IEEE Consultants' Network of Long Island

Driveway Lightning - John Dunn, Consultant, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

One spring, a thunderstorm came through here during which this tremendous lightning bolt was unleashed.

I think the lightning strike must have been right in my driveway. It was broad daylight, but the flash of light was vivid. The sound of the thunderclap was immediate and LOUD!! The living room television lost its cool and started reprogramming itself for automatic tuning to the available TV channels.

Later on, I found that the cable modem for my PC had gone to that grand e-cycling place in the sky.

Radiated Susceptibility Tests and 80% AM - John Dunn, Consultant, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

I had an unsatisfactory experience some time ago with radiated susceptibility testing that was supposed to be taking place in accordance with MIL-STD-461D, but wasn't.

The requirement was for UUT irradiation using sinusoidally amplitude modulated  RF carriers for which the following applies:  

Ear Wax - John Dunn, Consultant, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

The goal was to devise a customized infrared sensor for remote temperature measurements, something similar in purpose to hand held sensors already being sold. Using a blackbody hot plate as an infrared emitter, I arranged an infrared lens and a thermocouple to monitor the emissions. Thermistor readings were also acquired for comparison purposes. 

 

Ohm's Law - John Dunn, Consultant, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

There are times when one can really hit the proverbial brick wall because, as we all know, electrons are smarter than people.

You might have wanted to make some electrons to go "that" way in your circuit, but if they decide to go the "other" way, you're not going to fix that just by using your powers of oratory and persuasion. When a circuit isn't working the way it was supposed to and no amount of reason, logic, analysis or transcendental meditation seems to  be leading you to a solution to the problem, you do indeed have a problem.  

 

The Dynamite - John Dunn, Consultant, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

My boss had built his home at the very top of a multi-hundred foot hill in New Hampshire and true to that state's reputation, the hill was largely made of granite. He decided one day to add an extension and to do that, he had to extend the foundation. He got an architect's instructions about how to proceed.

The project involved removing of a lot of granite from right outside the kitchen door. I had volunteered to assist in the process which consisted of drilling a set of properly spaced two-inch diameter holes into the granite, loading each hole with a stick of a dynamite into which a blasting cap had been inserted, wiring the caps in a series circuit and setting them all off with a shot of 120 VAC line voltage.

Police Emergency Incompetence - John Dunn, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

We took a walk on the Jones Beach boardwalk this afternoon and then got back in the car to drive back home.

At 5:10 PM today, October 9, 2010, the drawbridge serving the southern extreme of the Meadowbrook Parway both to and from Jones Beach here in Nassau County, was opened and raised to allow passage of a boat underneath that bridge. Following that boat's passage however, the bridge failed to close.

On the parkway approaching the northbound side of the bridge where I and other drivers had come to a stop, three overhead traffic lights turned to and then remained red, the safety crossing gate descended and then remained down with its red lights flashing and an extremely loud siren began to sound.

Using my cell phone, I called 911 for assistance, but the response to my call was quite unsatisfactory.

The Verizon Story - Part 2 John Dunn, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

My latest phone bill was more than double the bill immediately before so I decided to look into why that was so.

It might be correct, but just maybe someone was playing games with my account, so I called Verizon's Customer Service Center at 1-800-837-4966. I questioned in particular the Verizon Regional Calls listing which does not contain the phone numbers that were called although years ago, that information was included in phone bills as a matter of course.   

Customer Service told me that the list of phone numbers to which the Verizon Regional Calls were made can only be obtained on-line.

I went on-line and was informed via Verizon Live Chat, chat ID number 09301091149, that the list of phone numbers can only be obtained via Customer Service at the phone number above.

The Verizon Show - John Dunn, Ambertec, P.E., P.C.

I simply cound NOT have made this up.

My phone stopped working yesterday, so I tried to report the problem to Verizon using their web site. However, the part of the site I needed to use didn't work. Two links were inoperative, one of them giving an "Error 404" response, the other one simply not there.

Therefore, I contacted their "customer support", also by way of that web site. Oohhhhh boy!!

Sometimes, I have to wonder what drives me to bother, but this exchange of e-mails should at least be good for a chuckle or two.

The Volume of Hens' Eggs - John Dunn

Practictioners of aux cuisine, professional or amateur, competition or hobbyist, have nothing to fear from this quarter. The kitchen stove and I don't much like each other.

In spite of that, my wife once asked me to make some French toast. Having no idea how, I decided to seek a consultant, a widely respected authority on the subject . I took out a copy of The Joy of Cooking, by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker, © 1964.

It was like running into a verbal bridge abutment. I couldn't understand anything they wrote!

I have no doubt that the authors knew about making French toast and that they'd written words which they thought would effectively convey the necessary steps to the reader, but they didn't do it in any way that this reader could comprehend.