Happiness is the
best habit to cultivate.
Happiness always blooms, especially on a Happy
Friday!
Jan 26, 2018
Australia Day
On January 26, Australia Day
a National Holiday of Australia is celebrated.
Australia Day, celebrated annually on 26 January, is the official national day of Australia, commemorating the establishment of the first British settlement on the continent of Australia. The date is that of the foundation of a British penal colony at Sydney Cove on Port Jackson, New South Wales in 1788, by Captain Arthur Phillip, in his capacity as the first Governor of New South Wales. Australia Day is an official public holiday in all states and territories of Australia, and has also been known as Anniversary Day and Foundation Day.
Australia Day, celebrated annually on 26 January, is the official national day of Australia, commemorating the establishment of the first British settlement on the continent of Australia. The date is that of the foundation of a British penal colony at Sydney Cove on Port Jackson, New South Wales in 1788, by Captain Arthur Phillip, in his capacity as the first Governor of New South Wales. Australia Day is an official public holiday in all states and territories of Australia, and has also been known as Anniversary Day and Foundation Day.
Thomas Crapper Day
Squeezed in between Australia Day and Auckland Anniversary
is Thomas Crapper Day on January 27th. Thomas Crapper Day is a
holiday devoted to the man who purportedly invented the flush
toilet, although he actually did not.
As with many inventions, the flush toilet did not suddenly spring into existence, but was the result of a long chain of minor improvements. Thomas Crapper's plumbing company built flush toilets of Giblin's design.
He was not the original inventor, but popularized the siphon system for emptying the tank, replacing the earlier floating valve system which was prone to leaks. The similarity between Crapper's name and the much older word 'crap' is merely a coincidence.
As with many inventions, the flush toilet did not suddenly spring into existence, but was the result of a long chain of minor improvements. Thomas Crapper's plumbing company built flush toilets of Giblin's design.
He was not the original inventor, but popularized the siphon system for emptying the tank, replacing the earlier floating valve system which was prone to leaks. The similarity between Crapper's name and the much older word 'crap' is merely a coincidence.
Auckland Anniversary
On the Monday closest to January 29
Auckland Anniversary Day is celebrated.
Auckland Anniversary Day is actually the 29th of January, but it is observed on the Monday closest to that date. Auckland Anniversary applies to the Auckland Province which includes Northland, Auckland, Waikato, King Country, Coromandel, Bay of Plenty, and Gisborne and East Coast Regions. The date 29 January itself is not the actual day on which Auckland was founded, but the day on which explorer and first governor of New Zealand William Hobson first sighted North Island at the Bay of Islands.
In 1840, Hobson arrived in New Zealand and quickly signed a treaty with the Maori, the Treaty of Waitangi, which led to New Zealand becoming a new British colony. It was on 18 September of 1840 that Hobson founded Auckland and made it the capital city of New Zealand.
Auckland Anniversary Day is actually the 29th of January, but it is observed on the Monday closest to that date. Auckland Anniversary applies to the Auckland Province which includes Northland, Auckland, Waikato, King Country, Coromandel, Bay of Plenty, and Gisborne and East Coast Regions. The date 29 January itself is not the actual day on which Auckland was founded, but the day on which explorer and first governor of New Zealand William Hobson first sighted North Island at the Bay of Islands.
In 1840, Hobson arrived in New Zealand and quickly signed a treaty with the Maori, the Treaty of Waitangi, which led to New Zealand becoming a new British colony. It was on 18 September of 1840 that Hobson founded Auckland and made it the capital city of New Zealand.
Super Bowl and Olympic Cameras
Even though we will not be seeing the
Super bowl in 4K in the US, it will be filmed in 4K. The same
is true for the Winter Olympics, which will be filmed in 4K
and 8K HDR, but will not be shown on cable in 4K in the US,
except by Xfinity. Unfortunate that the rest of the world gets
to enjoy 4K, while we do not. Seems many countries have more
advanced distribution systems than the US. The good news is
that regardless of the game play, the Super Bowl commercials
are always worth watching.
