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

“Also of Interest” and “Elementals” is 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 items of general interest to the engineer, while the second highlights 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 , Portable Design , and Physics Today , plus 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:

• Next time you watch a major sports event on TV, especially those in high definition, you could be seeing it through the lens of an ActionCam HD from Action- Cam:
  “Safety Brake Helps Put High-Def Eye in the Sky,”
  Machine Design , December 11, 2008
• By creating photonic bandgaps analogous to the electronic bandgaps that underlie modern semiconductor electronics, photonic crystals have created new types of optical devices:
  “Photonic Frontiers: Photonic crystals foster a burst of innovation,”
  Laser Focus World , January 2009
• FEA reveals shoulder fillets under unanticipated stress:
  “Shoulder-Fillet Stresses Finesse,”
  Machine Design , January 8, 2009
• Wicks are fabricated separately, then inserted in tubes:
  “Machined Titanium Heat-Pipe Wick Structure,”
  NASA Tech Briefs , January 2009

Elementals:

• Never have so many had so much trouble with so few terminals:
  “Diode-turn-on-time-induced failures in switching regulators,”
  EDN , January 8, 2009
• The demand for larger displays in small handheld devices makes choosing the right touch technology critical:
  “Choosing a touch technology for handheld-system applications,”
  EDN , January 8, 2009
• Open LED protectors keep serial-wired lighting arrays lit if one LED fails open-circuit:
  “LEDs Shine On,”
  Machine Design , January 8, 2009

Previous Editions:

• February 23, 2009
• February 16, 2009
• February 9, 2009
• February 2, 2009
• January 26, 2009
• January 19, 2009
• January 12, 2009