Monthly Archives: July 2013

The Drinking History of the US

Posted on 12-July-2013 by mathscinotes

I have been reading "A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico" and I notice a common theme with other history books about the early US --drinking alcohol was a major preoccupation with early Americans. … Continue reading →

Posted in History of Science and Technology, Osseo, Personal | 3 Comments

Torpedo on an Aruba Beach

Posted on 12-July-2013 by mathscinotes

I have read in a number of places about torpedoes being found on beaches during wartime, but I have never seen pictures of one on a beach. While researching possible diving locations, I ran across this excellent excellent web article … Continue reading →

Posted in Naval History | Comments Off on Torpedo on an Aruba Beach

Fiber Optic Deployment Woes

Posted on 11-July-2013 by mathscinotes

We recently had a customer who reported that one of our products was reporting low RF video output power. This normally is caused by an issue with equipment setup, but everything this customer did was fine. It turned out that … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiber Optics | Comments Off on Fiber Optic Deployment Woes

Geothermal Power Math

Posted on 7-July-2013 by mathscinotes

One concept that intrigues me is the idea that the Earth would be warm underground even without the Sun present. See the Wikipedia for an interesting discussion of this topic. My favorite science fiction story is After Worlds Collide, which is tale that includes a rogue planet called Bronson Beta. This rogue planet survived a very long trip through the bitter cold of interstellar space. Its former inhabitants had built deep underground tunnels that provided a warm sanctuary for travelers from Earth. Continue reading →

Posted in Geology, History of Science and Technology | 1 Comment

GPAs and Work Performance

Posted on 5-July-2013 by mathscinotes

I have spent a lot of time interviewing engineers. In my current job, the first employee in the hardware department was me and I have hired every hardware person at this site. I have spent a lot time thinking about … Continue reading →

Posted in Management | Comments Off on GPAs and Work Performance

Granite Self-Heating Math

Posted on 3-July-2013 by mathscinotes

Introduction I came across the following statement in an article about the self-heating of the granite in an article about how radioactivity heats the interior of the Earth. Radioactivity is present not only in the mantle, but in the rocks … Continue reading →

Posted in Geology | 2 Comments