[Fists] The Threat of "Invisible" Technology

[jeff@ke9v.com]

FISTS,

Excuse me if this is a tad off-topic, but I thought some of you might
enjoy this article from the Washington Post and available on the Web.
In discussing the recent blackout of the US East coast, the author
makes some salient points that the days when we actually understood
and tinkered with the technology that we use is long since behind us.
As hams who still build and repair our own gear, the writers point
isn't 100% true, however, as electronics gets smaller and more
integrated we too are slipping into the world of the "black box".

I like this particular quote:

"Ironically, while our daily lives have never been more imbued with
technology, we may have reached the height of our technological
engagement as long ago as the 1920s with its generation of hands-on
tinkerers. Machines were cruder then, but more open. Kids built
crystal radio receivers and learned Morse code. Typists developed a
touch and rhythm to match their machines. Driving meant grappling with
clutches and chokes, and the curious took their cars apart to
understand how they worked."

Read the entire article (and utter "Amen") here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A34960-2003Aug23.html

73 es CU on the bands.

-- 
Jeff, KE9V