Southwest’s Frequent Pressurization

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411 days
by in Technogadgets®

Southwest needs to take a look at how their practices may cause aircraft to age differently. Could their frequent takeoffs and landings could be a factor? They run their fleet of 737s like buses, making more stops, and that means additional wear and tear and more frequent pressurizing. They’re doing high-frequency eddy current inspections, here’s Southwest’s statement on what has been found.

Verizon iPad 1 For $299

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421 days
by in Technogadgets®

It’s true! This isn’t one of those invites you get on Facebook, Verizon really is getting rid of first-generation iPads for $299. That gets you a WiFi only 16gb original iPad. There’s nothing wrong with the original, if you don’t need the extra speed, thinner profile, and the ho-hum cameras built into the iPad 2. Add a hundred bucks for a 32 gig and a hundred more for the full 64! Call Verizon and see if they still have any in stock. It’s a great deal.

Hummingbird Mom Feeds Kids

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426 days
by in Technogadgets®

Were really impressed with this great live camera that’s focused on Phoebe, a little hummingbird living in Southern California. There are two babies in the nest now, they hatched in the pre-dawn hours of March 12, and they’re hungry. A hummingbird has to be out feeding almost all the time when awake, and Phoebe has to also collect enough for these two hungry mouths. Enjoy the video here, but if you tune in on ustream you’ll find a really high resolution live image.

747-8 Maiden Flight

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426 days
by in Technogadgets®

It’s the largest 747. It’s the largest aircraft built in the US, and also the longest. The new 747-8 Intercontinental has a 224-foot wingspan and costs about 318 million dollars. 33 planes have been ordered. Take a look at the new Boeing 747-8 as it lifts off the runway for the first time in Everett, Washington.

AT&T Buying T-Mobile

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427 days
by in Technogadgets®

You know that great rate you’re currently getting with T-Mobile? Enjoy it while you can. A lot of experts say it’ll have to go up if AT&T snaps up T-Mobile USA for 39 billion dollars. The deal would make AT&T the number one provider, surpassing Verizon, and that’s good news for the data demands being put on them by all the smart phone and iPad users. Here’s more on the story from the Chicago Tribune.

Dash Cam Tsunami Video

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430 days
by in Technogadgets®

We keep seeing more and more amazing video of the tsunami. This is from a dash cam that was rolling as the tsunami crashed over a seawall. The car is engulfed and floating in just seconds. From what I can tell, in other parts of the video that we didn’t post here, the driver escaped safely. You can make a donation for tsunami relief at RedCross.org or make a $10 donation by texting REDCROSS to 90999. The money will go to those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific.

Buying A Geiger Counter?

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432 days
by in Technogadgets®

Time to buy your own radiation detector? We don’t think so, but you can go to Amazon and find the geiger-counter that’s right for you. The damaged nuclear power facilities in Japan have a lot of people looking into things like radiation meters. This popular supplier isn’t taking any new orders until they fill the requests they have. Meanwhile, even here in Chicago, people are snapping up iodine tablets. They fill your thyroid with good iodine, so radioactive iodine isn’t absorbed into your thyroid….if any radiation ever got to the Midwest. You’re cautioned that taking iodine can be risky and to check with your doctor . There has been a shortage of iodine in the world for some time now…so this latest event is really drying up supplies…and prices are going up.

Quake/Tsunami + Japan’s Tech Makers

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433 days
by in Technogadgets®

Some tech companies have facilities in the north of Japan and were hit hard by the earthquake and tsunami. According the computer trade publication Channel News, “Among the worst hit is Sony who has already closed down six of their manufacturing facilities – involved in Blu-ray components, lithium-ion batteries and disc production. Also hit are plants owned by Panasonic, Toshiba and Fujitsu.” Channel News also says, “Foreign companies with factories close to the quake’s epicentre include Freescale Semiconductor, which made microcontrollers in a Sendai facility. The facility has been evacuated and currently has no electrical power.”

1958 Tsunami Rose 1,720 Feet

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433 days
by in Technogadgets®

It’s the highest tsunami ever recorded. In 1958, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake triggered a landslide and the partial draining of a glacial lake in Alaska. As a result, Lituya Bay saw a tsunami of 1,720 feet! That’s about the same height as the tips on the antennas on Willis Tower, formerly Sears Tower, in Chicago. Two died that day but a fishing boat, out on the open water of the bay, miraculously successfully rode out the historic wave. Learn more about the biggest tsunami ever at this great site. The tragedy in Japan has clearly demonstrated, once again, the power of a tsunami. We often think of this destructive wave as a Hawaii Five-O surfing wave. But it’s not a big, breaking wave at all. As you’ve seen in the amazing and horrific videos from Japan, it’s a surge of water that comes in several waves. Regular ocean waves may have a wavelength of 300 feet between crests. A tsunami’s wavelength in open water may be 100 miles. A tsunami in the open ocean can go 500 miles per hour, bring the water level up just a foot, take 15 to 30 minutes to move through, and pass ships totally unnoticed. The tsunami rises and slows down as it encounters the rising terrain of shore and acts differently in a harbor than along an open shoreline. A tsunami is considered major if it’s 3+ meters high (1 meter = 3.3 feet). This one was up to 10 meters, or 33 feet, high! An earthquake was responsible for this tsunami, but they can also be caused by landslides or other disturbances that displace water, as was the case of the 1,720 foot Alaskan tsunami of 1958. Here’s a map of the bay and water heights recorded. The few people at the bay had only the earthquake as a warning that a tsunami could develop. Today, we have warning systems in place that can at least give some notice to get to higher ground. You can learn more about tsunami warning systems at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s site.

Hummingbirds to Eagles

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436 days
by in Technogadgets®

We’ve been watching a gorgeous hummingbird named Phoebe, perched on a nest the size of a small walnut shell, as she waits for her two eggs to hatch. They’re the size of small jelly beans, and she’s in Orange County, California, but the picture is perfect. Closer to home, in Decorah, Iowa, two eagles take turns sitting on their eggs in a 5 foot diameter nest. It’s 80 feet up a tree but the picture is perfect and the night camera images are flawless. Mom and dad trade places, sitting and hunting, picking at a rabbit, straightening up the nest, and waiting with the rest of us. It’s nesting season…and the Internet is bringing it to us on our laptops. On the big screen in front of me is a tragic tsunami and an 8.9 earthquake. On my little screen, Phoebe’s first egg could hatch at any minute. A huge community is peeking in on the life of these creatures and sharing these special moments leading up to a new life. You can watch Phoebe here and look in on the Iowa eagles here.

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