Month: October 2009

Astronauts – the new celebrity?

Astronauts – the new celebrity?

Rad… Astronaut Mike Massimino became the first human to tweet from space on his final trip to repair the Hubble telescope. It was no contest, however, that he recently also became the first astronaut to reach one million followers on Twitter (@Astro_Mike). Who will be the first chemist to have 1 million followers? Measuring things […]

Chutney jar PCB etch

I had two circuit boards nagging me to be etched this morning. Without a photo developing tray, it seemed some modifications in technique were in order. Into the recycling bin I went looking for a smallish, wide mouthed glass jar. Yesterday’s sandwich polished off a tasty mango chutney, and the jar was just about right. A little bit of cleaning, and it was ready for business.

The leftover etchant from yesterday’s vinyl pcb resist experiment was in a plastic bottle and still had some potency left in it. The tea water was still hot on the stove, so it was ready to provide some double boiler action. I poured some hot water into a steel pan, put the ferric chloride into the jar and dropped in the first board.

Stephen Hawking steps down as Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University

Stephen Hawking steps down as Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University

Hawking now Director of Research at Cambridge… Steps down as Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University… A transcription of physicist Stephen Hawking’s audio message to Newsnight in which he explains why he is standing down from the prestigious academic title of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University. Previous holders of the position include […]

Water On Lens Exhibition

Water On Lens Exhibition

Gorgeous underwater photo exhibit… Name a truly great British film and chances are it was made at Pinewood Studios, the most cinematic landmark Old Blighty has. Its reputation has resonated worldwide thanks to the biggest names in cinema filling its spaces and next month you will be able to get an insight into the craft […]