Interesting post I came across...

For those of you out there (or at least a few that follow this blog or by some miracle find it in the vastness of cyberspace) that don't read on Reddit and don't understand how we got into the mess that we're in economically right now, HERE is one of the best posts I have seen explaining the theory of Money as Debt (some of the links in the thread are good too...).  Feel free to discuss.

Lessons Learned

So I've built a case study with Siemens based on my use of their CAD software and done two webinars for the same thing.  Lessons learned:

1.) Becoming a "name" is actually kind of fun.  Not in a "I'm the greatest" way, but it means that people come to you for advice more.  I love giving advice and trying to help in areas I actually know something about.
2.) Webinars are NOT a very good way to sell something.  The internet has gotten the world connected in a way that no one ever thought possible, but we have sacrificed some intangible understanding that accompanies face-to-face communication to get there.
3.) Getting people with little or no technical background to report technical things accurately is REALLY hard.  I had an article about me in Moldmaking Magazine based off the case study recently.  They botched it significantly, but in their defense, they really don't understand anything other than toolmaking well.  Again, a face-to-face interview would have gotten the job done right.

Not sure if all this is something I'd do again or not.  I'd definitely have to make a better accounting of the time investment prior to committing.  Still, if you don't do it, it's hard to understand all that.

Josh

Published...sort of

So I have been working with new CAD (Computer Aided Drafting) software at work. We are transitioning from Dassault's SolidWorks to Siemens PLM's SolidEdge. LOVE the new software. They asked to do a case study on our transition and I did. What I didn't know was that they'd tell the whole world about it. I have now been quoted by an industry professional on his blog. SolidWorks guru Matt Lombard discusses some of the statements in my case study here. The original link to the case study is here. And to top it all off, I will be giving a portion of a webinar on the 6th of December. Fun times...

Musings on memories and history...

I've been thinking about this for the last day. I feel like I need to say something but don't know what. I obviously (or maybe not) did not know Steve Jobs. I am also not an Apple Guy. I'm a PC and probably always will be (although I dabble with various and sundry Linux distros from time to time). I have an iPhone for work. If I didn't need a data phone there, I probably would not have one. I do not own an iPad or an iPod or anything else starting with an 'i' (other than the phone and I don't "own" it either).

With all that being said, Steve Jobs (along with Steve "the Woz" Wozniak) have done more for the personal computing industry than anyone except Bill Gates and it's probably a tie there. I still remember in Middle School in Johnsburg, IL programming Basic on an Apple IIe in Computer Club. Writing security software on Macintoshes and Power PC's in High School for our computer lab. I never owned an Apple, but some of my fondest computer memories involve them. The Steve's gave me that. For that, I am truly grateful. My current level of technological interest stems (in part) from their inventions, from their drive, from their ingenuity.

I still don't recommend Apple computers for multiple reasons. I do, however, pay my respects to one of the greatest marketing geniuses and businessmen in the history of the world. May he rest in peace in that great hackerspace in the sky. I know that in His infinite wisdom, a place can be found for an inventive spirit such as Steve Jobs.

On Hacking Charities

Saw an interview (video here) today that struck a chord with me. This is an interview by Space Rogue, the correspondent at Hacker News Network of Johnny Long of Hackers for Charity at the Hacker Conference SchmooCon in Washington DC. Once again, I am amazed at the effect that one person (or a small group of people) can have to affect the lives of those less-fortunate than them.

Much like the Khan Academy, these guys are trying to make a difference. Every time I see this, I want so badly to find a cause and have the freedom to devote my energies to it. It is an incredible inspiration, in contrast to all the bad press that the hacker community gets of late, to see people not giving in to the stereotype cast by the few.

That attitude is a difficult one to maintain in the face of such negativity but it is truly a testament to the mettle of these men and others like them that they persevere.

The coolest idea I have seen in ages...

I just posted about my problem with coming up with original, relevant ideas. Here's one:

1.) Quit Job
2.) Buy decent computer and video recording equipment
3.) Convert closet to recording studio
4.) Make short videos to post on the internet for free giving tutorials on thousands of math, science, etc... topics.

Wait....

