I like the title of the
first article listed in this week's group of career advancement resources. While
it is true that some interviewers' questions appear dumb to you, it might just be
that he/she has a good reason for phrasing in a particular way to see how you handle
vague concepts. Or, it really might be the interviewer is lame, and that is a warning
to what it would be like working for/with him/her ;-)
•
Smart Answers to Stupid Interview Questions
•
The 10 Excuses of Highly Unproductive People
•
What to Do If Your Boss Is a Micromanager
•
4 Salary Negotiation Secrets for Women
•
Your Newest Employees Are Your Most Vulnerable
•
7 Things Successful Young Careerists Do Every Day
Mixing a little fun with learning has always
been a good motivation for students. I have written in the past about a particular
electronic circuits professor I had that liked to play practical jokes during lessons
and exams. Including gag options on a multiple choice test is a great way to inject
a bit of tension-easing levity while at the same time eliminating one or more opportunities
to guess at a wrong answer (although no relief for the truly clueless).
I sometimes do that on the RF Cafe
Quizzes that I generate. Radio Craft magazine printed a large bunch
of such quiz questions under the title "Radio WittiQuiz. This example from a 1938 edition is typical...
New 2-way splitter covers 4-8 GHz. The
2PA600 power divider manufactured by
Werbel Microwave covers
4-8 GHz in a compact case with SMA connectors. Typical VSWR is 1.2:1 and typical
isolation is -20 dB. Phase and amplitude balances are maintained at 2 degrees
and 0.2 dB, respectively.
Take a break from the drudgery by
trying your hand at some of these goodies. Every word in the RF Cafe crossword puzzles
is specifically related to engineering, mathematics, and science. There are no generic
backfill words like many other puzzles give you, so you'll never see a clue asking
for the name of a movie star or a mountain on the Russia-China border.
Your source for RF front ends,
transceivers and amplifier systems that just plain work! Solutions for integrating
high performance HPAs into sophisticated RF subsystems and systems without sacrificing
efficiency and linearity. Tower-mounted amplifiers, UAV (aka drone)
systems, and many standard (30 - 6,500 MHz, up to 200 W) and custom-designed
amplifier subsystems to your specifications. We are a small, private company run
by serial entrepreneurs.
Shipboard radio operators
have been a crucial part of commercial and military transport since first being
implemented in the early 20th century. Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company's operators
(John "Jack" Phillips and Harold Bride) onboard the
RMS Titanic are credited for saving the ship after it ran into
an iceberg in the north Atlantic, as are the radio operators aboard the RMS Lusitania
after German U-boats mercilessly torpedoed it. Today's sailing vessels, as well
as aircraft, are as reliant upon skillful radio operators and radio equipment as
back then. Much has been automated, but ultimately it is the human element...
Linx Technologies and Antenna Factor, both part of the same company, have been
long-time advertisers on RF Cafe. Please show appreciation for their sponsorship
by visiting their website to see if you can use their products and/or services.
Linx Technologies'
RF
modules, remote controls, evaluation kits and master development systems
feature straightforward hardware configuration and clear documentation, making it
simple for engineers and hobbyists to integrate wireless features without the hassle
and expense of engineering RF functionality from scratch.
It is well known
that the vast majority of start-up businesses fail in the first year and a half.
Inc. magazine's new survey of their
Inc. 500 CEO
member list shows that often even highly successful start-ups initially suffered
from the same types of problems that failures did - undercapitalization, poor leadership,
bad market timing, failed product or service rollout, difficulty finding and retaining
skilled employees, poor fiscal discipline, and the list goes on. 45% claim not enough
money at the outset was the biggest issue. A bad fit with key employee(s) and business
partner(s) was a close second at 32%. There was no "I was just stupid at first"
category, but if there was...
New Tech Articles Posted
EDN,
Microwaves & RF, and have a new batch of articles online now. The ones listed
below are topics that should be of interest to many RF Cafe visitors. There are
more available.