Olympic feeds will all be distributed in 4K, then locally distributed by country. South Korea will be broadcasting the Winter Olympics in 4K HDR throughout the country. It utilizes the ATSC 3.0 broadcasting that will be tested in the US beginning this Spring. This standard will replace the current antenna (OTA) signals in the US and allow us to receive 4K TV with an antenna.
For the Super Bowl, NBC Sports will deploy 36 cameras with a mix of Canon and Fujinon lenses. Among them will be:
Four Sony HDC-4800’s operating in 4K,
Seven Sony HDC-4300 hard cameras configured for 6X super-slo-mo
One Sony HDC-4300 operating in 4K,
Two Sony HDC-4300 handhelds configured for 6X.
Eight Sony HDC-2500 hard cameras,
Eight Sony HDC-2500 handheld cameras,
Two SkyCams and a few robos.
The four Sony HDC-4800 4K cameras, outfitted with Fujinon PL 85-300mm Cabrio lenses, will be positioned in the left and right end zone and the near-left and far-left sideline. The Sony HDC-4300 4K camera, with a Canon 95X lens, will be positioned in the high-left end zone.
Olympic feeds will all be distributed in 4K, then locally distributed by country. South Korea will be broadcasting the Winter Olympics in 4K HDR throughout the country. It utilizes the ATSC 3.0 broadcasting that will be tested in the US beginning this Spring. This standard will replace the current antenna (OTA) signals in the US and allow us to receive 4K TV with an antenna.
For the Super Bowl, NBC Sports will deploy 36 cameras with a mix of Canon and Fujinon lenses. Among them will be:
Four Sony HDC-4800’s operating in 4K,
Seven Sony HDC-4300 hard cameras configured for 6X super-slo-mo
One Sony HDC-4300 operating in 4K,
Two Sony HDC-4300 handhelds configured for 6X.
Eight Sony HDC-2500 hard cameras,
Eight Sony HDC-2500 handheld cameras,
Two SkyCams and a few robos.
The four Sony HDC-4800 4K cameras, outfitted with Fujinon PL 85-300mm Cabrio lenses, will be positioned in the left and right end zone and the near-left and far-left sideline. The Sony HDC-4300 4K camera, with a Canon 95X lens, will be positioned in the high-left end zone.
Super Blue, Blood, Snow Moon
We will be able to view a super moon, blue
moon, and a total lunar eclipse (blood moon) all on the same
night.
The blue moon is the second full moon in a month and the first full moon showed up on January 1. The full moon (blue moon) will occur at 8:37 a.m. ET Jan. 31. It is the first blue moon total lunar eclipse in the US since March 1866.
The lunar eclipse on January 31 will last about 3½ hours from the beginning of the partial phase at 3:48 a.m. PT until it ends at 7:12 a.m. PT, from western North America across the Pacific to eastern Asia. In the United States, the best view of the eclipse will be along the West Coast. For skywatchers in the central and eastern US, only a partial eclipse will be visible.
The full moon will take on a dark, reddish appearance during the eclipse and is described as a blood moon. This full moon was also known as the "snow moon" by some Native American tribes.
A super moon occurs when the full moon is at the closest point of its orbit to the Earth.
The blue moon is the second full moon in a month and the first full moon showed up on January 1. The full moon (blue moon) will occur at 8:37 a.m. ET Jan. 31. It is the first blue moon total lunar eclipse in the US since March 1866.
The lunar eclipse on January 31 will last about 3½ hours from the beginning of the partial phase at 3:48 a.m. PT until it ends at 7:12 a.m. PT, from western North America across the Pacific to eastern Asia. In the United States, the best view of the eclipse will be along the West Coast. For skywatchers in the central and eastern US, only a partial eclipse will be visible.
