Alternate LED Flasher

Here'a another electronic circuit I designed. It flashes two LEDs alternately, with about 0.5 seconds between flashes. It pulses the LEDs through capacitive discharge, rather than drawing directly on the out­puts of an IC. It may be used, for example, to simulate aircraft lights, or to give a flash which has a more aggressive appearance than a single LED. The CD40106BE IC was found to work best for IC1. Equivalents should work fine, but may cause a slight residual glow after flashing. Six AA batteries should last a few weeks here. OBSERVATION: A former electronics editor comments: "Thomas Scarborough knows NOTHING about the operation of this simple circuit." I designed it. It works!

Geo-Blocking

Pity us poor Southern Africans, who are subject to geo-blocking -- a technology that restricts internet access on the basis of one's location. They would go and dramatise it, too, by displaying the censorship on a black screen. In this case, it was a Sky News item that I could not see. OBSERVATION: There are divers reasons for geo-blocking -- some of them quite strange.

Underground Seam

Years ago, we built a house on a plot in the country. An interesting thing about it was that there was a seam running underneath it. There was groundwater below. This photo shows son M digging a hole for a tree. On the surface, the ground was bone dry -- but as soon as one got to a certain depth, one found the seam.

God and Suffering

I taught on God and Suffering tonight, to seminary students -- covering several points of view. The preferred view of my class was that, as finite human beings, we cannot fully understand the actions of an infinite God -- but one day we shall understand. God will be fully justified, even if many situations now seem unjustifiable. We shall know then that He was good, and we shall praise Him. OBSERVATION: And one of the questions for that view is that, if we cannot fully understand Him, how do we understand that He is good?

Shifting the Blame

Recently I received two written warnings, in quick succession, that someone had tried to break into my e-mail account. The warnings advised me to change my password -- which I did. Then someone broke in -- and whoever it was, they deleted and double-deleted all my Sent items. I reported it to the service provider, who mercifully shall remain nameless. They replied, "The password update would have secured your mailbox." In other words, I was the one to blame. However, I had updated the password, in good time, before the damage occurred. I wrote to them, "It appears that you are shifting the blame." OBSERVATION: At the end of the day, it was anyway my service provider who let the wrecker into my e-mail account.

Brutal

AI can be useful in all sorts of ways. Recently I received seven pages of revisions to an academic paper I wrote -- in small print, with a demanding deadline. Together with my other academic commitments -- not to speak of life itself -- I was dismayed. It seemed like a wall so high that I couldn't scale it. I asked AI what impression all this made. AI responded that it looked "brutal", and it gave me a 40% chance of completion. OBSERVATION: My attitude in general is then a) quit, or b) find another way of approaching the whole thing -- the alternative being c) to die trying. Option c) is out. I decided on option b). I just had to figure it out -- and I did.

Music Practice

Having run out of runway after a very full day, here is another photo of a student at a music practice. He is, needless to say, on keyboard and vocals. You may click on the photo to enlarge. OBSERVATION: I used a Leica simulation for this photo.

Delusional (Not)

Many years ago, I saw a doctor, after I was attacked in my robes by a group of churchgoers. The doctor examined me and wrote it all down in his clinical notes. But the next time I went to see him, he opened his notes, and he had changed them -- clearly to suppress the facts. I lodged a complaint against the doctor, with the Health Professions Council. He replied that I had been delusional -- I had been seeing things. Yet that was not possible. I studied psychology. Delusion has nothing to do with seeing things. I took him to the Human Rights Commission. They judged that, rather than there having been any delusion, the doctor was guilty of crimen injuria. But now, the Health Professions Council refused to file the Commission's opinion! OBSERVATION: Finally, no less than fourteen years later, the Health Professions Council has received the Commission's opinion, and registered it, and filed it. The doctor was now refusing to respond, said the Health Professions Council, and this was a case of contempt. I said that's OK. My version of events is now on record -- I need no more.

Never-Ending Trail

A university asked me to make a list of articles I wrote. This is virtually impossible. I forgot them almost as soon as I wrote them, and they amount to hundreds of articles in journals, magazines, newspapers, and on websites. I am trying to track some down, but the trail seems never-ending. OBSERVATION: Here's one of many "covers" that I had, called "Christmas Cheeks". My project caused one's cheeks to pulsate with light from within.

Student Drummer

This one's "just a pretty picture". I took it tonight, of a student rehearsing drums. He is a creative and versatile drummer. You may click on the image to enlarge.

Evading Religion

Recently I sought to monetise my blog. It seemed to comply in every way with Google's standards. However, Google responded, "Your publisher account was found to be non-compliant with programme policies, and as a result, it has been disabled." Could this have to do with occasional religious posts on my blog? I asked Google. Google replied that "getting approval can be difficult" if one has religious content. I appealed the decision. OBSERVATION: Is this anti-religious bias? Google responds: "It is less about a broad 'anti-religious bias' and more about how our automated safety systems filter content for advertisers." Hmm. There are, however, other options besides Google.

Quality Workmanship (Not)

One does wonder sometimes about people's sense of quality workmanship. I snapped this close to my former home. OBSERVATION: Perhaps, though, this would be the angle at which one reads the sign after one has succumbed to chlorine gas. The concrete foundation, too, is an interesting piece of work.

Published in Seven Fields

For some years now, I have claimed in my bio that I am published in peer-reviewed publications in six fields. Not so. It is seven. The field that I missed is acoustics. In principle, I redesigned the electric guitar, on the basis that its strings move in two dimensions, not one (as taught in every school textbook). OBSERVATION: Therefore, the fields in which I am published are these:

    • philosophy
    • theology
    • electronics
    • gnomonics
    • organology
    • optics 

       • acoustics

CORRECTION: I need to add linguistics.

A Useful Hush

I have posted many times about ministerial burnout and dropout. My own Master's degree research found that upwards of 80% of ministers who adopt a Transformational model of leadership do not survive ministry until retirement. With this in mind, I have noticed now in my seminary lectures that a hush descends on my classes when I mention, however fleetingly, the strain or burden of ministry. It is a knowing hush. OBSERVATION: And a useful hush, as it guides me in my teaching.

Thousand Year Flasher

This one's a technical post. An electronic circuit I designed. It is a LED flasher which will flash for one-thousand years off high-capacity AA batteries. At least, theoretically (the batteries are likely to corrode or degrade in time). But think on it: your descendants could enjoy the Thousand Year Flasher through many generations. OBSERVATION: One could solder the batteries to the circuit, and encapsulate it in plastic, for longevity.