MH370: Motorola cargo comprised walkie-talkies, besides batteries and chargers

This was originally posted on  http://www.fz.com/content/mh370-motorola-cargo-comprised-walkie-talkies-besides-batteries-and-chargers, credit should go them as this is a important article.

A two-tonne consignment aboard the ill-fated  MH370 flight is believed to comprise walkie-talkies, lithium ion batteries and their chargers.

The cargo manifest released in the preliminary report of the incident shows that the plane was carrying 200kg of the batteries while the balance is said to be “radio accessories and chargers”.

The revelation by Malaysia Airlines confirms a report by fz.com on March 25 that revealed that the shipper of the lithium ion batteries, walkie-talkies and chargers was Motorola.

Quoting a source at that time, fz.com reported that the goods were shipped from the factory’s facility in Penang.

The goods were sent by lorries to the KL International Airport, and based on the master air waybill, the items were sent from Penang on March 6.

Of the 2.4 tonnes that was shipped from the plant in Penang, only about 200kg comprised the batteries.

Though the cargo manifest and master air waybill indicated lithium ion batteries, it did not reveal that walkie-talkies made up the rest of the consignment.

MAS later said in a statement that they were “radio accessories and chargers”.

The air waybill prepared by NNR Global Logistics Sdn Bhd on behalf of its client, Motorola, showed that two loads were packed, one being 1,990kg for 133 pieces and another being 463kg for 67 pieces.

The batteries and accompanying goods were later shipped by NNR Global Logistics, while the balance divided into “13 packages”, were forwarded by Kerry Logistics (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd.

The cargo manifest showed the plane carried 9,947kg in three large shipments.

While mangosteens from Muar, Johor weighed the heaviest at 4,566kg and the 2,453kg worth of lithium ion batteries and accompanying goods (written up only as “consolidated”) are more or less accounted for, the other 2,250kg of “consolidated” items have sparked interest.

A source familiar with aviation forwarding industry practices said the mystery surrounding the cargo manifest and the exact loads that went onto the ill-fated MH370 can only be resolved if MAS revealed the house air waybills.

The source added that without the house air waybill and the packing list, the cargo manifest and the master air waybill were redundant because only those two documents would properly state the goods and the shipper.

“It is understandable that MAS cannot reveal the other two documents simply because they may not have it.

 “As for the house air waybill and packing list, the Customs Department, the freight forwarder and the shipper should come forward and reveal them,” he said.

Days after the Beijing-bound flight went missing along with 239 passengers and the crew on March 8, Malaysia Airlines chief executive officer Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said the plane was carrying 200kg of “small” lithium ion batteries.

He said the load was not considered hazardous as it was packaged in accordance to safety regulations.

In response, the aviation source said though the shipment contained batteries and declared as dangerous goods, they are within specified permissible levels.

“The dangerous threshold for lithium ion batteries is not measured by its weight but its watt per hour measurement. For instance, a handphone probably would measure 100 grams watt per hour which is not lethal.

“The watt per hour measurement indicates the battery activity by the hour,” he had said while cautioning that forwarding companies and shippers often failed to declare “hidden dangerous goods” in the shipment.

These include flammable liquids, lubricants, corrosive and oxidising materials that could and have resulted in fires onboard flights, he said.

Read more: http://www.fz.com/content/mh370-motorola-cargo-comprised-walkie-talkies-besides-batteries-and-chargers#ixzz31gub3d3V

What 2 Way Radio Is Best For A Cruise?

Yes, two-way radios DO work on cruise ships. However, because the same channels tend to be a bit overused, passengers can expect a fair amount of chatter and signal interference when using their radios.

Here’s some advice from a Woot.com user,

“I suppose the two way radios/walkie talkies would be the best option. But, how important is being in constant communication with the rest of your family anyway? A ship, while large, isn’t huge. If you know the general area where people will be, you could walk over and find them. Preset arranged meeting times and places would work as well. People were able to get along fairly well without being able to directly communicate with each other at every moment of the day”.

So, aside from the option of setting pre-arranged meeting times, a radio isn’t a terrible idea, especially if you have kids. Many people reading this might simply ask why they can’t use their mobile phones. That is a very good question, after all…

If you’re going on a cruise this summer (or anytime, really), you need to be aware that your mobile phone is going to cause some problems.

Many cruise passengers are unaware and/or totally ill prepared for this fact and the cruise companies themselves are at least partly to blame for the lack of information in this area.