-
Chips Steer 77-GHz Automotive Radars,
J. Browne
-
Precision Validation of Radar System
Performance in the Field, W. Yu
- The Difference Between BER and BER, M. Rowe
-
Transition Tackles mm-Wave Frequencies,
J. Dong, Z. Yang, Y. Liu, T. Yang
-
What is 802.11ac, Anyway?, J. Corson
-
MeMeasure Interference in Crowded Spectrum,
R. Jackman
Having spent a lot of my career working for
defense electronics companies in classified programs, I am somewhat torn between
sympathizing with Hugo Gernsback from his perspective as editor of Radio Craft
and what I know is a valid reason for
guarding certain technological information for the sake of military
advantage. It is often the case that people who have had no exposure to the 'black'
side of industry cannot appreciate the need for it. Their argument postulates that
suppressing knowledge does more harm than good because an opportunity for more...
Planar Monolithics Industries' (PMI) organization
has been setup to design, develop, manufacture, test, and market complex state-of-the-art
hybrid RF MIC and MMIC components, supercomponents, and subsystems. Unique products
for applications in space, military, commercial, telecommunications, and consumer
electronics systems.
Star Trek is famous for its technical
faux pas repertoire, but the writers did manage to get in some impressively accurate
scenes once in a while as well. Melanie and I were watching "The Space Seed"
last night when a familiar dah-dit-dah-dit dah-dah-dit-dah began playing
in the opening scene. 'CQ' is the general broadcast by an operator searching for
conversation. Accompanying it is one of the few times where Mr. Spock gets something
wrong even though his assessment of the situation is 'logical.' In this episode
from the 1967 TV series, the notorious Khan is introduced. I have always liked the
Capt. James
T. Kirk character because he was portrayed as a man of virtue...
National Radio Schools published a monthly
magazine titled
National Radio News. The later editions usually had an electronics
themed comic panel that addressed contemporary topics. Earlier editions usually
featured student-drawn comics that were primarily propaganda to promote the school
more so than humor. It sort of reminds me of the way the Amway faithful were in
the 1960s through 1990s - most losing money while cheering on the very few multimillionaire
'Diamonds.' Actually, such devotion and company/cause spirit...
What could be worse than returning to work
on January 2, 2015, and realizing that you neglected to procure for yourself a new
Dilbert desk calendar? Side note: I recently checked into the
cost for 'legally' posting Dilbert comics on RF Cafe. A very polite lady told me
her franchise charges $75 per comic for the use of 1 to 9, and a bargain
price of only $50 per use of 10 or more cartoons (other price breaks apply).
So, it won't be happening on RF Cafe anytime soon, but you can always read them
here.
Pasternack Enterprises, an industry-leading manufacturer
and supplier of RF, microwave and millimeter wave products, has created and published
a new set of
RF calculators and conversion tools to assist engineers with answering
complex RF-related product and design questions that arise on a daily basis. A total
of 27 RF calculators were developed by the engineering staff at Pasternack to provide
the users and buyers of RF components a valuable and easy-to-use resource while
in the planning or
IMS ExpertServices periodically sends me e-mails that highlight
recent key court cases that can significantly affect the effectiveness of expert
testimony, both for the plaintiff and for the defendant. You need only scan the
headlines I post daily to know the importance of effective legal representation
when intellectual property (IP) is being contested. This article by Joshua Fruchter,
writing for IMS ExpertServices, addresses a
fundamental aspect of engineering for a large percentage of practitioners,
including yours truly. Accordingly...
"If I stay poor enough long enough, I may
be able to accomplish something really worth while." - ad hoc addendum to poster
in the laboratory of
Charles Francis Jenkins, the 'Father of Television,' that began,
"They said it couldn't be done; but he, poor fool, didn't know it, and went ahead
and did it."
