Long-time Slashdot reader kackle writes:
If you cut your teeth on 8-bit computers during their explosion into the mainstream beginning in the 1970s, you were likely aware of and/or influenced by the work of electrical engineer Charles “Chuck” Peddle, who died this week. The general public may not know his name today, but his efforts had a big impact on the cost…
Tag: University of Maine
What’s it Like To Install a Weather Station at the Top of the World?
An anonymous reader shares a report: Earlier this year, researchers installed the world’s highest weather station on the upper reaches of Mount Everest. The roughly 50-kilogram station, taller than a person, is one of five on and near the mountain that are collecting data about jet steam winds and warming conditions in High Mountain Asia, a region jam-packed with the most…
Why 536 Was ‘the Worst Year To Be Alive’
Ask medieval historian Michael McCormick what year was the worst to be alive, and he’s got an answer: “536.” Not 1349, when the Black Death wiped out half of Europe. Not 1918, when the flu killed 50 million to 100 million people, mostly young adults. But 536. From a report: In Europe, “It was the beginning of one of the worst…