So, will your mobile phone work at sea? To answer this, let’s take a look at the following excerpt from the website ‘Cellular Abroad.com…

“The answer is most often always “You can subscribe to our cruise line cell phone network.” What they won’t tell you is the rates you will be paying. You certainly won’t be able to find them online, and to get a proper answer, you’ll have to call the cruise line to get a full break down of what they charge for access to their cell networks. As a company that sets their own international calling rates for the Talk Abroad SIM Card, we can see the cruise ship networks in our list, and it does not look good. If you subscribe to their network, you’ll be paying anything from $4 ~ $8 per minute, depending on your location and who you are calling. Don’t forget also that they’ll be charging you for receiving inbound calls”.

As we’ll soon see, taking a mobile phone on a cruise can represent a logistical nightmare. At the same time, however, many of us feel naked without a phone?

More problems are presented in the form of scheduled stops (although these can also represent opportunities for a higher – and cheaper – level of connectivity). To return to Cellular Abroad,

“If the ship is close to the coastline, and has multiple port of call stops, you’ll typically be able to get a terrestrial signal from the nearest land cell phone tower – up to a mile from the coast. It’s highly unlikely that you will be connected with 3G speed signals, as evidenced in my previous blog, you will need to have a low-wave 3G frequency like 800 or 900 Mhz – frequencies not typically associated with phones manufactured for North American consumers. So what can be done? You can rent an international cell phone that works in port, and a short way out to sea. If you really must stay connected on your boat, get in touch with your cruise travel agency and request information about the on-board cell phone rates and subscription fees”.  

So, using mobile phones on a cruise is both difficult and supremely costly, but arranging a meeting time is also likely to cause more than a few headaches. Two way radios have their problems, but may in fact be the best way to keep in contact, depending, of course, on how important a factor this is for you.

SOURCES:

http://www.cellularabroad.com/blog/do-cell-phones-work-on-cruise-ships-2

http://www.cruisereviews.com/forum/royal-caribbean-cruise-line/12108-we-lose-our-children-regularly-do-two-way-radios-work-onboard.html#b

http://deals.woot.com/questions/details/83b01dc9-9318-4de4-9a2b-f16c18761de7/whats-the-best-way-to-communicate-with-others-on-a-cruise-ship

“Genie, You’re Free” Actor & Comedian Robin Williams Passes Away, Aged 63

As you will by now have heard, American actor and comedian Robin Williams has passed away of an apparent suicide.

The beloved entertainer, best known for roles such as Peter Pan in Steven Spielberg’s ‘Hook’, The Genie in Disney’s ‘Aladdin’ and as Radio DJ Adrian Cronauer in ‘Good Morning Vietnam’, was found dead in his Paradise Cay, California home on August 12^th.

As the news spread via television, print and social media, shocked and heartfelt tributes flooded in from the star’s friends, colleagues and even US President Barack Obama.

Robin Williams began his career as a stand-up comedian whilst attending New York’s famous Juilliard School and, from there was cast as an alien named Mork in the popular US sitcom ‘Happy Days’. In 1978, Williams became a series lead in the spin-off series ‘Mork & Mindy’; the show proved popular and made a star of its lead.

Following the series’ end, Williams focussed largely on film work. He was known for bringing his cartoonish and charismatic presence to his numerous comedy roles, but also for portraying sensitive, troubled and emotionally brittle characters in more dramatic films.

His boyish smile and considerable acting range led to a string of critical and commercial successes including ‘The World According to Garp’ (1982), ‘Dead Poet’s Society’ (1989) and ‘Good Will Hunting’ (1997) – for which he won an Academy Award.

He was also very in-demand as a voice actor, appearing as the computerized Dr. Know in Steven Spielberg’s ‘A.I: Artificial Intelligence’ (2001) as well as lending his considerable vocal talents to animated features such as ‘Fern Gully: The Last Rainforest’ (1992), ‘Robots’ (2005) and ‘Happy Feet’ (2006).

Williams’ other notable live action roles include the cross-dressing father Daniel Hillard in ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ (1993), as well as Alan Parrish, one of the central protagonists in the 1995 adventure film ‘Jumanji’ He also portrayed the writer-turned-killer Peter Finch in Christopher Nolan’s ‘Insomnia’ (2002) and the emotionally disturbed Sy Parrish (no relation to Alan) in 2002’s ‘One Hour Photo’.

Williams struggled with depression throughout his life and battled with both cocaine addiction and alcoholism. Shortly before his death, he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

According to a recent study, newly diagnosed Parkinson’s sufferers are twice as likely to suffer from symptoms of anxiety or depression. This is due to the impact the disease can have on the brain.

