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I’ve been hard at it on the website in the last 2 weeks, and I am very, very excited to give you a tour of the results. I would love to get your feedback on the site. First off, how about the color scheme? Took me awhile to settle on it, and customize it to this point! An untested piece of this site, is to see if all of the email subscriptions were transferred correctly. If you are receiving this via email and could let me know you got it, that would be great!
The days of hosting videos on my website are over. I have created a YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiqds-5iivj9DMfUWM1cRkA) which will host all new videos, and I’ll implement them into the blog. If you are on YouTube be sure to follow the channel! I am far from transitioning all video content to YouTube, so please bear with me if content is unavailable. The great thing is that YouTube videos are very easy to share, and are much easier for people to find.
This little blog of mine has grown up a lot. It was once a bit of data planted on the internet, and has transformed into a sequoia tree of information, images, and videos. Seeing as I’m proud of all the content post, I have tailored it as a professional website/portfolio. As such you can view a short image portfolio (http://ianajohnson.com/faa/index.php/portfolio/), and my scientific background (http://ianajohnson.com/professional-experience/).
An absolutely new realm for me and a very exciting part of this upgrade is the opportunity to sell imagery. By establishing an account through Fine Art America, some of the content featured on this site will be available for purchase. My current galleries there contain ~50 images of the >300 I would like to upload. The images exemplify all themes of this blog including wildlife, aurora, and overall natural beauty. Most galleries are updated daily as I take the time to upload the images. At this time all sales will be used to fund the purchase of a Nikon D810 (perhaps the last camera I will ever need to own). The camera comes with capabilities almost second to none, and will further enhance the products I can offer here. The sales side of my website can be found at http://ianajohnson.com/faa/. Let me know if you find the design user friendly!
In line with imagery sales, and in hopes of funding a camera, I am considering creating a calendar of seasonal images throughout Alaska. Although I have not settled on a final product, I would love to hear if you have interest. Mostly it is so I can determine if there is a market – don’t worry – your interest is a 100% non-committal agreement!
The amount of time spent to create this new website has left me with no time to create new posts. So, here is a sneak preview! I was very fortunate to engage in Alaska’s personal-use fishery. I will be writing about my experiences at Chitina River.
Second, my curiosity about the diversity of mushrooms was gratified to have an awesome mycologist connection. I’m going to take you for a walk through a small section of Alaskan fungal diversity!
A short walk through the woods will yield a diversity of mushroom colors and shapes that will boggle the mind. Lots of mushrooms coming your way soon!


text: I may be going through a stripe phase lately. Cause once more I've indulged on my favorite print. Couldn't resist but to go see the latest arrivals at my all time favorite boutique Moods before heading to Spain a few weeks ago. As you can imagine it didn't take long before this dress caught my eye. And as I am constantly encouraging everyone to add stripes to their wardrobes I couldn't come up with a good excuse for not taking it home with me.