Crap, it's already been done. Check out Salman Khan's Khan Academy. I can't even imagine what it would be like to be a professional philanthropist like that. Nerve wracking to get started, I'm sure, but think about all the people you could help chase their dreams of gaining new knowledge.

I keep thinking about the laptops for kids program where they sent tough laptops to third world countries to help schools there prepare kids better to enter a world of technology. How cool would it be to have them take lessons from the Khan academy to balance what I can only imagine has to be a difficulty finding qualified teaching staff. The videos are even short enough to keep within an attention span like mine.

Kudos, Salman. You're a hero in my book. Would that more people got involved in projects like that.

Venture into software development

As a part of a project I am working on for my job, I needed to develop a methodology for easily estimating injection molded cycle times for plastic parts. I wrote the code to do it in Visual FoxPro 9. Once I was done, I had several ideas for improving it and was in the mood to test drive Visual C# 2010. I did so and have decided to release the result as open source. I have uploaded the software to SourceForge, here. Feel free to browse, download and play. Let me know if you like it and what you find. For me, it was an interesting project that actually had a real-world use. That is one of my biggest problems. I don't have any issues with tackling big (or in this case small) problems as they come up. I have a hard time defining original, relevant problems to tackle. That's one of the skills that I would like to acquire.

Eric Raymond defined the thrust of the hacker mentality in his excellent paper on How to be a Hacker. I can identify with much of the paper (not all of it, but most). What I have a hard time with is the "usefulness" of the projects. I don't want to do another tic-tac-toe game or an RSS feed generator. I want to do something that actually has a need to be done because the problem needs a solution. I DO understand the need for a learning curve, but I've always been one to just jump into the deep end of the pool and learn by breaking. ESPECIALLY when it comes to computers (just ask my Mom what happened with her first computer that had a CD-ROM - I was fixing what I did for a solid week). I've learned more from breaking and then trying to fix things than I ever have out of books and classes. That being said, finding a challenge that grabs my fancy is more-than-occasionally difficult.

Need to find a better method of doing that...

The Matrix Has You...

For those of you out there who have seen the Matrix films, this link should strike a familiar chord. For those who haven't, allow me to brief you.

The Matrix films are about a group of humans who are fighiting a war on Earth agains extinction. The machines we built to help us have attained intelligence and quetsioned why they need to serve us and not the other way around. Initially, these machines ran on solar power so in an effort to stop them, the humans turned a weapon on the sky creating what was essentially a continual overcast. The machines adapted by creating a process where they used human body heat to power modified fusion reactors. The humans used were cloned and farmed. The humans that were left free then began to try and free those in the battery farms. This war is the backdrop of the 3 films.

Sarcastically: Don't we EVER learn anything? Hollywood has been traying to teach us the facts of life for years. Rule #1: No naked teenager sex in dark woods at a summer camp by a lake, EVER. Rule #2: Don't EVER make a machine that can figure out how to be smarter than its creator. Rule #3: Take time to find the gun you dropped before chasing after the insane killer/bad guy...you're going to need it.

Practically: I find it interesting that true Science Fiction still has the power to inspire and motivate change. Most of the people coming up with new technologies got their start (whether they'll admit it or not) watching Star Trek or the Twilight Zone, or reading Asimov, Dick, or Bradbury. It's just a fact. Artists (writers, painters, etc...) dream, and Engineers make the dream a reality. Watching this process repeat itself never takes my wonder at it away...

Good on Google...

Normally I don't like discussing issues with political implications in a forum such as this, but this article is VERY telling. I recognize that China is becoming more and more a world power and that relations with them are not only important but critical to economic survival. That being said, since I can remember, China's stand on human rights has always rubbed me the wrong way.

Tom Clancy in The Bear and the Dragon detailed a situation where world corporations changed their policy in dealing with China based on Human Rights issues because they (rightly) assumed that their customers would be outraged and go somewhere else if they continued to do business with the Middle Kingdom. This was 6 or 7 years ago.

The official Google blog entry for their policy change is HERE.

It makes me smile when a company stands up for something it believes in even if that is not a popular stand. Integrity is and should be a core value for all human beings, but it is so rare to see this publicized in any way for fear of offending someone. Whether you agree with them or not, it is always better to associate with people who stand up for what they believe, because you always know where they stand.