In Michael J. Fox’s autobiography ‘Lucky Man’, the star describes his own encounters with depression during the early onset of the disease. It is something that often goes completely untreated.

Depression is also a known side effect of some Parkinson’s medication.

Mental depression is a very misunderstood illness even today and will affect 1 in 10 people at some point in their lives. It is caused by a chemical imbalance that can be extremely difficult to combat.

Robin Williams’ life and body of work have touched more people than it would be possible to mention here. He will be sorely missed.

Williams’ wife, Susan Schneider, asked that the family be allowed to mourn privately, but said in a heartfelt statement, “As he is remembered, it is our hope the focus will not be on Robin’s death, but on the countless moments of joy and laughter he gave to millions.”

Germany Lifts World Cup (For A 4th Time)

On Sunday 13^th July, the German national football team defeated Argentina 1-0 in a close, intensely competitive game in order to be crowned the 2014 World Cup winners.

The match was very tightly contested, with Argentina’s defence regularly closing down Germany’s incisive passing game that had worked so well for them over the course of the tournament.

Both teams played so exceptionally well that the winning goal was only scored during the 30 minutes’ of extra time that was added on in order to yield a winner.

Substitute Mario Götze scored the winning goal at the 113^th minute. The goal, which took full advantage of a great setup from Andre Schürrle, was an exceptional display of precision, marksmanship and team playing.

Götze is the first substitute in the history of football to score a World Cup winning goal, as well as the youngest player to score in a World Cup Final since fellow German Wolfgang Weber, who scored against England in 1966 (both were 22). 

Argentina’s Gonzalo Higuain had a goal ruled offside (and thus disallowed) in the first half and Argentina created more than a few chances to score in the game. However, German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was exceptionally proactive and was playing incredibly well throughout.

In fact, Neuer was given the 2014 World Cup’s Golden Glove award for being the best keeper of the tournament at the end of the match.

Argentine Captain Lionel Messi looked thoroughly dejected after the final whistle blew and, in this writer’s opinion, failed to set a good example for his exhausted and deflated teammates, who seemed to be in dire need of one. He grudgingly shook hands with officials and appeared to hold his ‘Golden Ball’ trophy with utter disdain. He also visibly removed his Runner Up medal almost immediately after receiving it.

Worst of all, Messi made no attempt to appeal to his countrymen (and women) in the stands, the vast majority of whom were proudly cheering their side in spite of the loss.

In truth, Argentina had nothing at all to be ashamed of. They had played extremely well and they had performed with heart and passion. Messi’s crybaby antics, if understandable to some extent, were an insult to both his team and the valiant effort they had put in on the night.

Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli stamped his authority on the game early on and made it very clear that he was firmly in control. He officiated extremely well throughout, ensuring that a fair game was played out.

This victory marks Germany’s 4^th World Cup win overall, making them the second most decorated country in World Cup history, a position that they share with the Italian national team. Brazil has the most wins overall, with 5.

The German victory also marks the first time that a European side has triumphed in South America. As well as the third time that Germany has met Argentina in a World Cup Final, which is a tournament record.

Overall, it was a well-deserved win for Germany, who consistently fielded the best side of the tournament.

However, kudos ought to go to Argentina as well, for many felt that, after Germany hammered Brazil 7-1 in the Quarter Finals, a German victory would be a foregone conclusion. Instead, fans and spectators were treated to a tense game of close calls, heated moments and plenty of near misses.  This made for a very high quality match.

One would imagine that the parties across Germany went on long into the night! 

What are Earbuds?

You might be safe in the wisdom that I bring the top headset posts, a number of them are my own several of which are curated by me, if i choose to use someone elses articles it’s because it’s relevant to my readership, so feel confident that you simply are reading the best from my industry.

Earbuds are headphones, typically made out of a hard plastic material, that fit inside the ear, just outside of the ear canal. These aren’t the same thing as ear canal headphones, which have a rubber tip and seal within a listener’s ear canal.

Several portable music devices, like mp3s and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), come with earbuds when the device is purchased. Earbuds are a less expensive alternative to ear canal headphones or other listening devices. Consumers tend to purchase earbuds for their convenience, as they are easier to carry around than other headphones because of their small size.

This style of headphone also tends to be more inexpensive than other kinds, like ear canal headphones, circumaural headphones that fit outside the ears, or the supra-aural headphones that have pads that are placed on top of the ears, rather than around or inside them. Circumaural headphones are typically used in recording studios and supra-aural headphones can still be purchased at some stores, though these kinds of devices have given way to headphones that fit within the ear.