industry_corpus2: Others


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Look for revenue when buying Conor Armchair ByGeorge Oliver. More often than not furniture is place on sale. If you want a a number of piece, you save a ton of money by with patience waiting around for the retail price to become lowered. You might ask your favorite Conor Armchair ByGeorge Oliver retailer if the piece will probably be marked for less money. Should you need a new furniture, consider discovering a single with a few totally protected pillows. These soft cushions last longer and can be switched regularly. Preferably, you should obtain a couch with detachable handles to help you easily wash them. Detachable covers can even be substituted quickly if you happen to cannot clear a mark Get Conor Armchair ByGeorge Oliver in the future in. At the conclusion of this year, it is actually popular for retailers to get these pieces off their showroom surface. This can result in some great income and savings.
Its very difficult to imagine a kitchen with out some type of club feces. Actually, bar stools have grown to be very popular that its very hard to not find one in a cooking area. That is for a good reason, although, given that they allow buddies, family, and other guests to merely sign up for you in the kitchen area for a scrumptious meal and some excellent discussion. But buying the right bar stools for the kitchen can be a bit difficult, and this is especially the situation if you do not know how to choose one. In the end, because this is among the most utilized and many essential areas in the home, its only natural that you get the best barstools for this. Fortunately, we already did the study for you, as well as in the sentences below we created a summary of the top 10 bar stools you can purchase for the kitchen or bar. Once you evaluation their list, you will easily have the ability to purchase the correct bar stools for your requirements. Lets check them out!
This lying loveseat requires the 2nd spot simply because its a super affordable, extremely comfortable option that may fit in with most house decorations styles. Its solid wood body is cushioned with coils (for some spring) and high-denseness foam (for some gentle), and padded with brownish fake leather which makes it an extremely-flexible furniture piece. Combine it with the person cave for any comfy spot to view the sport (and dont worry about any spillsits vinyl fabric upholstery tends to make cleanup simple) or perhaps your living room with a couple of ornamental toss pillows for the ideal place to cozy up after a long-day. Real-life clients love this lying loveseat because its comfy, long lasting, easy to assemble 1 rater even mentioned that she was able to put together two units in under forty-five minutes! and delivery in the vendor is easy.
The Bridgewater is a couch style that's primarily informal and certainly comfortable. This style is the beloved of numerous an artist because it can be used to create a informal, pleasant room. Bridgewater couches are flexible, depending on the upholstery you select. Completed in a neutral material, this kind of sofa does not compete with additional factors within the room that may be much more dramatic, for example artwork or other large features. More official fabric will produce a more stately style of couch. A number of characteristics differentiate Bridgewater couches: Usually they've reduced hands and a high back, which plays a role in the casual appear. Most in addition have a tailored dress that conceals the thighs and loose cushions for that chair and back. This particular design was designed to support slipcovers, which also give an informal atmosphere to the couch.
Although this lying loveseat has a heftier price tag, its traditional style, options for customization and automatic reclining system allow it to be well worth the dough. Its handcrafted wood frame is padded with down mix cushions for a much softer feel than you would get from high-denseness foam cushions, and also the furniture will come in an astonishing 72 color and material combinations. The supply of so many options makes it additional simple to set this lying loveseat with various designs, materials, accents and dcor designs. Plus, if you have kids or pets (or both!), you have the option to choose a stronger, spot-proof fabric. 1 client discussed that the Sunbrella fabric material has organized nicely towards her pets and children. This reclining loveseat could have a traditional, old-school appear, nevertheless its built-in technology is anything but. It doesn't only have an automated reclining system (that will give you a complete lie down, together with your foot rest totally parallel to the chair), but it features a USB port for implementing or just getting your apple ipad, apple iphone, Kindle or laptop computer.
The Bridgewater is really a couch style that is mainly informal and definitely comfy. This style may be the darling of many a designer because you can use it to produce a informal, pleasant space. Bridgewater sofas are flexible, depending on the furniture you choose. Completed in a neutral fabric, this style of couch doesnt contend with other elements within the room which may be much more remarkable, such as art work or any other big functions. More official material will yield a more grand type of couch. Numerous characteristics differentiate Bridgewater sofas: Typically they've reduced arms along with a high back, which plays a role in the casual appear. Most also have a tailored dress that hides the legs and loose cushions for that chair and back. This particular style was created to support slipcovers, which also give an informal air towards the sofa.
