Today I Learned

[jim hardy]

once I heard a very old tube radio playing some music

You might like this article
http://www.edn.com/design/consumer/...periority-of-current-drive-over-voltage-drive

 

[ChiralWaltz]

Robert Lucky came up with the idea of an adaptive filter at a stop light.

 

[jim hardy]

TIL who is Robert Lucky
http://www.boblucky.com/reflect/jan14.html

Hobby Electronics
Published in IEEE Spectrum Magazine, Jan 2014

Many older engineers first became interested in electronics through hobbies in their youth -- experimenting with electronics, assembling kits, or participating in amateur radio....

my kind of guy ! Thanks, Chiral .

 

[Comeback City]

Today I learned the odds of filling out a perfect March Madness bracket are 1 in 9.2 quintillion I wonder if it's worth filling out 9.2 quintillion brackets...

 

[nuuskur]

I realized finite automata are precisely corresponding finite semigroups.. then I googled it and saw that it's a well-known fact. Oh well, the pleasure of discovery

 

[BillTre]

TIL that October 23rd (10-23) is national mole day (10²³).
Too bad I missed it!

This joins Pi-day (March 14 (also missed this one); 3.14), Darwin day (February 12), and DNA day (April 25) in the ever growing constellation of science days.

Maybe there is and isn't something like The Cat in The Box Day.
Or maybe there isn't?

 

[nitsuj]

Not a thing.
That recording is from the golden days of hi-fi , as good as commercial analog can be. RCA's Tony Salvatore was the recording engineer. https://www.discogs.com/artist/399562-Anthony-Salvatore

The sound of that orchestra is a treat for the ears. I hear huge differences in tone quality between my three dollar Koss, six dollar Sony, and nineteen dollar Sony headphones. Even on whatever is Youtube's audio stream .
I don't own any audiophile stuff, though.

To remaster for this disc(another Salvatore recording)
https://www.discogs.com/Arthur-Fiedler-Boston-Pops-Orchestra-Pops-Roundup/release/6409473
RCA actually dug up and restored the old Ampex tape recorder they'd used to make the 1962 original . Its sound quality will really show off a good stereo.

wow what year is that? the noise is real lol SNR 60db ? A treat for the ears! Proof positive our sense are not measuring devices! :D

with todays recording and playback quality it is neat to hear all the little coughs, clangs and other noises in the back ground of live orchestra performances. all had with a 10$ DAC/ chip amp & $15 headphones...beat that Golden days of high-fi lol j/k

a case of member berries

 

[1oldman2]

Maybe there is and isn't something like The Cat in The Box Day.
Or maybe there isn't?

I believe it all hinges on whether or not it's "observed"

 

[jim hardy]

wow what year is that?

When vacuum tubes and slide rules roamed the earth.
Original recording of Typewriter was 1958.
Pops Roundup in 1962. i bought my first copy then.
It's interesting to play the vinyl and CD versions on same system and compare the sound since both are from same master tape..
It's subjective of course but you can tell the difference. CD sounds better i think mostly because its dynamic range beats what you can do with a groove and stylus. Bear in mind I don't own audiophile stuff, somebody with a thousand dollar turntable and similar grade cartridge might disagree with me.

Interesting article about recording on vinyl here
http://www.recordtech.com/prodsounds.htm

 

[nitsuj]

When vacuum tubes and slide rules roamed the earth.
Original recording of Typewriter was 1958.
Pops Roundup in 1962. i bought my first copy then.
It's interesting to play the vinyl and CD versions on same system and compare the sound since both are from same master tape..
It's subjective of course but you can tell the difference. CD sounds better i think mostly because its dynamic range beats what you can do with a groove and stylus. Bear in mind I don't own audiophile stuff, somebody with a thousand dollar turntable and similar grade cartridge might disagree with me.

Interesting article about recording on vinyl here
http://www.recordtech.com/prodsounds.htm

imo vacuum tube amps and analog master -> vinyl has an appeal, and even how fancy they got with speaker box design when amplifying / drivers were limited. For me it's the electrical engineering, the mechanics of such a set up that I appreciate. Like a mechanical wrist watch...I can follow how it works, not like that silicon magic voodoo designed with silicon and made with laser..."hand made" machine stuff ftw

ahaha Jim you got to agree with me on this, "audiophile" is a price point...the tech today offers great sound on the cheap, true for recording too. Even for my "old" ears the difference in value for stereo equipment from when I was a kid, 80's to today is huge...it's fun playing old recordings through new tech.

