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Copyright: 1996 - 2024
Webmaster:
Kirt Blattenberger,
BSEE - KB3UON
RF Cafe began life in 1996 as "RF Tools" in an AOL screen name web space totaling
2 MB. Its primary purpose was to provide me with ready access to commonly needed
formulas and reference material while performing my work as an RF system and circuit
design engineer. The World Wide Web (Internet) was largely an unknown entity at
the time and bandwidth was a scarce commodity. Dial-up modems blazed along at 14.4 kbps
while typing up your telephone line, and a nice lady's voice announced "You've Got
Mail" when a new message arrived...
All trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other rights of ownership to images
and text used on the RF Cafe website are hereby acknowledged.
My Hobby Website:
AirplanesAndRockets.com
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Sub-Header - RF Cafe
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Tech Smorgasbord Archives - 12 |
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Ph.D.s of the
Stars
(who would have guessed?)
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Brian May,
guitarist for the rock group Queen, just completed a Ph.D. in astrophysics from the Imperial College, London, where he began studies 40 years
ago. His thesis: "Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud."
John Cleese,
of the Monty Python show and films, earned a law degree from Cambridge.
Bill Cosby earned a Ph.D. in education from UMass Amherst.
"The Man from
U.N.C.L.E." star Robert Vaughn holds a Ph.D. in
communications from USC.
Actor and former senator Fred Thompson hold a law degree from Vanderbilt.
William Sanderson, aka Larry of "Larry,
Darryl and Darryl" fame from the Newhart Show, has a law degree from Memphis State.
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1-14-2008
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2007
The Year in Numbers
source:
the Enquirer)
(no, not THAT Enquirer
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399 Dollars wanted by Amazon.com to buy Kindle e-book reader. |
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271 The total value of semiconductor revenues in billions of dollars this year, according to iSuppli. |
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154 Current Intel market capitalization in billions of dollars. |
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74 Number of days it took Apple to sell one million iPhones. |
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19.6 Current nVIDIA market capitalization in billions of dollars. |
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13 Age at which Nick Ciarelli started ThinkSecret site (closed recently following a legal dispute
with Apple). |
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11 Number of companies acquired by Oracle in 2007. |
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1 Rating of AMD's Hector Ruiz in ranks of best-paid semiconductor bosses. |
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1-1-2008
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Perks Received in 2007
(source: Electronic Design)
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Healthcare |
67% |
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401(k) Match |
65% |
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Time Off |
39% |
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Training |
23% |
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Pension |
24% |
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Stock Options |
19% |
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Stock Purchase |
17% |
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Tuition Reimburse |
19% |
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Prof. Org. Dues |
16% |
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Cellphone |
13% |
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Company Car |
6% |
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Health Club |
8% |
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Sabbatical |
3% |
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Daycare |
1% |
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1-8-2008
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Considering
Changing Jobs in 2008?
(source: Electronic Design)
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Top Reasons for Seeking
New Opportunities in 2007:
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Better pay |
69% |
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Interesting work |
58% |
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Personal fulfillment |
33% |
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Want dynamism |
27% |
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Stock options |
26% |
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Job stability |
24% |
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More responsibility |
21% |
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Personal/family |
21% |
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Poor management |
20% |
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Want to relocate |
17% |
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Less stress |
18% |
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Wrong job |
13% |
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Potential layoff |
13% |
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Join a startup |
13% |
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1-1-2008
12-20-2007
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Top States for Federal Procurement Spending
(2005, per capita)
(source: U.S. Census Bureau)
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$22,892 |
District of Columbia |
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$5,104 |
Virginia |
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$3,908 |
Maryland |
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$3,637 |
Alaska |
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$3,324 |
New Mexico |
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$2,675 |
Connecticut |
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$1,881 |
Alabama |
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$1,824 |
Hawaii |
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$1,807 |
Arizona |
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$1,621 |
Massachusetts |
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12-11-2007
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Top Patent Producing
States for 2006
(source: USPTO)
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Total Patents Awarded |
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25,039 |
California |
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6,716 |
Texas |
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6,406 |
New York |
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4,368 |
Massachusetts |
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4,178 |
Michigan |
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4,053 |
Illinois |
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3,627 |
New Jersey |
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3,620 |
Washington |
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3,291 |
Ohio |
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3,268 |
Minnesota |
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3,261 |
Florida |
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3,186 |
Pennsylvania |
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2,536 |
Oregon |
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2,349 |
Colorado |
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2,232 |
North Carolina |
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12-2-2007
GPS-Enabled
Cellphones Now Required Equipment |
Waaaay back in the mid 1980s, colleges started requiring students to buy a PC - usually a model dictated by the school
(for compatibility - we did not always have Windows). This caused quite a concern for many who did not want to spend $2k or more
for something a $5 slide rule and a $1 pen could do. My alma matter, UVM, mandated an ATT 6300
and an IBM dot matrix printer (cannot recall the model). Total bill - $3,500. Yup, in 1987 dollars. Today, computers are issued at birth and
most kids cannot use a pen, never mind a slide rule.
Someday, people will look back and
have the same memories of this announcement in today's news about Montclair State University (NJ) requiring all students to carry GPS-enabled cellphones. The cost: $420 a year for a base
plan, which is bundled into the tuition bill. |
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11-27-2007
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