This lying loveseat requires the 2nd place because its a super affordable, super comfy choice that can fit in with most home decorations designs. Its solid wood frame is cushioned with circles (for many springtime) and-density froth (for some gentle), and upholstered with brownish faux leather-based which makes it an ultra-flexible piece of furniture. Combine it with the person cave for a cozy spot to watch the game (and do not worry about any spillsits vinyl furniture makes cleanup easy) or perhaps your family room with a couple of decorative toss cushions for the ideal place to cozy up after a long day. Actual-existence customers adore this reclining loveseat because its comfy, long lasting, simple to assemble one rater even mentioned that she was able to assemble two units in under 45 minutes! and shipping from the merchant is a breeze.
When the Chesterfield is the elegant gentleman among sofas, the Cabriole may be the grandes dame. Known for its exposed wooden and stylish thighs, similar to the Louis XV time period, the cabriole also offers a unique silhouette. It was additionally a popular form within the function of Stafford Leather Configurable Living Room Set producer Thomas Chippendale. Typically, the back is all one constant piece without cushions and has a stylish bending collection. This particular cabriole version consists of jewels within the tufts for added allure. It's a sofa style that can be as basic or opulent as you wish. Padded with a luxurious material like purple velvet yields a much various design feeling than if it had been padded inside a more moderate, textural natural. The primary aura of elegance derives from its general form and lithe thighs which means it will always lend a processed atmosphere to some room.
You cannot talk about this sofa with out referring to its remarkable style, durability, and luxury. If you ever required an appropriate seat, then transfer quick and obtain yourself Coaster Samuel Collection Lotion Leather Couch. You'll love it. This 3 seater sofa has thoroughly clean lines and excellent cushions. The cushions are affixed to the chair and behind. It is made from leather and that definitely is a certain wager that it is long lasting. Additionally, it functions tufted back and seats that definitely adds to its impressive look. More importantly, it features a spring base that gives it the necessary durability and comfort. Its wooden frame causes it to be very durable. The lengthy and also the lacking it is this fact couch is extraordinary in each and every element. You might or might not agree with this. But the only way you can understand why is to buy and check out it.
The Bridgewater is really a sofa design that is primarily casual and definitely comfy. This design is the beloved of numerous an artist because you can use it to produce a informal, pleasant space. Bridgewater couches are versatile, depending on the furniture you select. Completed in an unbiased material, this kind of couch doesnt compete with additional factors within the room that may be more remarkable, such as artwork or any other large functions. Much more official material will yield a more grand type of couch. Numerous characteristics distinguish Bridgewater couches: Usually they have low hands along with a high back again, which contributes to the casual look. Most in addition have a tailored dress that hides the thighs and free cushions for the seat and back. This particular design was created to accommodate slipcovers, that also give an informal air to the sofa.
This established includes a one left arm couch established, two armless couch sets and one part sofa set. This gives sufficient room to support your friends and relations. The material is 100Percent rayon for enough comfort and durability. The advantage of this sofa established may be the matching and mixing of chairs within the space within the room for a ideal form. And also enables fitted even just in little rooms. It takes just light putting together.Additionally, it functions drive cushions for maximum comfort. You may want to try this established. It works nicely.
This is the next couch on the list. It is extra comfortable and incredibly well suited for small rooms or attic residing. It's padded in rayon material, potential customers inset buttons that provide an elegant diamond-tufted design. It is constructed of long lasting materials and also the thighs are constructed with long lasting wooden to increase its durability. The loveseat comes with an espresso discolored wood thighs and no-marking foot hats. It includes a comfortable foam cushioning and polyester material upholstery which makes it very magnificent. It has a longue spot that provides an extraordinary space for relaxing.
Because of so many options, its easy to understand why you would wish to accomplish some research prior to committing to a settee. The best choice will bring you years of comfort and ease and memories. There are many things to take into consideration prior to making this type of buy. The Ashley Kennard Leather Match Power Reclining Couch in Lotion is a great option for most people. While the light color can be a concern, the overall worth and-high quality materials used to get this to item are well worth it. The design is functional even though its contemporary, its designed to fit into more classic styles as well. The high testimonials also get this to a top choice. A great back-up for those who are worried about an easy color may be the Homelegance Dual Reclining Sofa in Dark brown Glued Leather. This can be a sensible and traditional design, especially attractive to anyone who has kids. Whichever couch you have chosen is a superb investment. Take the time and obtain your order began now!

