I tell you, I’m starting to feel like I’m riding the crest of the wave when it comes to AI in all its multifaceted glory. Back in the 2010s, I thought it was astonishing that you could show an AI images of cats, dogs, chickens, and penguins, and it could tell these little rascals apart. I know that may seem “old hat” now, but as recently as … Read More → "EnCharge Me Up! 200 AI TOPS at Only ~8 Watts"
I never used to think about power when I was younger. Actually, there are many things I didn’t think about when I was younger (and I’m getting even better at not thinking about things as I grow older), but power was certainly around the top of the list. When I was a kid in the UK circa the 1960s, most things (televisions, radios) plugged into the wall. … Read More → "Sustainable Power for an Increasingly Intelligent World"
It’s funny how casually we use the word “connectivity” these days, as though it’s always been part of the conversation. However, speaking as someone who was a small (but perfectly formed) lad in the 1960s, I can assure you that it most certainly wasn’t.
Back then, things didn’t “connect” in the way we think of today—they were simply connected. Our … Read More → "The Day “No Signal” Died: 5G Meets Satellites"
This is going to be a story in three parts. If we’re lucky, they’ll be related, but I’m not making any promises. Let’s start by discussing one of the things I know nothing about. Yes, I know this is a long (and ever-growing) list, but in this case, I’m thinking about the design and analysis of antennas and radar systems.
The closest … Read More → "Beyond the Spherical Chicken: Rewriting Maxwell for Modern Machines"
Suppose you were creating a sensor intended to measure one phenomenon we’ll call A, and you spent years ensuring that its readings weren’t affected by another phenomenon we’ll call B. Now suppose you finally achieve your goal, only for your customers to tell you, “We love your A sensor… but we’d really like one that can measure B.”
Funnily enough, this is just … Read More → "Making Materials Smart with Nanoscale Sensors"
In England in 1969, what’s now known as British Telecom (BT) didn’t exist. In those days of yore, UK telecommunications (including telephones, exchanges, wiring, and equipment) were operated by the Post Office Telecommunications Department, which was part of the General Post Office (GPO).
The unabridged story of how the Post Office ended up in charge of telephones is wonderfully Victorian and slightly bonkers. To cut a … Read More → "Can You Hear Me Now (With My 21st Century Studio-Quality MEMS Microphone)?"
