Each week, the editor of Planet Analog finds items of interest and features and puts them into two sections, entitled “Also of Interest” and “Elementals”. Each cites items from publications outside the Planet Analog and EETimes portfolios.

It's an extension of our belief that engineers are interested in on-going tutorial on obviously relevant topics, as well as the serendipity of exploring topics which are not directly related to their jobs, but which will broaden their knowledge and sometimes spurs innovative and creative approaches. The first box highlights a few items of general interest to the engineer, while the second highlights some basic and tutorial electronic-engineering material.

Among the publications we check are IEEE Spectrum , Machine Design , Design News , Laser Focus World , EDN , Electronic Design , NASA Tech Briefs , and Physics Today , among others. Consider these items as “online-only” extras, and worth a look! (Please note: there are also links to the previous weeks' editions, at the bottom).

Also of Interest:

• For a given airfoil design, lift is increased and drag reduced:
  “Flipperons for Improved Aerodynamic Performance,”
  NASA Tech Briefs , May 2008
• A new method eliminates the tedium of determining pipe friction:
  “Calculating friction in one step,”
  Machine Design , June 19, 2008
• Installing a modest photovoltaic system and using it to run a suite of appliances can be educational and satisfying:
  “Home photovoltaic systems for physicists,”
  Physics Today , July 2008
• Fiber optics brings sunlight inside:
  “Hybrid Solar Lighting,”
  Photonics Spectra , June 2008
• Fibers with a hollow core can easily outperform conventional fibers for certain applications:
  “Novel process eases production of hollow-core fiber,”
  Laser Focus World , May 2008

Elementals:

• As systems reduce the number of RF up-conversions, design of the D/A stage becomes more challenging:
  “Designing For High Speed In Current-To-Voltage Conversion,”
  Electronic Design , May 8, 2008
• Video amplifiers have unique and demanding specifications. Understanding them will help you select an amplifier that can do the job:
  “Selecting video op amps,”
  EDN , June 25, 2008
• New lamps are more efficient, but what about the electronics? Designers need to learn a few new tricks about driving LEDs and CFLs:
  “Green Technology: How to power an energy-efficient light,”
  Machine Design , June 19, 2008
• This unit is useful for testing any non-aerospace battery cells:
  “Charge-Control Unit for Testing Lithium-Ion Cells,”
  NASA Tech Briefs , June 2008

Previous Editions:

• July 28, 2008
• July 21, 2008
• July 14, 2008
• July 7, 2008
• June 30, 2008
• June 23, 2008
• June 16, 2008