Pilots report increased near-collisions with drones

Credit: Daily Mail

Air flight is relatively safe. At least, about as safe as flying through the air at hundreds of knots, thousands of feet up, in a fragile aluminium tube, carrying many gallons of flammable fuel, with an on-board ignition sources (electronic system & engine), can be.

Actually, the most dangerous parts are taking off &, most of all, landing. Which is why most air crashes occur at airports.

See image above.

Why is aviation relatively safe?
• participants put their life on the line
• barriers to entry are high: aircraft are expensive, pilot training is both expensive & time consuming
• very tightly regulated
• if you do something wrong, sooner or later you have to come back down, at one of few landing spots, & face the music

None of the above applies to the rapidly growing drone market. Regulations are rudimentary & difficult to enforce. In the USA there is a, “not above 400 feet, not within 5 miles of an airport”, rule. It is not always observed (placing aircraft at risk when they are most vulnerable – see links below), & doesn’t apply to areas such as hospitals, where rescue helicopters have to land from time-to-time. Another at-risk area is fire-bombing sites.

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/11/pilots-report-increased-near-collisions-with-drones-faa-data-says/

http://www.casa.gov.au/scripts/nc.dll?WCMS:STANDARD::pc=PC_101745

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/07/15/drones_pose_new_risk_for_aircraft_in_canadian_skies.html / USA Federal Aviation Authority FAA increase complaints complaint incident pilots air traffic control controllers personnel near collisions with drones small drones came within a few seconds few feet crash crashing collision impact smash much larger aircraft pilot reported report seeing siting site drones drone restricted airspace near collision near airport previously unreported incidents New York Washington DC area regulations governing drones current guidelines hobbyists fly drones fly no higher than 400 feet at least five miles away from airports altitude altitudes over 1,000 feet one incident LaGuardia drone flying at 4,000 feet almost hit a passenger plane descending to land incident passenger planes taking off very close call drone at about 2,000 feet incident US Airways shuttle flight departed Reagan National Airport reported encounter yellow drone four foot wingspan passed within 50 feet aircraft approaching LaGuardia American Airlines jet struck drone flying 2,300 feet Tallahassee Regional Airport Jim Williams manager FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Office metal and plastic aircraft big lithium battery high-speed turbine engine results catastrophic medical evacuation helicopters particular particularly particular risk take off and land at hospitals 5 mile radius rule airports tracking down offenders difficult resource consuming intensive time push to get drones in the air approve commercial use case by case basis commercial use of drones case-by-case basis Hollywood production companies hobbyist GoPro announced consumer drones today hot sellers this holiday season selfie self portrait photo dronie /

Want to fund a mission to the Moon?

Want to finance a space mission? Through the wonder of crowd funding, now you can be a part of Lunar Mission One, for as little as three British pounds.

Aims:
• land near the South Pole of the Moon – not previously explored
• drill a hole at least 20 metres (up to 100 metres) deep
• recover cores for examination by on board instruments
• insert a time capsule into the hole

Part of the time capsule will be occupied by private material, submitted by funders.

An ambitious project in itself will be the remainder of the contents of the time capsule:

"a publically assembled, authoritative record of life on Earth, with a history of humankind and a species database that chronicles the Earth's known biodiversity and how it all fits together – from geology to atmosphere. This archive will be available online both during development and after the Mission has been accomplished. We will have laid the groundwork for future generations to develop and maintain this hugely valuable research and educational tool. Publically owned and accessible to all, this archive is a hugely ambitious plan that could only be resourced by a project of this scale." – Wow!

