Each week, the editor of Planet Analog finds technical items of interest and highlights them in this “Also of Interest” feature. In addition, we also provide an archive of recent weekly Planet Analog Newsletters, viewable as pdf files; see the list at the very bottom.

[Sharp-eyed regular readers or those with good memories will notice that we no longer have our “Elementals” sub-section; it was just getting to be a lot of extra work for little return, since most of the items there could be found by basic keyword search. This is unlike “Also of Interest”, which has the special serendipity factor.]

The “Also of Interest” listing is the embodiment of our belief that engineers are interested in exploring topics which are not directly related to their jobs, but which will broaden their knowledge and sometimes spur further innovative and creative approaches.

Among the publications we check are IEEE Spectrum , Machine Design , Design News , Laser Focus World , Photonics Spectra , NASA Tech Briefs (in its various manifestations), Microwave Journal , RF & Microwaves , and Physics Today —and there are others, as well.

Consider these items as online “extras”, and worth a look and a few minutes of your time. (Please note: there are also links to the past weeks' editions of this feature, in the “Navigate” box to the right.)

Also of Interest:

• Understanding bolt mounting patterns is critical to designing joints that won't fail or are over engineered:
  “How bolt patterns react to external loads,”
  Machine Design , September 8, 2011
• Three broad design strategies can drastically reduce die-casting costs and improve part quality:
  “Design away die-casting difficulties,”
  Machine Design , September 8, 2011
• Laser cutting provides higher precision, quality, and speed than traditionally used cutting techniques:
  “Fine Laser Cutting Technology,”
  NASA Tech Briefs , October 2011
• We will see continued use of the operational models we use today:
  “OS Requirements for Medical Devices Explained,”
  Medical Tech Briefs , October 2011
• From invisibility cloaks to hyperlenses, and photovoltaic concentrators to superresolution microscopy, transformation optics makes big promises:
  “Transformation Optics Bends all the Rules,”
  Photonics Spectra , August 2011
• Silicon may be mighty in electronics, but it’s puny in photonics, so far; researchers have resorted to such tricks as combining silicon with other semiconductors or exploiting the Raman effect to coax out coherent light:
  “Silicon Emits the Light Fantastic (with Help),”
  Photonics Spectra , August 2011
• Engineers save time with 3D metrology:
  “Benefits of Digital Metrology,”
  Desktop Engineering , September 2011
• SpaceX looks to accomplish tasks that are literally out of this world:
  “Lofty Goals Demand Precise Positioning,”
  Desktop Engineering , September 2011
• A new white-light microscope uses microsphere superlenses to magnify underlying near-field objects up to eight times before projecting them into a conventional microscope’s objective lens, providing new opportunities to image viruses and biomolecules in real time:
  “White-light microscopy could exceed 50 nm resolution,”
  Laser Focus World , July 2011
• Subwavelength antennas in the metal interconnection layer of an inexpensive CMOS chip couple terahertz radiation to the chip’s electronics, enabling the creation of inexpensive, compact imagers:
  “Terahertz imaging achieved with low-cost CMOS detectors,”
  Laser Focus World , July 2011

Recent Planet Analog Newsletters (click to see as a pdf):

• December 7, 2011
• November 30, 2011
• November 23, 2011
• November 16, 2011