industry_corpus2: Manufacturing


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Not too long ago someone asked about the relationship between dreams and hypnosis.
Did you know that dreaming and hypnosis have a lot in common? Both tap into what the subconscious is observing and has stored. Both place the conscious mind in a state that allows for access to the unconscious. Neurologically these frequency wave states are called alpha and theta (8-13 Hz and 4-7 Hz respectively. A Hz being a “Hertz,” which is the name for a cycle per second).
Sometimes hypnosis can help you to recall a forgotten dream, or it can be used to go back into a favorite dream so that you can finish it up (don’t you hate it when you’re in a great dream and you wake up in the middle of it?).
Hypnosis can also be used to generate dreams (dream incubation), or be used in the technique called “Active Imagining” when you take a dream theme and imagine it evolving beyond the reality of the actual dream. This is sort of like Gestalt therapy when the client imagines a theme or an outcome, or places themselves in another’s shoes by acting it out.
There are several states of consciousness with the mind crossing in an out of all three–Beta, Alpha, Theta and even a fourth, Delta, though this last one would be very momentary for this is the state of deep sleep. Each state has its own breadth and depth of consciousness and unconsciousness. Thought (what we laughingly call consciousness) is quite broad, but has very little depth, whereas the dream state isn’t very broad in that it is more focused, but is very deep and then there’s hypnosis which has a lot of focused consciousness and a much larger depth of unconsciousness.
To incubate a dream, or to set the stage for what is known as a “Lucid Dream” (one where you are aware that you are dreaming when in the dream, which allows you to orchestrate it), suggestions are placed during a hypnosis session. These sessions can use cultural ideas, values, or behavior patterns (called memes) in the form of suggestions that are “planted” into the unconscious and which can be brought to consciousness by attaching a cue to them (in the form of a word, phrase, sound, or visual stimulus*) that when expressed will activate the meme. These are good for the short-term, so are effective in dream incubation and recall.
The mind is a fascinating thing!

industry_corpus2: Health & Medicine


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After breakfast, visit to Ta Dzong (National Museum) and then walk down the trail to see Rimpung Dzong. Afternoon visit to Drukgyel Dzong, Kyichu Lhakhang and a traditional Bhutanese Farm House. Overnight at the hotel inParo.
Morning, after breakfast proceed to Thimphu, the modern capital town of Bhutan. Enroute stop at Chuzom (confluence) where Paro river joins Thimphu river. Nearby Thimphu, visit to Simtokha Dzong, the oldest fortress of the Kingdom. Afternoon, in Thimphu visit to Kings Memorial Chorten, majestic Tashichjodzong, interesting Handicrafts Emporium and market. Overnight at the hotel in Thimphu.
Tamshing Lhakhang, the treasure house of interesting religious Buddhist painting. The visit to Jakar Dzong, the administrative centre of the valley. Afternoon visit Kurie Lhakhang, one of the most sacred place. Later visit Jambey Lhakahang, one of the oldest monastery dating from introduction of Buddhism in Bhutan. Evening visit to local shops. Overnight at the lodge in Bumthang.

industry_corpus2: Travel & Geography


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Commercial Cleaning Guys is available for all your needs regarding Commercial Cleaning in Medina, TN. Our team of skilled contractors can offer the services you'll need with the most innovative technologies in the industry. Our materials are of the highest quality and we can help you save cash. Call us by dialing 888-666-1969 and we'll be ready to talk about your alternatives, respond to your concerns, and arrange a consultation to commence arranging the project.
You have got a financial budget to comply with, and you prefer to lower your costs. You will still need to have superior results for Commercial Cleaning in Medina, TN, so you can rely on our business to conserve your funds while continuing with providing the highest quality work. We offer the finest quality while helping you save money. Whenever you hire us, you'll get the advantages of our experience and high quality materials to make sure that your project will last even while saving time and cash. As an example, we take care to steer clear of costly complications, get the job done promptly to save time, and make sure that you will get the most effective deals on supplies and work. If you'd like to get lower prices, Commercial Cleaning Guys is the company to choose. Contact 888-666-1969 to communicate with our customer care staff, now.
Concerning Commercial Cleaning in Medina, TN, you've got to be kept informed to make the most effective judgments. We make sure you know what should be expected. You will not confront any sort of unexpected situations when you choose Commercial Cleaning Guys. The first step will be to give us a call by dialing 888-666-1969 to set up your task. We'll explore your concerns and questions when you call us and get you organized with an appointment. We always show up at the scheduled hour, all set to work together with you.
You have plenty of great reasons to turn to Commercial Cleaning Guys to suit your needs concerning Commercial Cleaning in Medina, TN. We are the best choice if you need the best money saving methods, the highest quality materials, and the highest rate of customer satisfaction. We will be here to serve you with the greatest expertise and experience available. Dial 888-666-1969 whenever you need Commercial Cleanings in Medina, and we will work together with you to expertly finish your project.