Kickstarter project site:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lunarmissionone/lunar-mission-one-a-new-lunar-mission-for-everyone

Media reports:

Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/mission-moon-millions-may-help-lunar-landing/2014/11/19/fa3d5dda-700c-11e4-a2c2-478179fd0489_story.html

BBC
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-30102343

Wired
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2014-11/19/space-mission-in-ten-years

Collins, & others, list "publically" (used in the quote from the Lunar Mission Project above) as an alternate spelling of "publicly":

http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/publically / Lunar Mission One most inspirational mission to the Moon Apollo landings reserve your place in space follow space exploration be a part of it unmanned robotic landing module South Pole Moon unexplored previous missions pioneering technology drill down depth at least 20m drilled 100m 20 100 metres meters access lunar rock dating back 4.5 billion years discover geological composition ancient relationship Earth our planet effects asteroid bombardment project improve scientific understanding early solar system formation our planet Moon conditions initiated life on Earth Rosetta mission new era of pioneering space exploration engage with the secrets of the solar system truly international mission everyone everywhere get involved in finance next phase of development Lunar Mission One reserve your place in space digital memory box buried Moon mission 21st Century time capsule borehole drill preserved billion years conditions within the Moon private archive millions individual digital memory boxes Kickstarter supporter secure longer term funding launch information inside time capsule buried on the Moon public archive publically assembled authoritative record life on Earth history of humankind species database chronicle Earth's known biodiversity geology atmosphere available online during development accomplished completed groundwork future generations develop maintain valuable research educational tool publically owned accessible to all hugely ambitious plan resourced project of this scale ten years launch rocket Earth orbit Lunar Missions spacecraft inscribed space craft upper stage boost spacecraft lunar lander drilling platform slow down orbit lunar poles adjust orbit precision landing viewing gallery mission control members Lunar Missions Club slows preselected landing site South Pole position target area adjusts trajectory look for small hazards make final adjustments rocket engines cut out legs stabilising settling craft surface of the Moon retrieve cylindrical rock cores analysis suite scientific instruments onboard arrange return mission most important samples back more detailed analysis on Earth next mission funded Lunar Missions Trust /

Google’s new dashboard shows you all the devices accessing your account

Credit: Google/Wired

Security on the Internet is never going to be complete, but Google has a new tool to lean the balance a little more your way.

http://www.wired.com/2014/11/google-activity-dashboard/ / email hacking hack hacked hacker problem diligent take the proper precautions minimize the chances get into your account Google new tool easily check when and where account accessed unusual activity happening Devices and Activity Dashboard lists device devices connected your Google Account when and where access accessing accessed list past 28 days new device your account all caps product listing currently using your Google listed at the top something suspicious Secure your account change your password update your recovery information check app passwords account permissions check your two-step verification settings two step Gmail recent account activity bottom right of your inbox any open email Last account activity click Details access sign out other active sessions currently using. /

Mio LINK heart rate wristband review

Do you use a chest strap heart rate monitor as an aid to fitness training? Does it chafe/cut or is it just a nuisance? Mio have one that solves these problems by fitting round your wrist:

http://the-gadgeteer.com/2014/11/24/mio-link-heart-rate-wristband-review/#more-168251/ monitor your heart rate chest strap working work out pain irritation fitness device included Bluetooth HR chest strap cut bleed bled blood long run engineers Mio LINK wrist-based wrist band measure your heart rate more comfortable latest fitness product dual ANT+ Bluetooth SMART 4.0 optical heart rate wristband transmits data across both wireless protocols half the size health gadget Mio Alpha send heart rate data multitude smart-devices iOS Android fitness tech-gear Mio LINK heart rate band USB charging dock Quick start guide running working out chest straps chafe me heart rate data Mio Continuous Technology EKG accurate heart rate data performance speeds band placement fit critical accurate heart rate data LINK attached snugly to your arm above the wrist bone device communicate communication communicating two sizes sensor monitors heart rate sensing blood flow in your arm two green LEDs sensor between them communicating fenix 2 LG G3 iPad Mini five user-settable heart rate zones internal rechargeable battery USB cradle USB cable accuracy Polar m400 Bluetooth chest strap hand sensors comfortable accurate lightweight /

Lollipop for first gen Samsung Note & Motorola Moto G

CyanogenMod 12.0 incorporating Android 5.0 Lollipop
Credit: International Business Times

There is reason to think that there will be no release of Android 5.0 Lollipop for the original Samsung Note (N7000) or first gen Motorola Moto G.

http://www.techradar.com/au/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/android-l-5-0-release-date-when-can-i-get-it--1257804