Because of the design of earbuds, there can be a few drawbacks to owning them as opposed to owning another style of headphone. First, the rigid design of earbuds can sometimes make it difficult for them to fit comfortably inside a listener’s ear. If they’re too large or too small, they can either slip out of the ear or won’t fit inside it at all. Another problem reported by consumers is that because earbuds don’t seal the ear canal, the sound quality is muddled through other ambient noises.

Essentially, most earbuds work the same as other headphones and the set-up is relatively simple. Wires move up from the electronic device that is putting out sound, such as an mp3 player. These wires connect to a voice coil. The coil is attached to a cone, which is flexible and plastic. A magnet is attached to the back of the earbuds. When sound passes up through the wires and to the magnet, the voice coil becomes electromagnetic and moves up and down with the sound. The cone then pushes the sound out through the earbud and into the listener’s ear.

When listening to earbuds or any other type of headphones, physicians recommend to keep the volume at a reasonable level, as research had proven that prolonged exposure to high noise levels can lead to permanent hearing loss. Prolonged listening to loud noises, including music, puts unnecessary stress on the hairs in the cochlea. This causes permanent damage to the hairs and can eventually lead to hearing loss.

Programmer Facing Paralysis Develops Revolutionary New Software

38-year-old computer programmer Gal Sont is developing revolutionary new software to aid disabled people in communication, even as he faces paralysis himself.

Sont suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS – alternately known as ‘Lou Gehrig’s  Disease’), which he was first diagnosed with in 2009.

Due to this disease, the neurons that govern voluntary movement (located in the brain and spinal cord) are slowly dying out, which means that Gal is likely to eventually suffer from ‘locked-in syndrome’, a cruel affliction wherein the mind is aware and conscious, but the body is completely unable to move or speak (usually only the eyes are voluntarily controlled).

Tragically, there is no known cure for this condition.

When Sont (who, even today, can only stand when aided – and only for a few seconds at a time) met other people suffering with similar disabilities, he found that they were increasingly resorting to expensive (and often-inefficient) computer setups in order to help them better communicate with the outside world.

“I came to realize that these people first of all don’t understand the potential, what technology can do for them, they use all kinds of different equipment which was very expensive, and as I know technology I didn’t understand why they were so expensive”, Sont told BBC News earlier this week.

“So I decided to build the best and fastest on-screen keyboard, then when combined with the camera, it gives you a very cheap and very good communication solution… accessible for all people, not only the rich.”

Sont and his best friend Dan Russ are business partners in the Las Vegas, Nevada, USA-based start-up company Click2Speak, which aims to create a fast, efficient and accurate on-screen keyboard (created by Sont –using only his eyes) in order to aid people with physical disabilities. The driving force behind the invention is to create an affordable product that is better than anything else available right now.

Click2Speak makes use of an ingenious eye-tracking camera that allows the user to control the cursor on a screen, or click buttons on a virtual keyboard, simply by looking at them. Clicks can be made using a foot pedal, or by holding one’s gaze on a specific part of the screen. Gal’s computer makes full use of his Click2Speak software and he is able to control his entire desktop (including email, Skype, video games and, perhaps most importantly, the creation of code – the way in which he makes his living) using only his eyes.

Click2Speak is fully integrated with the SwiftKey Smartphone app, which is timesaving software that creates complete suggestions for half-typed words, based on the user’s previous word use. Essentially, the software grows easier to use the more it is utilized and this is a major part of Click2Speak’s design.

As his illness progresses, Sont will be using his own software more and more to communicate with his family, friends and business colleagues.

Gal Sont was born in Israel in 1976 and was fascinated by computers since getting his first Commodore 64 aged 8. He married his school sweetheart, with whom he has two daughters and has subsequently spent 20 years working as a computer programmer. He is also a big sci-fi/fantasy fan and he used to enjoy outdoor activities such as kite surfing, motor biking and riding roller coasters.

By nature a proud man, Gal cherishes his independence and it is this desire to remain self-sufficient that has motivated him to create such an affordable software option for others facing similar hardships.

“I never asked for help from anyone my whole life, it was my wife and I against the world, but now I need help and assistance, and it’s not too much fun to ask all the time for others to help you (…) If you can buy a communication device by yourself without begging others to help, this is also very, very good. So I hope the people out there who hear about our software and the keyboard, will be able to use it, save money and time, and live their life.” He says.

It is clear that Sont’s miraculous mind will prove to be a life preserver, not only for himself, but also for thousands of others around the world.