industry_corpus2: Real Estate & Construction


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Additional Info: THIS IS A VERY WELL KEPPED CARAVAN DUVETS & PILLOWS ARE SUPPLIED & COOKING AND CUTLERY. IF YOU WISH TO HIRE BEDDING THE CHARGE IS £20 PER VAN.
THERE IS A £50 NONE REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT AND BALANCE IS TO BE PAID 10 WEEKS BEFORE ARRIVAL DATE. THE KEYS WILL BE AT THE VAN IN A KEY SAFE TIME IN THE VAN 3pm TIME OUT 9.30 am .
The Holiday Park as a Very good Enterainments Centre with very good Swimming Pools you are 15 mintues walk to Bowleaze Beach with 2 very good Restauants & Fun Fair. You are 2 miles from Weymouth Town Centre. 20 Mintues from Bovingdon Tank Musium & Monkey World.
Additional Info: Very Large Bar Restaurant , 2 indoor 1 outdoor swimming pools & A Lasey River. New Jerrasic Play area Mini Golf and Football Playing Field.


text: We love working with our clients to create stunning faux silk arrangements and faux silk bouquets. We will work with your ideas and photographs, to get to your ideal design, making them a great keepsake. All of our bespoke faux silk arrangements, bouquets and displays will be photographed for approval, prior to dispatch.


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Foreign visitors in Japan, do you know Kotatsu?
It’s something like this ↓ and we put our feet inside where it’s warm to get warm.
If you are visiting Japan in winter, I recommend you to experience Kotatsu as well as Onsen.
This time, I introduce you wonderful hotels near Yudanaka Onsen and Shibu Onsen.
There are many Onsen hotel that has Kotatsu so please ask when you make reservation.
Kotatsu will make you feel truly relaxed.
Of course, only in winter.
It’s only 2 minute walk from Yudanaka station!
There are 4 baths in hotel including large outside bath.
Among them, the bath of cypress using Kiso cypress of 450 years of age can be used privately for free!
If you don’t like public bath, it’s recommended.
The room is traditional Japanese style with Tatami. You can relax in the tasteful room.
▼It’s a large bath with Siga highland’s natural stone displayed.
▼Unique relaxing bath with fragrance of floating apples which are the symbol of Shinshu.
▼This is the half-outside bath of cypress using Hinoki cypress of more than 400 years of age.
It’s a Kaiseki with seasonal tastes of sea, mountain and village.
It’s Japanese family dishes in countryside such as Touban grilled Shinshu beef, fried Koi, fried rock fish, Nozawana, Sashimi and Tempura. Touban grill is a dish in which fish, meat or vegetables are grilled over porcelain board.
▼This is the famous Kotatsu.
It’s a popular hotel in familiar European style and with the view over Northern Alps!
There are also tea lounge and European style room so if you don’t like Japanese style room, it’s recommended! Their local dishes using Shinshu beef and fresh fish are very popular.
The highlight is the view which is said to be the best in Yudanaka area! The view from the big bath and outside bath on the top floor is spectacular!
It’s dishes you can enjoy the taste of mountain, river and village.
There is also dig Kotatsu so it’s comfortable for those who don’t like kneeling.
Rooms are bright Japanese style.
You can spend time while enjoying Japanese atmosphere.
Shibu Onsen area is near Yudanaka Onsen in the upper part of the Kakuma river.
You can enjoy 9 outside baths dispersed in Onsen town for free!
Please enjoy the walk with Yukata and Geta. Onsen are all natural fresh Kakenagashi! You can enjoy all night long.
There is one European style room. If you don’t like Futon, you can reserve this room.
It’s a traditional inside bath made with completely cypress.
Outside bath surrounded by bamboo. Both have fresh natural Onsen Kakenagashi overflowing from the bathtub.
It’s Kaiseki dish using local ingredient whose menu changes by seasons.
You can enjoy the 4 seasons of riverside from the window. It’s a room where you can relax without the notion of time.

