Telkonet Thermostat
Telkonet Thermostat Image borrowed from www.eregrinegroup.com
Check out the Telkonet thermostat. I’ve previously written about the Nest thermostat and the Honeywell Wi-Fi thermostat. Telkonet claims to take it another step further. Not only is their thermostat programmable, accessible from the Internet and “smart”, but it can calculate roof comfort by aggregating data like time-of-day, solar load, brightness, humidity and occupancy patterns. It’s Ecoinsight feature determines when a space is occupied or vacant and reverts to preset temperature limits. Check it out at their site here.
The Ecoinsight thermostat is more for commercial applications than the other two. While it has Internet connectivity, it may require special networking in order to access it. This is more efficient where you have multiple installations.
Project Sketch by Mary Ellen
I ran across this sketch Mary Ellen completed for me earlier this year and it reminded me how much I miss collaborating with her on projects. I still think of her often and miss her friendship.
Double Duty Light Fixture
Arcalux HRMS
Image borrowed from American Green Technology website
American Green Technology has a light fixture that does double duty as an air purifier. From their website:
“Hospital-borne infections are a leading concern for medical professionals and patients. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 5 to 10 percent of all patients contract at least one hospital-acquired infection during their stay in an acute-care hospital. There are indications that the future of surgery as we know it may be affected because of uncertainties and fears of post-operative infections. The CDC estimates that 1.7 million hospital-associated infections (HAI’s), from all types of bacteria combined, cause or contribute to 99,000 deaths each year and is now the fourth leading cause of death in the United States, greater than Breast Cancer, Aids and Automobile Accidents combined.”
Isn’t that depressing! That makes me feel good about my next hospital visit!
Self-Assembling Robots
I’ve been a fan of Science Fiction since Grandma Berger gave me a Tom Swift Jr. book in grade school. I think it was an impulse purchase on her part as I can’t imagine her as a sci-fi fan. That first Tom Swift book was an old book when I read it. Part of the fascination with it was reading what the book presented as fantasy juxtaposed against those same things coming to life in the real world in which I was living. In any case, I was hooked.
It seems to me that most scientists would be fans of science fiction as well. Look at Sheldon, Leonard, Raj & Howard on the Big Bang Theory… Ha! But on the more sober side, do you think scientists ever think about the cautionary science fiction tales as they strive to bring those fantasies to life?
This article by Judy Schriener titled “Will Self-Assembling Robots Slide into the Construction Industry?” makes me wonder. Isaac Asimov first presented The Three Laws of Robots in a 1942 short story titled, “Run Around”. Some of you may be familiar with them from the recent Will Smith movie version of another of Asimov’s books, “I, Robot”. For those of you unfamiliar, here they are in their original form:
- A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
- A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.
* Laws and timelines taken from a wikipedia article title Three Laws of Robotics.
Thank you Veterans
It’s Veteran’s Day and all of us at Easterday Construction Co., Inc. would like to thank all the veterans that served our country honorably. And as always, a thank you to our current service men and women that are away from their families defending our country. Your efforts make our way of life possible.
I am reusing the picture of the eagle on the tombstone from a previous post. The picture was taken at Fort Snelling by Frank Glick. I think it is a beautiful and moving picture. I was contacted earlier this year from the photographer and I have included the credit below. Several people contacted me asking me where they could obtain a copy of this picture, so now I have that information available.
Image © 2011 Frank Glick, used with permission, all rights reserved. www.liketophoto.com
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