Monthly Archives: May 2017

Linear Temperature Coefficient Resistor Nonlinearity

Posted on 25-May-2017 by mathscinotes

Our products contain many analog circuits. These circuits often require temperature compensation in order to meet their requirements across the product's entire temperature range. To perform this compensation, we often use resistors with a specified Temperature Coefficients of Resistance (TCR). A vendor recently stopped manufacturing one of the resistors we use for temperature compensation, and we needed to find a substitute. While searching for a substitute resistor, I needed to understand just how linear the approved resistor's temperature variation is so I can find an appropriate substitute. Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics | 1 Comment

An Intimidating Interview

Posted on 23-May-2017 by mathscinotes

I have been reading the book Building the H Bomb: A Personal History by Ken Ford. A major character in the book is Edward Teller, a very famous physicist who is best known as the father of the American H-bomb. I had to smile as I read about Edward Teller. When I worked at Hewlett-Packard, an electrical engineer named Russ Price talked about interviewing for a job at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where he walked into a room and faced Edward Teller as his interviewer. He and Dr. Teller then proceeded to have a very technical interview. Continue reading →

Posted in Management | 4 Comments

Recoil Calculation Example

Posted on 21-May-2017 by mathscinotes

I have been reading about the US Air Force's battle to retire the A-10 Warthog (Figure 1). The USAF has never cared for the A-10 and has made a number of attempts to replace it with either the F-16 or the F-35. During my reading, I saw the following statement about the recoil of it 30 mm Gatling gun, and the impact of this recoil on the A-10's speed. Continue reading →

Posted in Ballistics, Military History | 2 Comments

Lake Level Variation Over Time

Posted on 16-May-2017 by mathscinotes

My wife and I are building a vacation home on the shores of Eagle Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota. We also are active members of the local lake association, which is a group of homeowners who work on projects to keep our lake healthy. One task I perform on a yearly basis for the lake association is to draw a graph of how our lake level is varying over time (Figure 1). The lake level is important to homeowners because it affects the amount of beach that is exposed and the length of their docks. Continue reading →

Posted in Cabin | Comments Off on Lake Level Variation Over Time

Sugar-to-Flour Mass Ratios in Cake Recipes

Posted on 14-May-2017 by mathscinotes

I have been working at becoming a better baker. Specifically, I have been trying to understand how recipes are developed. Many baker's begin developing their recipe's based on ratios of ingredients. The classic rule ratio of thumb for cake recipes is to use equal masses of flour, sugar, butter, and eggs – with the ingredient ratios expressed as 1:1:1:1. Continue reading →

Posted in Baking | Comments Off on Sugar-to-Flour Mass Ratios in Cake Recipes

Real-Life Equipment Optimization Problem

Posted on 9-May-2017 by mathscinotes

I recently was asked to provide a recommendation on how to schedule the operating time for three different machines that were producing three different products. This is not a made up problem, but reflects a real production situation. My solution uses Excel's Solver and its linear programming-based optimization routine to find an optimal machine scheduling plan. The solution I provided has proven to be useful to the folks who asked for it, and I thought it was worth sharing my solution here. Continue reading →

Posted in General Mathematics | 3 Comments

Business Trip to Portugal

Posted on 4-May-2017 by mathscinotes

I just came back from a business trip to Aveiro, Portugal. What a beautiful place! It is a very vibrant university town that lies about 6 km from the ocean. It is known as the "Venice of Portugal" because of its system of canals, which is a legacy of the old days when Aveiro was a major source of sea salt for the region (Figure 1). The climate is warm, with a very substantial breeze that blows out toward the Atlantic ocean. I liked my visit so much that I plan on bringing my wife on a future trip. Continue reading →

Posted in Personal | Comments Off on Business Trip to Portugal