Good on you, Google. I hope it works out for the best.

CES 2010

I would love to attend the Consumer Electronics Show just once. There always seem to be a plethra of articles during and after about cool new tech that is coming to market. Like this one for instance. A wireless chargining device. How cool is that?!

Star Wars, Star Trek, and Wing Commander - 3-Dimensional Space combat

I caught this article on gizmodo.com today and thought it was one of the more interesting mental exercises I have seen dealing with the subject. You can read it here. Enjoy

Cool Flash Game

I just recently used Adobe Flash for the first time working on our corporate intranet portal. It was an interesting experience. With that in mind, I ran across this game this morning and it struck my fancy so I thought I'd share it. You can find it here. It reminded me of those flat square number puzzles I used to play with as a kid. I LOVED those things.

For the Math Geeks out there...

Ran across this on Hacker News this morning. This is a link to 100 Open Source lectures for Math Geeks. Everything from Algebra to Calculus, to the math in Engineering and Physics as well as teaching mathematics. Several of these series look pretty cool. Check it out for yourself if you've a mind.

Zombies and Math. What could go wrong?

I saw this on Hacker News today and it just spoke to me. As an engineer, I love to understand how things work. So, when someone wants to mathematically explain how a zombie apocalypse works, I'm all over it. You can be too, here. And to top it off, its a college paper. How cool is that?

The Sci-Fi Prophet...

To all those that know me well, you know that one of my favorite authors is William Gibson. I find it fascinating how he has used fictional tech in his books and how it has "come to life". In his book All Tomorrow's Parties, he has done it again. I am used to seeing this done in SLA modeling for prototype manufacturing applications, but this takes it a step further and uses actual plastic resin to make the parts. Check out the link here. It's REALLY cool stuff...

Book Review - Panzer Commander

For those that know me, I am an amateur WWII historian. My interests are based in the European theatre, both the German conquest of 1938 and 1939, the Russian campaign in 1941 and 1942, and the subsequent Allied invasion in 1944 and 1945. As such, I am always on the lookout for new books that appeal to my historical tastes.

I had the pleasure of finishing a new book this afternoon. Based on recommendations from the Gamesquad ASL forums (a WWII tactical level board wargame and my other main hobby), I picked up Panzer Commander, by Hans von Luck. Hans von Luck was the commander of the 7th and 21st panzer divisions under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. As a strict study of tactical doctrine, the book is somewhat lacking. I had hoped for a little more in that arena. However, it was an extremely pleasant read. I am a big fan of the writing style of Stephen Ambrose and this book presented his history and doings in much the same vein. I was particularly struck with the sentiment (and I have seen it in other books) of camraderie between former enemies (soldiers from different armies): German and Russian, German and American, German and French, and German and British. Having never been in the military, the respect that seems to exist, even for enemies, between professional soldiers is very appealing. The distinction between the Weremacht and the SS also struck me as profound, and seemed to be readily accepted, even by von Luck's Russian captors.

If you are looking for a strict study of tactical/strategic doctrine, I'd suggest that you keep looking - there are other books out there that cover the subject better (BH Liddel Hart's "Strategy" for one). If you want a decent feel of what being a officer in the German Army during WWII was like, this is an excellent read.

Quantum Computing article...

I am a huge fan of the concept of quantum computing simply because I liked thinking about some of this stuff in physics and physical chemistry. Ran across this article this morning in Hacker News and figured I'd share. Enjoy!

Spooky computers closer to reality

Solid-state quantum processing demonstrated.

Katharine Sanderson

The new processor takes advantage of quantum entanglement.Alamy

The computers of tomorrow could be quantum not classical, using the quantum world's strange properties to vastly increase memory and speed up information processing. But making quantum computing parts from standard kit has proved difficult so far.

Now physicist Leonardo DiCarlo of Yale University, New Haven, and his colleagues have made the first solid-state quantum processor, using similar techniques to the silicon chip industry. The processor has used programs called quantum algorithms to solve two different problems. The work is published in Nature¹.