In most instances the method and materials
have changed over the years, but fundamental principles of writing and reading data
to and from
magnetic media are the same today as when this article was written
in 1947. If you find that your lexicon of technical jargon lacks terms such as coercivity
and remanence, then you might want to invest a few moments reading this short article
that appeared in Radio Craft...
Founded
in 1999, Empower RF Systems is a US based company and global leader
in RF power amplifier solutions
that are critical to defense, commercial, and industrial market applications. Investments
in both hardware and software engineering are yielding next generation products
with significant size, weight, and interface functionality advantages over legacy
products in the market.
The Senior Wireless System Engineer, under minimal
supervision, will be responsible for the design, implementation, optimization and
verification of wireless systems for hearing aids and hearing aid accessories. S/He
must possess technical expertise, effective communication skills, creativity and
internal drive to lead the design and test of wireless systems that are recognized
as best-in-class in the hearing aid industry. S/He must have the ability to work
both independently and in a group environment
Here is a short tutorial on how to design
a
resistive impedance matching circuit for feeding multiple transmission
lines of equal impedance. Both series and parallel feeds are presented. As the author
mentions, ideally you would like a lossless transformer for matching, but often
a resistive network is acceptable, especially if receive signal power is not an
issue and if your transmitter power is sufficient to overcome the resistive losses
(and doesn't torch the resistors). It is also possible to match
transmission lines of different...
Tekamul B., of Anaheim, CA, is the August
2014 drawing winner. Tekamul selected
Practical Microwave Circuits, by Stephen A. Maas. Dr. Maas
recently received the "RF Living Legend" from AWR for his immense contributions to the
microwaves, RF, and wireless engineering realm. This drawing brings the number of
books I've given away in the last 7 years to around 130. Graciously provided
by Artech House
Wow, it's September already! This week's engineering-themed
crossword puzzle follows the same MO as the hundreds that precede it by using only
technically related words and clues. You will not find any other type words used
for fill-in just because something is needed. If I cannot complete a crossword using
my hand-entered library of a couple thousand terms, then I start over. No kidding.
The Wireless Technician is responsible for the
verification and validation of all Starkey wireless product designs, using test
procedures, test equipment, lab tools, software tools and orientation from the engineering
team. The person in this position should provide efficient, systematic and well
documented feedback for the tasks that have been assigned. The members of the technician
staff should maintain a clean and organized lab environment in addition to keep
track of the calibration methods, requirements and
The successful candidate will be responsible
for solving medium complex engineering problems in one or more phases of a development
engineering project involving the analysis, research, design, development, fabrication,
and testing of devices or systems. Works under the general supervision of senior
engineering management. Depending on the project line assigned, reports to the VP
of engineering, RF technologies, digital technologies, military products, and/or
other departments
Usually, when I
read about yet another launching of rockets from Gaza into Israel, what comes to
mind is the barrage of V1 Buzz Bombs and ultimately the V2 rockets that German terrorized
London with during World War II. Although overall not very effective individually,
they did cause brief spells of horror for the localized group of people that were
affected through maiming, killing, or property destruction. The difference between
the Nazi's weapons and Hamas' weapons is that the Germans didn't depend on other
terrorist entities to supply them with their weapons of destruction; they were brilliant
people who had evil intentions of world domination. Hugo Gernsback writes...
PCB Material World is an independent distributor and market maker of
PCB
raw materials.
We buy and sell PCB raw materials such as copper clad laminates, copper foil, drill
backer and entry, among other items. We buy surplus, obsolete, and off-cut RF copper
clad laminates to make available to you when needed.
