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.

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:

• New devices and materials help chronic wounds heal faster and with less risk of infection:
  “Technology helps heal chronic wounds,”
  Machine Design , October 20, 2011
• Balancing the conflicting demands of design — for example weight versus strength — can be difficult at best:
  “Advanced Manufacturing: 21 prototypes later, a nifty design aid for plastic resins,”
  Machine Design , October 20, 2011
• Ultrafast laser pulses can now be used for processing materials where thermal influence must be minimized, including drilling metals and cutting wafers, polymeric stents, and display glass:
  “ULTRAFAST LASERS: High-power pico- and femtosecond lasers enable new applications,”
  Laser Focus World , October 2011
• Analyzing microelectromechanical system (MEMS) switch behavior is a new field of study that guides the production of MEMS switches:
  “Microelectromechanical System (MEMS) Switch Test,”
  Defense Tech Briefs , August 2011
• Key selection factors include wireless protocol selection, battery selection, operating-voltage and space constraints, and wireless receiver location:
  “Wireless Foot Switch Design Considerations,”
  Medical Design Briefs , November 2011
• Products that previously used keypads are being upgraded with touch panels to give products a leading-edge look and feel:
  “The Power of Touch: How Projected Capacitive Touch Panels Enhance Medical Devices,”
  Medical Design Briefs , November 2011
• The need for heat sinks, heat pipes, temperature sensors, switches, and improved materials continues unabated as ICs shrink in size while providing higher performance:
  “Diverse Cooling Devices Pace Race To Get The Heat Out Of ICs,”
  Power Electronics Technology , November 2011
• Light, sturdy fiber optic sensors can help monitor conditions in power plants, on airplane wings, on dams and in other hard-to-reach places:
  “Smart, Self-Healing Fibers Laugh at Danger,”
  Photonics Spectra , November 2011

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

• February 1, 2012
• January 25, 2012
• January 18, 2012
• January 11, 2012