The full moon will take on a dark, reddish appearance during the eclipse and is described as a blood moon. This full moon was also known as the "snow moon" by some Native American tribes.
A super moon occurs when the full moon is at the closest point of its orbit to the Earth.
Bigger MicroSD
Many are familiar with those little cards in smartphones,
and used by many laptop computers. They are called microSD
cards. Micro due to physical size and SD means Secure Digital.
Interesting to think that anything called micro could be considered large. However, there is now a microSD card capable of holding over half a terabyte of data. Integral Memory’s new 512 gigabyte card. It should hold about 24 or more hours of 4K video, depending on compression rate.
To give a perspective, 64GB is often the standard for high-end casual users and is capable of holding hundreds to thousands of high-quality photos. However, HD movies take up much more space.
Incidentally, just a few years ago, 32GB card was thought to be all you would ever need for storage. Before that, computers were sufficient at 32k. My how quickly times change.
Interesting to think that anything called micro could be considered large. However, there is now a microSD card capable of holding over half a terabyte of data. Integral Memory’s new 512 gigabyte card. It should hold about 24 or more hours of 4K video, depending on compression rate.
To give a perspective, 64GB is often the standard for high-end casual users and is capable of holding hundreds to thousands of high-quality photos. However, HD movies take up much more space.
Incidentally, just a few years ago, 32GB card was thought to be all you would ever need for storage. Before that, computers were sufficient at 32k. My how quickly times change.
Sizes Explained
Using the metric system 1,000 bytes would be a k, or
kilobyte, but in the computer industry a k is equal to 1024
bytes. That means each of the below metric designations are
approximate for computer terminology. Some medical computers
currently have storage measured in petabytes. Even as devices
have shrunk in size, demand for storage has increased in
inverse proportion.
kilo = thousand
mega = million
giga = billion (There are 1,024 GB in 1 TB.)
tera = trillion (There are 1,498 CD discs in 1 TB)
peta = quadrillion (A human brain can store about 2.5 PB of data)
exa = quintillion (Almost 11 million 4K movies can fit in 1 EB)
zetta = sextillion (1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424)
yotta = septillion
kilo = thousand
mega = million
giga = billion (There are 1,024 GB in 1 TB.)
tera = trillion (There are 1,498 CD discs in 1 TB)
peta = quadrillion (A human brain can store about 2.5 PB of data)
exa = quintillion (Almost 11 million 4K movies can fit in 1 EB)
zetta = sextillion (1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424)
yotta = septillion
Jan 19, 2018
Happy Friday
Tomorrow, as with
climate cannot be accurately predicted.
Do not worry about tomorrow, be happy today and celebrate a Happy Friday!
Do not worry about tomorrow, be happy today and celebrate a Happy Friday!
January 23 - National Rhubarb Pie Day
I love rhubarb, whether in
pie, stewed, poached, or baked. It is a seasonal thing, so grab
some when you can.
New Layoff Terms
Here are a few politically correct terms from IBM,
'productively redeployed' and RA or 'Redundancy Action'. IBM is
doing this to 30% (30,900 people) of one of its groups during
2018. Up to 9,000 may be 'redeployed' or 'reskilled' and another
10,100 not refilled. IBM wants 20 per cent of GTS 'on-shore' at
a country level, 20 per cent in 'near-shore' locations and 60
per cent 'off-shore'. Seems it is living up to its old
moniker "I've Been Moved."
Hurricanes
Hurricanes are not caused by global warming according to the
insurance industry, which insists they are "Acts of God."
Shade Antenna
RCA is showcasing an antenna built into a roller shade. Now not
only can your roller shade keep the sun out, but it can also
pick up free over-the-air TV.
This new antenna is not yet available for sale, but RCA won a CES 2018 Innovation Award for new products. We should see these antennas hitting stores sometime later this year.
Roller shade antennas from RCA are one more step in a rush to sell antennas that will seamlessly blend into your home surroundings. No longer is the TV antenna something that stands out, it is now something that can vanish into the backdrop of your decor.