“Your communication is the basis of everything, to tell someone you love them, to ask for something to drink, it is the basic need of every one of us: to communicate with my family and friends and tell them all that I need, in words. So communicating is very important, and if I can do it faster and more efficient, you know, I’ve won the world.”

SOURCES

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-28041743

http://www.click2speak.net/category/our-journey

IED blast in Afghanistan inspires ex-Green Beret to reinvent two-way radio

When we found this informative article we were so pleased, having hunted for over a year for this, discovering it on this blog was an thrilling day for me.

U.S. Army Special Forces Sgt. Tom Katis was headed through the mountains from Asadabad to Jalalabad in Northeastern Afghanistan to catch a plane out of the country for a week of leave in January 2003 when 70 pounds of plastic explosives buried in the road detonated directly under the lead vehicle in his convoy, setting off an ambush.

Shooting erupted from the reeds along the Kunar River, and Katis found his crew switching among numerous radio channels to call in air support and a medical helicopter for two wounded soldiers, as well as to update his commander and coordinate with nearby units.

“I had to take guys off team frequencies to monitor empty traffic. All of a sudden, the team was not on the same frequency,” said Katis. “We all had radios that cost $15,000 each, and we’re yelling at each other.”

At that moment, Katis decided that even when operating as designed, radios were too difficult to use in combat. Live-only microphones caused missed connections. Choices had to be made quickly between satellite and line-of-sight systems.

That trauma was the kernel for Voxer, a San Francisco-based “push-to-talk” smartphone application developer that Katis co-founded in 2007 and hopes will take a big chunk of the multi-billion-dollar two-way radio hardware and services industry.

After finishing his second Army tour in 2003, Katis immediately co-founded a private security firm called Triple Canopy that has grown to 8,000 employees by catering to military, government and corporate customers around the world.

The radio idea stuck with Katis, however, who had worked a stint at a startup in Silicon Valley from 1999 to 2001.

“The first thing that was obvious was that everything needed to go on the Internet,” said Katis, a graduate of Yale University with a bachelor’s degree in ethics, politics and economics who interrupted his business career to re-enroll in the military after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

At Triple Canopy, Katis in 2004 met Matt Ranney, who became Voxer’s co-founder and CTO. What they and early Voxer employees later created was an Internet-based hybrid between a walkie-talkie and a group messaging application that enables users to talk live or send voice, text and photo messages that can be retrieved at will, all while displaying individual users’ locations. Venture investors to date have funded their efforts with $30 million.

It’s a deceptively simple system, according to Gartner, but Voxer has received 126 patents around the world to protect its inventions, which Katis says provide a platform for significantly improving communications in the private sector and government.

In May 2011, Voxer released a free version of its app and, though it was initially slow to catch on, it exploded to nearly 70 million users by 2012.

At that point Voxer had to choose whether to focus on the consumer app and generate money through advertising or some other vehicle — a vision that many other entrepreneurs were chasing — or try to build a communications product that businesses and governments would be willing to buy. For Katis and his cohorts, the choice was clear.

“A free consumer app was not going to solve the problems we want to solve,” said Katis in an interview in Voxer’s San Francisco headquarters in the historic Phelan Building on Market Street. “I think I can build a much bigger company than that. This is a hundred-billion-dollar industry that I think we can go and take a very meaningful piece of.”

Katis still loves and intends to keep the free app, but Voxer turned its attentions to building more sophisticated features, including encryption, a web-browser-based version for administrators, an installed appliance that companies or government agencies (think three letters) can run themselves and a function that mimics the way two-way radios squawk out transmissions in real-time.

Voxer launched a roughly $10-a-month-per-user business version in June 2013 and, while Katis says the first year was very much a learning process concerning how to make corporate sales, the company just scored its biggest customer yet, the North American division of a major international automobile manufacturer, the identity of which it cannot yet make public. In addition, Roto-Rooter, the national plumbing repair business, in April started to roll Voxer out to about 900 people, a quarter of its field staff, and Voxer has trials underway with various U.S. agencies.

Most of the sales to date have been to companies that asked to upgrade from the free app, said Katis, adding that the company is now hiring in sales and marketing.

One inbound customer was Chris Marino, owner of Xtreme Snow Pros, a snow removal service in Mahwah, N.J., who used the business version last winter for the first time after testing out many different two-way radio systems. Most of the other systems required hardware purchases were more expensive and less versatile, he said.

Marino’s staff balloons during snow season from five to 70 employees with seasonal help, and Voxer lets him communicate with each one individually or all at once from his desk.

“Voxer Business was an incredible asset to us,” Marino said. “It’s a truly great product.”