea for Google Earth ?
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9349yx2ydvo
Google withdraws new Earth AI tool after warnings over misinformation risks
The retracted feature enabled users to use text prompts to generate false scenarios on top of a base layer of real satellite, aerial or 3D imagery - which could then be downloaded and shared on other platforms.
"We know that people uniquely trust Google Earth for a reliable view of the world," it added.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9349yx2ydvo
Google withdraws new Earth AI tool after warnings over misinformation risks
The retracted feature enabled users to use text prompts to generate false scenarios on top of a base layer of real satellite, aerial or 3D imagery - which could then be downloaded and shared on other platforms.
"We know that people uniquely trust Google Earth for a reliable view of the world," it added.