This new antenna is not yet available for sale, but RCA won a CES 2018 Innovation Award for new products. We should see these antennas hitting stores sometime later this year.
Roller shade antennas from RCA are one more step in a rush to sell antennas that will seamlessly blend into your home surroundings. No longer is the TV antenna something that stands out, it is now something that can vanish into the backdrop of your decor.
Autonomous Cars
This is also known as a driverless car, self-driving car,
robotic car, and unmanned ground vehicle. There are six levels
from zero, which is where we currently are, to five, which is
self driving.
Level 0: This level is where we mostly are. The human driver controls everything: steering, brakes, throttle, power.
Level 1: This level means that most functions are still controlled by the driver, but a specific function, like steering or accelerating can be done automatically by the car.
Level 2: At least one driver assistance system of "both steering and acceleration/deceleration using information about the driving environment" is automated, like cruise control and lane-centering. It means that the "driver is disengaged from physically operating the vehicle by having his or her hands off the steering wheel and foot off pedal at the same time." The driver must still always be ready to take control of the vehicle.
Level 3: Drivers are able to completely shift safety-critical functions to the vehicle, under certain traffic or environmental conditions. It means the driver is still present and will intervene if necessary, but is not required to monitor the situation in the same way it does for the previous levels.
Level 4: Level 4 vehicles are "designed to perform all safety-critical driving functions and monitor roadway conditions for an entire trip." However, it is important to note that this is limited to the "operational design domain" of the vehicle, meaning it does not cover every driving scenario.
Level 5: This level refers to a fully-autonomous system that expects the vehicle's performance to equal that of a human driver, in every driving scenario, including extreme environments. It can operate without a driver or passengers.
It is important to distinguish between "autonomous" and "driverless." Driverless is a more advanced stage of autonomous.
Other considerations - car insurance business will be affected, since the number of accidents is predicted to go down 80% by 2040. The different levels are important, because they change the risk profile of the car. Other costs are more likely to go up as new technology is added to the cars.
Interesting to know the things auto manufacturers are dealing with, such as avoidance of large animals requires recognition and tracking. Volvo found that software suited to caribou, deer, and elk was ineffective with kangaroos.
Level 0: This level is where we mostly are. The human driver controls everything: steering, brakes, throttle, power.
Level 1: This level means that most functions are still controlled by the driver, but a specific function, like steering or accelerating can be done automatically by the car.
Level 2: At least one driver assistance system of "both steering and acceleration/deceleration using information about the driving environment" is automated, like cruise control and lane-centering. It means that the "driver is disengaged from physically operating the vehicle by having his or her hands off the steering wheel and foot off pedal at the same time." The driver must still always be ready to take control of the vehicle.
Level 3: Drivers are able to completely shift safety-critical functions to the vehicle, under certain traffic or environmental conditions. It means the driver is still present and will intervene if necessary, but is not required to monitor the situation in the same way it does for the previous levels.
Level 4: Level 4 vehicles are "designed to perform all safety-critical driving functions and monitor roadway conditions for an entire trip." However, it is important to note that this is limited to the "operational design domain" of the vehicle, meaning it does not cover every driving scenario.
Level 5: This level refers to a fully-autonomous system that expects the vehicle's performance to equal that of a human driver, in every driving scenario, including extreme environments. It can operate without a driver or passengers.
It is important to distinguish between "autonomous" and "driverless." Driverless is a more advanced stage of autonomous.
Other considerations - car insurance business will be affected, since the number of accidents is predicted to go down 80% by 2040. The different levels are important, because they change the risk profile of the car. Other costs are more likely to go up as new technology is added to the cars.
Interesting to know the things auto manufacturers are dealing with, such as avoidance of large animals requires recognition and tracking. Volvo found that software suited to caribou, deer, and elk was ineffective with kangaroos.
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