A problem with any hardware is that, sooner or later, support from the manufacturer comes to an end. In this case, though there is an alternative: CyanogenMod will be releasing Lollipop for first generation Note 1 & Motorola Moto G. This illustrates just two of the advantages of custom ROMs: typically sooner to release, & continue support long after the manufacturer has lost interest:

http://www.android.gs/cm12-alpha-built-available-for-galaxy-note-n7000-and-moto-g/

http://www.cyanogenmod.org/

Ins & outs of rooting Android

http://www.androidauthority.com/rooting-for-beginners-144706/ / Galaxy Note N7000 1 one original device devices official Android updates over the air OTA Android 5.0 Lollipop first version of Samsung Galaxy Note lineup test latest Android platform install custom ROM firmware Galaxy Note N7000 first generation Motorola Moto G users xda developers developing stable version Cyaongen Mod CM12 Android 5.0 Lollipop software CyanogenMod custom ROM CM11 based stock Android KitKat available Android smartphones tablets next update CM 12 Lollipop firmware ported version custom ROM development stage pre apha build CM12 available Samsung Galaxy Note N7000 first model Motorola Moto G ROMs downloaded flashed devices custom recovery image of bugs software related issues user Nandroid backup testing flash flashing process root rooted rooting installed latest version CWM TWRP recovery installation process /

Formula E 2014 – Round 2 – Putrajaya, Malaysia – updated

Free Practice (1:16)


Qualifying (0:57)


Prost qualified fastest, but the 10 grid place penalty from the last lap collision at Beijing meant that he started the race 11th on the grid.

Race (1:09)


Complete results, including the race & qualifying:
http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/results/putrajaya-eprix.aspx / Formula E all electric racing series second race Putrajaya Malaysia ePrix stadium races F1 FIA electricity sport electric vehicles EV terrific acceleration pass passing possible tracks with tight corners technology range race organizers identical cars Spark-Renault SRT_01E built French company Spark Racing Technology carbon fiber aluminum chassis Dallara electric powertrain electronics McLaren Electronics Systems Williams Advanced Engineering building 200 kiloWatt battery pack batteries powertrain generate 270 horsepower five-speed paddle shift gearbox fixed gear ratios Michelin 18 inch tires wet dry conditions sound 80 decibel whine full grid 20 cars FIA Formula E strategy street courses dedicated circuits tire wear grip management battery life charge prematurely testing drivers learn knowledge teams construction constructors constructing FanBoost pit stop second fully charged car advances in battery technology battery swaps charging battery Renault Michelin DHL Qualcomm Richard Branson Virgin Racing team Leonardo DiCaprio Venturi team lithium ion LiIon battery charge recharge range battery management system BMS /

Formula E, round 2, tomorrow – update

Credit: BBC

Update: the race has been run & won. Full length video of practice, qualifying & the race.

Next Formula E race, round 2, is tomorrow:

Putrajaya, Malaysia
Round 2 - Saturday 22 November 2014
Practice - 07:45 Malaysian local time
Qualifying - 10:00
Race - 14:00

Note that all times have been changed from those previously published.

FIA, Formula E web site:
http://www.fiaformulae.com/ / Formula E all electric racing series second race Putrajaya Malaysia ePrix stadium races F1 FIA electricity sport electric vehicles EV terrific acceleration pass passing possible tracks with tight corners technology range race organizers identical cars Spark-Renault SRT_01E built French company Spark Racing Technology carbon fiber aluminum chassis Dallara electric powertrain electronics McLaren Electronics Systems Williams Advanced Engineering building 200 kiloWatt battery pack batteries powertrain generate 270 horsepower five-speed paddle shift gearbox fixed gear ratios Michelin 18 inch tires wet dry conditions sound 80 decibel whine full grid 20 cars FIA Formula E strategy street courses dedicated circuits tire wear grip management battery life charge prematurely testing drivers learn knowledge teams construction constructors constructing FanBoost pit stop second fully charged car advances in battery technology battery swaps charging battery Renault Michelin DHL Qualcomm Richard Branson Virgin Racing team Leonardo DiCaprio Venturi team lithium ion LiIon battery charge recharge range battery management system BMS /