industry_corpus2: Hospitality & Catering


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Kaya Laleh Park Hotel of Tabriz was opened in July 2015. This luxuriously equipped hotel has 14 floors and 220 rooms and suites. It boasts amenities including 7 conference halls, restaurants, shopping center and sports complexes. It should be noted that the Kaya Laleh Park Hotel is part of the Turkish Kaya Hotels and Resorts chain, its 10th subsidiary.
The hotel’s restaurant is located on the second floor with a capacity of 250 people (working hours: 7:00 to 10:00, lunch from 12:00 to 14:00, dinner from 19:30 to 22:30). The coffee shop is on the ground floor (working hours: 8:00 to 23:00). Kaya Laleh Park Hotel is equipped with a gym, swimming pool, dry sauna, steam sauna, and jacuzzi.
The rooms enjoy panoramic views of the city and surrounding mountains. The hotel staff are all fluent in Turkish and English. Other services of the hotel include: laundry, 24-hour admission, medical services, shoe wax machine, breakfast in the room, lunch in the room, currency conversion and money transfer services, fax, luggage room, Wi-Fi internet services and so on.
With daily flights between Istanbul and Tabriz being available by Turkish Airlines, foreign tourists do not need to come to Tehran for flying to or from Turkey. Kaya Laleh Park Hotel is only 25 minutes away from Tabriz International Airport.


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The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia entered an order Aug. 20 granting a motion by several organizations to intervene in a pending country-of-origin-labeling (COOL) lawsuit. The lawsuit filed July 8 seeks to block implementation of a U.S. Department of Agriculture's mandatory meat labeling rule.
The motion was granted to the United States Cattlemen's Association, National Farmers Union, the American Sheep Industry Association and Consumer Federation of America.
In related COOL news, Canada this week asked the World Trade Organization (WTO) to take another look at the U.S. rules for its COOL, seeking to defend its livestock farmers who have lost sales to U.S. packers.
Canada is requesting that the WTO form a compliance panel to review COOL rules, Canadian Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and International Trade Minister Ed Fast said on Monday.
The WTO ruled last year that the U.S. labeling rules were not in compliance with WTO obligations and ordered changes by May 23. The United States changed its labeling program, but Canada and Mexico have said the changes made the situation worse.