Just a note, something like a Fiio x3 2nd Gen and say sennheiser HD offers accurate sound reproduction on the "cheap". That said imo the sound difference between $200 headphones and $30 ones is pretty small.

 

[jim hardy]

ahaha Jim you got to agree with me on this, "audiophile" is a price point...the tech today offers great sound on the cheap, true for recording too. Even for my "old" ears the difference in value for stereo equipment from when I was a kid, 80's to today is huge...it's fun playing old recordings through new tech.

Difference in value between my high school days and now is orders of magnitude.
Around 1995 i built this little K-88 audio amp kit for my office, to stream background.

I hot glued it in a sardine can and velcro-ed to the side of my monitor.
It's a linear and look at that THD ! i think it cost about ten bucks then and took fifteen minutes to build. A couple old 6" pipe tees made steampunk enclosures. Tuned them to 6" woofers . Sound was great at low volume which used to be the mark of good equipment.
For contrast
In high school , 1964, i built a record player for my girlfriend with push pull 6AQ5's (miniature 6V6's) . Worked a week drilling for tube sockets and wiring the chassis. Just a decent output transformer cost me ten bucks even back then. K-88 is about same power and way superior performance not to mention it doesn't heat the room.

So i can only shake my head in wonderment at what's available to the hobbyist nowadays.
We old guys can do that for dramatic effect. Recall Doc Brown's amazement at Marty McFly's videocam?

Just bought my first "Class D" for the TV bookshelf speakers, anxious to try it out.
On living room stereo speakers though i remain old school. Keeping my antique 12 inch reflex Altecs forever because they 'fill the room' with sound. I've yet to encounter a compact speaker that can evoke frisson.

And, today i learned "What is a Fiio " ? Thanks !

old jim

 

[Drakkith]

Today I learned (not for the first time) that there are two sides to every story.

It's interesting how people's recollection of events can be wildly different. Sometimes I wish we were all robots! Or, barring that, big, smelly dogs like @phinds!

 

[phinds]

Today I learned (not for the first time) that there are two sides to every story.

It's interesting how people's recollection of events can be wildly different. Sometimes I wish we were all robots! Or, barring that, big, smelly dogs like @phinds!

I'll have you know that I smell WONDERFUL. Sometimes. OK, only occasionally. OK, only right after grooming. But I smell WONDERFUL right after grooming !

 

[Borg]

Today I learned (not for the first time) that there are two sides to every story.

It's interesting how people's recollection of events can be wildly different. Sometimes I wish we were all robots! Or, barring that, big, smelly dogs like @phinds!

When I was in grade school, a teacher in one class performed an experiment where she took a student into the hall and told them a complex story. That student repeated it to the next student, etc. until the story made it's way through the entire class. The last student recited the story and then the teacher revealed the original story on the whiteboard. It wasn't even close.

 

[phinds]

Today I learned (not for the first time) that there are two sides to every story.

Yeah, I've noticed that too, but then I've also noticed that my side is always right. Curious how that works out.

 

[Drakkith]

Yeah, I've noticed that too, but then I've also noticed that my side is always right. Curious how that works out.

 

[Comeback City]

Yeah, I've noticed that too, but then I've also noticed that my side is always right. Curious how that works out.

Wow, usually my side is wrong here on PF... or maybe there's just a lot of people here smarter than I (but can this actually be?). Very interesting stuff to think about...

 

[Bystander]

TIL how to tell time ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leap_second

 

[jtbell]

Today I learned that loo roll is not a Chinese culinary delicacy.

Beijing park dispenses loo roll using facial recognition (BBC News)

I'm amazed that I don't remember ever seeing the term before, with all the people we have here from the British sphere of influence.

 

[nsaspook]

Today I learned sadly that Chuck Barris is dead.
RIP Chuck Barris



"Have You Got A Nickle?"

 

[Aufbauwerk 2045]

I learned that when a website does not respond fast enough, I need to stop hitting the Post Reply button again and again until the machine does what I want it to do.

Stupid machines.

 

[jim hardy]

Stupid machines.