To provide audiences across a variety of industries
with a comprehensive overview of its precision component lines, Orbel Corporation
recently launched a new product catalog. Available online or in print, the catalog
delivers detailed information on each of Orbel's main product categories, including
board level shielding, finger-stock
gaskets, photo-etched precision metal parts, and precision metal stampings
The Good Life is a free publication
printed in northern Michigan. Along with advertisements and stories from local interests,
every edition is chock full of humorous quips and jokes. These (mostly)
tech-related items are from the August 2014 edition. Sample: A student at our high
school a few years back, having had his fill with drawing graph after graph in senior
high math class, told his teacher, "I'll do algebra, I'll do trig, and I'll even
do statistics, but graphing is where I draw the line!"
The successful RF Test Technician candidate will
be responsible for testing/aligning RF microwave amplifier systems. Should be familiar
with working with high power and with basic RF measurement; such as gain, VSWR,
and insertion loss. Should have knowledge of network and spectrum analyzers, and
power meters. Must have knowledge of microprocessor based control circuitry and
have he ability of trouble shooting down to component level
The successful RF Project Engineer candidate will
be responsible for solving highly complex engineering problems in one or more phases
of development RF engineering involving the analysis, research, design, development,
fabrication, and testing of devices or systems. Assignments may be varied and somewhat
difficult in character, and require originality and ingenuity. Assignments include
activity which can be very theoretical in nature
Amateur radio enthusiasts are very familiar
with burying ground radials below the surface in order to increase antenna efficiency
by affecting impedance and, more importantly, the radiation pattern. Long distance
(DX) operators generally prefer low launch angles over high angle 'cloud
warmers.' Pittsburgh's
KDKA, the country's first commercial broadcast radio station,
built what would have been the mother of all ground radial arrays for its time -
360 (one every degree), 700-foot copper wires, for a total of a ¼
million feet! It was laid using a farm tractor drawing...
It seems like there have been a lot of layoff
news stories lately, but maybe it's just the status quo because media outlets don't
have anything better to report at the moment. Any time there is a corporate merger,
you know it will include a RIF affecting unlucky employees in both organizations
in order to eliminate duplication of duties. Pat Hindle over at Microwave Journal
recently wrote a piece...
§
3 Job Search Myths Busted
§
Inside the ATS Resume System (part 2)
§
4 Lies (and 1 Truth) About Applicant Tracking
Systems (see above)
§
How to Answer the Question 'What Was Your
Last Salary?' <more...>
Sally Mason was the soldering iron-wielding
heroette of Nate Silverman's "Sally, the Service Maid" series that ran in Radio Craft
magazine during the years of World War II. As I noted in the previous episode, many
of the nation's women were left behind to run their husband's, father's and/or son's
electronics sales and repair businesses when they went off to save the world from
aggressive Communists, Socialists, Maoists, Nazis, and other nasty types. Some of
those ladies had already become very adept at troubleshooting, component replacement,
and aligning radio and television sets, while...
This is a perfect example of setting up a
"straw man" in order to knock it down. Per Merriam Webster, a 'straw man' is, "A
weak or imaginary argument or opponent that is set up to be easily defeated." The
advertising team didn't even do a very good job of it since nowhere in the copy
is there a reference to why the Indian Rope Trick in particular is alluded to regarding
Mallory capacitors. It mentions a 'trick,' but that's all. Ah, I just figured it
out - they hanged themselves professionally with the rope! BTW, type "FP" supposedly
stands...
Here is a unique quiz by überquizmaker
Robert Balin, from Popular Electronics.
Names of components we use in electronics - particularly ones
that have been around for a long time - were given nomenclature that come from the
animal kingdom because they happen to resemble one in some way. Probably the most
familiar are examples like the alligator clip, pigtails, and rabbit ears - although
the younger you are the less likely you might be to have heard the names. Recent
election results in Colorado and Oregon may give a resurgence in popularity of and
familiarity with alligator clips by potheads.
Inventing the Electronic Century: The Epic Story of the Consumer
Electronics and Computer Industries, by Alfred D. Chandler Jr. History
changes quickly nowadays, so some of the reviews are a bit harsh in complaining
of lack of material for the 21st century, which is not the primary subject of the
book. "Consumer electronics and computers redefined life and work in the twentieth
century. In Inventing the Electronic Century, Pulitzer Prize-winning business
historian Alfred D. Chandler, Jr. traces their origins and worldwide development.