industry_corpus2: Agriculture & Fisheries


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I really should be in bed right now.
Every time I'm on my way to launch rockets (only casually with friends, until tomorrow), I sing a little song that popped into my head one day.
I haven't fully fleshed out the lyrics.
I'm not sure where the melody comes from, but I think it might be an old Hank Williams tune.
Anyway, tonight I've been prepping for tomorrow's first club launch in Amesbury, Massachusetts, with CMASS. Launch prep always takes me longer than I think it will. I'll talk about launch prep in another post.
What I will say is that I've taken Janus I, my first scratch design, out of retirement. I had to make some modifications to it, but I think it's flight-worthy. It's a simple rocket, but a two-stager, and it flew beautifully - one time. I figured it would be a shame not to fly it again.
I'll talk about the repair briefly in a future post. It wasn't a major operation, but I had to change a few things.
Starting probably next week, I'll be doing a bit of a re-boot of The Rocket N00b blog. I've strayed a bit from my intentions and done too many posts where I talk about what I've purchased, what I'm building, or my feelings. There hasn't been enough that a n00b to rocketry can actually learn from. Some of these instructional posts take a lot of time and thought, but I don't just want to write a personal journal with some rocket pics, here, I actually want some rocket n00bs to get some use from this blog.
So, after tomorrow, I'll probably have some cool pictures, video, and stories for you, including some high power stuff. Apparently, they're launching the first high power two-stager CMASS has ever been able to get sanctioned (the airspace in New England is a little busy, I guess).
After that, it's back to basics: rocketry, for beginners, from a beginner's perspective. The I'm building this and look what I got in the mail posts will creep in occasionally, but I want to make sure this blog has some value to people who are just getting into the craft, science and discipline of building and flying rockets.
Also, some cool pictures that hopefully the more advanced rocketeers will like.
I'm only taking five rockets to the launch tomorrow - but one is the Quest Quadrunner - a four motor cluster I've never launched. I hope it does not disappoint.
I've just realized my little song sounds a little like the chorus to In the Jailhouse Now. Jimmie Rodgers. A bit older than Hank Williams. But a classic.
I'm nervous about this weekend's upcoming CMASS rocket launch in Amesbury, MA.
At first, I was nervous about joining the club. What if I have nobody to talk to at launches? What if they don't like me?
That's just the kind of social anxiety you develop when you move to a new city and it's hard to meet people. But rocketeers have the reputation of being very friendly folk - if you like rockets, they like you. And I've been welcomed by some of the club members, chatted with a few of them online, so even though I haven't met any of them in person, I feel good about meeting some fellow rocketeers. Joining a club is a great way to expand your rocketry experience and meet new people.
No, what has me nervous now is simply that I haven't launched in a long time, and I am hoping to launch a few rockets I've built but never flown.
The Quest Quadrunner was finished last December.
This beautiful Quest Aerospace kit is about 3 feet tall, just under 2 inches in diameter, and flies on a cluster of four standard B or C motors. And I put a lot of work into this rocket - and had some moments where I thought my work would be ruined. But I really like the way it came out.
The Quest Big Dog was also finished last spring.
This rocket is the first I've completed with a 29mm motor mount, big enough for an F or G motor (or a small H, but that would probably be ill-advised with this rocket, and would require high power certification in any case). It's another beauty, and like the Quadrunner, has never flown.
Then there's the Estes Cosmic Explorer with an E motor mount.
I have a standard Cosmic Explorer, and I have in fact built one with an E mount before. It flew beautifully, and then disappeared in fast-moving high altitude winds. But this second attempt at an E Cosmic Explorer is perhaps the best work I've ever done on a rocket, and I have not launched it yet, so I really want to see how it performs.
The Quest Magnum Sport Loader has flown before - one time.
This is yet another beautiful Quest rocket capable of carrying a payload - the chamber is in fact large enough to loft two eggs at once. It's a two-motor cluster which has a dramatic flight.
I love these rockets. But, apart from the Sport Loader, they are much larger rockets than I've flown before. It's part of the reason I hesitated attempting to launch several times in Bloomington.
They're by far not the largest rockets you can build and launch. Amesbury is a high power field, so there will be much larger, more complicated, and higher-flying rockets than these. But they're the largest I've attempted so far, and I'm nervous about them.
What if the parachute does not eject? What if it gets tangled and doesn't open? What if my clusters don't ignite simultaneously? What if they have a hard landing and break on the first flight?
These are the things which make me nervous. It's because I haven't flown in a while, and because I'm new at this whole mid power thing. And it's because these rockets have been waiting on the shelf so long, I'm worried they won't make it back, because I've grown attached to them.
But these rockets are made to fly. I'm confident I built them well. I built them with care. I just need to get out there and do it.