Windows troubleshooter cannot find the problem

Well okay, then. Troubleshoot this !

No more recalcitrance out of that one.

 

[Borg]

I was reading an article about a man who collected $763,000 in missing money. I followed the links and put my name in just for the heck of it. TIL that I have over $50 in unclaimed money for a previous address that I lived at.

 

[XZ923]

I was reading an article about a man who collected $763,000 in missing money. I followed the links and put my name in just for the heck of it. TIL that I have over $50 in unclaimed money for a previous address that I lived at.

I did that once, but the cost of getting a notarized claim for it was higher than the amount I supposedly had.

 

[BillTre]

TIL that you can play Ms. Pac-Man on Google maps today (and presumably tomorrow (April Fool's Day).
It seems to use roads from a randomly selected area.
Punch the Pac-Man square at lower left to play.

 

[OmCheeto]

TIL that you can play Ms. Pac-Man on Google maps today (and presumably tomorrow (April Fool's Day).
It seems to use roads from a randomly selected area.
Punch the Pac-Man square at lower left to play.

Can't figure out how to play the game, but this is freakin' cool!

They surveyed the heights of all my @#%&$#% neighbor's trees...

That is some serious computing power there, if they did this for everywhere.

 

[fresh_42]

Can't figure out to play the game, but this is freakin' cool!

They surveyed the heights of all my @#%&$#% neighbor's trees...

That is some serious computing power there, if they did this for everywhere.

I hate Google's redirect. <grrrr>

 

[nuuskur]

Today I learned, that I haven't failed. I have merely found 1001 ways that do not work. #semigroup-theory-is-awesome, #friday-nights-with-semigroup-theory, #deadline-is-in-one-month, #no-pressure.

Ok enough with the hashtag BS -.-

 

[Borg]

I did that once, but the cost of getting a notarized claim for it was higher than the amount I supposedly had.

I guess that it depends on the state. Mine just wants a photocopy of two forms of ID and a bill showing the address that I lived at. I'll make copies next week, send it in and see what happens.

For those who are interested in checking, the link that I used was this - http://www.missingmoney.com/. Once I saw a match, I followed a link to my state's lost money site.

 

[Buzz Bloom]

I guess that it depends on the state. Mine just wants a photocopy of two forms of ID and a bill showing the address that I lived at. I'll make copies next week, send it in and see what happens.

Hi Borg:

I confess I am a cautious person regarding possible scams. Try to make sure the organization and address are legit before sending them ID information.

Good luck.

Regards,
Buzz

 

[Borg]

Hi Borg:

I confess I am a cautious person regarding possible scams. Try to make sure the organization and address are legit before sending them ID information.

Good luck.

Regards,
Buzz

Thanks, Buzz. My wife and I are extremely careful with regard to possible scams. When I told her about it, that was the first thing that she asked if I verified. The claim form came directly from the Virginia State Treasury - https://www.vamoneysearch.org/.

 

[BillTre]

Can't figure out how to play the game, but this is freakin' cool!

I used the arrow keys on my Mac laptop.
Possible alternates might be keys on the numberpad (which I don't have) or the sets of letter keys (forget what they are) sometimes used for similar things.

 

[OmCheeto]

I used the arrow keys on my Mac laptop.
Possible alternates might be keys on the numberpad (which I don't have) or the sets of letter keys (forget what they are) sometimes used for similar things.

Ah ha! I opened the "Google Earth" app by mistake.
Now I get it.
https://www.google.com/maps/@44.6330699,-121.1302995,18z/data=!1e3

ps. Today I learned that I'm really bad at playing Ms. Pacman.
pps. Not sure what button I clicked on earlier on the "Google Earth" app, but I seem to have activated "3D trees", which is a sub-item under "3D buildings". Anyways, that's what I got all excited about this morning.
ppps. It appears that "3D trees" has been available for 7 years, but only for selected cities. Not sure when Portland got added. The feature is not available for some small towns I checked: Madras & Veneta, Oregon.

 

[fresh_42]

The feature is not available for some small towns I checked: Madras & Veneta, Oregon.

NYC with its rectangular streets might be good unless the blocks aren't too large.
Yep, tested.

 

[DennisN]

Today I learned... how to build a lightsaber.

Source (1:50 - ): Youtube link