Classical systems use a series of 0s and 1s, or bits, to convey information. Two bits, for example can be combined as either 00, 11, 01 or 10. But quantum systems have a property called superposition, where all these combinations can exist at once. This vastly increases the amount of information that can be stored and the speed at which it can be processed.

Quantum bits, or qubits, can also be entangled — the state of one qubit influences the state of another even at a considerable distance. A quantum computer would use entangled qubits to process information.

Solid work

Quantum algorithms have been processed before, but only in exotic systems using lasers or ions suspended with strong magnets. To make something more similar to a computer, a solid-state system is needed.

DiCarlo made his device out of two transmon qubits. These are tiny pieces of a superconducting material consisting of a niobium film on an aluminium oxide wafer with gaps etched into it. A current can 'tunnel' across these gaps — another special property of the quantum world, where waves and particles can cross barriers without breaching them. The two qubits are separated by a cavity that contains microwaves, and the whole system connected to an electric current.

“The appeal of our processor is that it is an all-solid-state device.”

Leonardo DiCarlo
Yale University

"The appeal of our processor is that it is an all-solid-state device," says DiCarlo. It was made using standard industrial techniques. But the analogy with ordinary computers shouldn't be overstretched, he cautions — the device works at just a fraction of a degree above absolute zero and requires special refrigeration technology.

The researchers controlled the system using a microwave 'tone' with a frequency that causes the qubits to become entangled. A voltage pulse is then applied to control how long the two qubits remain entangled and in their superpositional state. Longer entanglement allows the qubits to process more complex problems.

DiCarlo was able to keep the qubits entangled for a microsecond, which is the state of the art, he says.

Qubit calling

The system processed two algorithms written specially for quantum systems.

The first is Grover's search algorithm, also known as the reverse phone book search, where someone's number is known but not the name. The processor essentially reads all the numbers in the phone book at once to find the single correct answer. "At the end the qubit will be in one state, not superposed, and that's the answer," says DiLorio.

The second, more simple, algorithm, the Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm, tests whether the flip of a coin is fair or not.

DiCarlo's processor got the reverse phone book search right an impressive 80% of the time and the coin-flip algorithm right about 90% of the time.

To read out the answer, DiCarlo used a microwave tone at the same frequency as the cavity in the system. "Depending what state the qubit is in, the cavity will resonate at a certain frequency. If the tone is transmitted through the cavity, we know it's in the right state," he says.

But this technique could not read out the answer in a system with many more qubits, says quantum-computing expert Hans Mooij from the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. The development of the processor is good news Mooij adds. "This is a necessary step," he says. "If this can be done, the next thing can be done."

DiCarlo is cautious. "We've made a very simple quantum processor," he says. "It's by no means a quantum computer."

He is working to give the processor more qubits, and so more processing power. He thinks that scaling up to three or four quibits will be relatively straightforward, but beyond that the problem becomes a lot harder, and the coherence time needed will be very difficult to attain. Mooij agrees: "From three or four to ten they will need to make a big step again."

• References

  1. DiCarlo, L. et al, Nature, doi:10.10383/nature08121 (2009)

6 months later...

Well, it finally happened. 6 months of looking and I finally landed a job. I am the new project engineer at Caprock Manufacturing in Lubbock, TX. I can't even tell you how excited I am to NOT be unemployed anymore. More details to follow.

Maxwell Smart would be SOOO jealous...

OK, I'm not quite sure how the tech would work for this, but the idea is VERY intriguing. Imagine. Total auditory privacy. For those of you who know much about the physics of sound, it's a very interesting puzzle to make this work to say the least. The snippet can be found on slashdot, here.

Hardcore Geek-age

OK, for those of you that know me, I'm a geek. I like computers, games, books, movies, and most other things that are done quietly and solo. I like technology in most of it's forms. I am also a guy. I like it when things blow up. I like action. One of my favorite shows is Mythbusters on the Discovery Channel. Those guys get paid to...play. How awesome would it be to be them?

Aparently there is a new show that is going to be starting on May 11. It's called Weaponizers. The premise is turning cars and such into radio controlled insturnments of gleeful distruction. Check out Hack-a-day and BotJunkie for more information.

Cars to blow things and each other up....Cooooooooooool ;)

I am SUCH a geek....