I love space. Well, having written that out, it sounds kind of stupid. Let me rephrase that: I love to learn and think about manned space travel. It’s exciting and romantic in addition to the fact that it contributes to the advancement of human knowledge and does so in the spirit of international cooperation. I’ve never been a good math or science student, so the odds against me becoming involved Continue reading
Here’s the best analogy for understanding why infrared dryers are used in some contexts rather than air dryers. Suppose that you’re making a batch of cookies for a party later in the evening. You’ve got your dough all mixed up, you’re ready to roll it out and place it on the cookie sheet… everything’s going well so far. Of course, the next step is to bake them. What do you use to bake cookies? You use an Continue reading
Recently I listened to an episode of one of my favorite radio shows, This American Life, while I was doing some dishes. The episode featured the story of a journalist who traveled to Shenzhen, China, which is home to factories where many of the most popular electronic devices are assembled by Chinese workers on behalf of American companies before they are shipped to US. Shenzhen is Continue reading