From electronics prime mover RCA in the 1920s to Sony and Matsushita's dramatic
rise 1970s...
Fairview Microwave, a preeminent supplier of on-demand
microwave and RF components, introduces a comprehensive line of
IP67 RF adapters commonly employed in the DAS, cellular, aviation
and military industries due to their ingress protection from water and dust. Fairview
Microwave's new RF adapters are IP67 rated, meaning they use advanced ingress
Rohde & Schwarz will showcase its T&M
equipment for sophisticated wireless and A&D applications at
EuMW 2014. In addition, R&S
specialists will hold 16 workshops and seminars at the event. The company's display
(in hall 9, booth 102) at the Fiera di Roma exhibition center will
include the following highlights: Complex multichannel and pulse scenarios
Anyone who pays attention in present-day high
school physics class would read this article from 1944 and immediately appreciate
the advances that have been made in
atomic theory during the ensuing 70 years. Even with modern knowledge,
it is hard to believe that even in 1944 someone would seriously suggest that perhaps
theorized sub-electronic particles (building blocks of electrons) might
be responsible for supporting the propagation of electromagnetic energy. We still
consider the electron to be an elementary particle (although now the proton
and neutron are not), but at this point we are aware of many elementary particles
other than the electron (some which make up protons and neutrons)...
Anatech Electronics offers the industry's largest
portfolio of high-performance standard and customized RF and microwave filters and
filter-related products for up to 40 GHz. Anatech has released new designs for a
915 MHz ceramic BPF, 424/435 MHz ceramic duplexer, and a 2190 MHz ceramic BPF. All
can be ordered directly through their AMCrf web store.
Windfreak Technologies
designs, manufactures, tests and sells high value radio frequency products such
as RF signal generators,
synthesizers, power detectors, mixers, up/downconverters. We develop high quality,
reliable, low cost products to make life easier for RF engineers and hobbyists.
"A hundred times every day I remind myself
that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of other men, living and dead,
and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received
and am still receiving." -
Albert Einstein, in
The World as I See It.
'Father of Radiovision' (RV)
was the title bestowed upon
Charles Francis Jenkins for his work in what would eventually
become known as television (TV), which is a very good thing because
otherwise mass confusion would have ensued by now due to the ambiguousness of having
to contend with a familiar reference to recreational vehicles (RV)
when the 'other' RV is what was meant ;-) Mr. Jenkins was also the inventor
of the
Phantoscope motion picture machine. BTW, did you know that the
Coast Guard...
Career Advice Stories -
Handling Failure
This week's collection of career advice has
a somewhat dour theme of how to deal with personal failures (harsh word)
and behavior at work. It ends on a high note, though, with an interesting piece
on telecom service engineer jobs - a great opportunity if you like field work and
don't mind getting your hands dirty.
-
Verbal Coaching vs. Formal Written Warnings
-
5 Tips to Proactively Handle Project Failure
-
What Your Manager Really Thinks of You
-
Avoid Pitfalls That May Derail Your Career
- How to Beat Procrastination
-
Telecom Service Engineers
Aerospace and Defense Set for September 10
NI (formerly AWR Corporation) will sponsor the
Microwave Journal / Besser RF/Microwave Training Webinar Series on
RF Components for Aerospace and Defense on September 10, 2014.
Topics to be covered include defense versus commercial philosophy, standards and
standards organizations, quality assurance in defense, military microelectronics,
the difference in
Dow-Key Microwave is the world's largest manufacturer of
electro-mechanical and solid state
RF switches.
We are AS9100 / ISO-9001 certified and committed to providing unparalleled customer
service, competitive pricing, on-time delivery and products that are distinguished
by quality and reliability.