Failure is part of the learning process. Sometimes your rockets will crash. Sometimes you'll lose them. But if you're not willing to risk a loss, you'll miss out on the excitement of a successful flight.
Someone on one of the Facebook model rocketry forums recently posted a picture of his first rocket - the Estes Crossfire ISX - a great, high-flying little rocket.
And he confessed that he was nervous about launching it. I could understand - he'd done a beautiful job building it, and now it was time to strap a motor in it an launch it into the sky??
But that is why we do this. We don't take unnecessary risks - sometimes you put a less powerful motor in than at other times. Sometimes you have to scrub a launch. But we launch these rockets, because that's what this is all about.
But, get out there, rocket n00bs. Build those rockets - then go out and fly them.
I have been in the market for a table for my Rocket Room. I was thinking of getting a folding table - a six-foot long, plastic top folding table, the sturdy kind you find at your finer non-profit board meetings and family reunions. Something perfectly flat. My current work surface wasn't cutting it.
A metal shelving unit with a board on top was my previous work surface these last few months.
The shelves are great, but the top is a little high, a little small, and the board isn't flat.
I found a nice folding table on Amazon which I could get delivered free for about $59.
Then, the other night, the city of Boston presented me a gift: A solid, sturdy, six-foot long oak table, discarded, left by the curb right outside my house.
The top alone may have weighed nearly 100 pounds, and it wasn't fun getting it upstairs, but you can't beat free, and it's perfect for rocket-building.
There's just one problem with this table.
Right now, I have about 5 or 6 rocket projects on it, and I haven't made much progress at all on any of them. I've been working very slowly.
Last Saturday, I hung out in the rocket room almost all day, and only did one thing: sanded some wood filler off a balsa nose cone.
Thankfully, I am four days away from my first club rocket launch, in Amesbury, MA, with CMASS.
I spend a lot more time building than I do launching. And I love building rockets. But there has to be a goal. Rockets are meant to fly. I noticed in the past that if I hadn't launched in a while, I tended to slow down my building.
Further complications to living here is that I can only go so far in a build before I encounter a major challenge - painting.
At the old homestead, I had a large grassy area surrounded by trees. As long as it wasn't too breezy, it was a perfect painting area.
I'm considering several options here: joining a maker space, or maybe building an indoor painting booth. Perhaps I'll make friends with someone at the club who happens to work in an auto body painting shop, and we could paint rockets on the weekend.
So, there are some challenges to being a rocketeer in a big city, as opposed to a suburban area, one of them being that I can't just go outside and launch whenever I feel the need. I'm considering a future post on this subject - Challenges for the Big City Rocketeer - but I need to find some solutions for it first!
My final challenge lately is this blog. It's been too filled with posts exactly like this one: what I'm doing, what I'm not doing, blah blah... This is exactly what I want this blog not to be - a personal catalog of rockets I'm building or not building. This is meant to be a blog for rocket n00bs to get some tips and information, and for more experienced rocketeers to have another place to read about rockets, even if it's stuff they probably already know, and to look at cool rocket pictures.
This launch should do the trick. I have a feeling my mind is going to be blown this weekend, with higher flights and larger rockets than I've ever seen in person before. In the past, whenever I've come back from a launch, I'm inspired and ready to build!
Finish building a rocket, already!
Write some more how-to posts for n00bs on this blog.
I did get a little bit of inspriation in the mail yesterday. One perk of membership in the National Association of Rocketry is a subscription to Sport Rocketry magazine - the official NAR magazine. I haven't had a magazine subscription in ages, and I was excited to finally see my first issue in the mailbox.
Launch. Then build. And write something of substance for all my fellow rocket n00bs.
Long ago, Estes Industries published a newsletter called Model Rocket News. This was long before I got into the hobby.
This kept model rocketeers (mostly children in those days, though a lot of the information was very sophisticated, involving advanced mathematics and physics) up to date on the latest developments in rocketry, presented ideas for science fair projects, and allowed young rocketeers to present tips, feedback and ideas to both Estes and other rocket kids around the country.
You can find issues in PDF form around the Internet (though I think a complete collection still eludes us).
I recently downloaded as many of these as I can find. I enjoy reading them, because even though they are from the early days of model rocketry, and even though some of the information is no longer relevant (parts or motors which no longer exist), there are still good ideas in the Model Rocket News, and still tidbits to learn from. And much of the basic rocketry information continues to be true. And I appreciate them as historical documents.
And they have rocket plans!
Some of these were submitted by Model Rocket News readers - some of the kids who were designing rockets in those days had some pretty interesting designs, and you can still make them today.
Some of the designs were free rocket plans from Estes.
Tonight, I was reading Volume 3, Number 2, from April/May 1963, and I saw something surprising: A free plan for a rocket I'm very familiar with: Estes Industries Rocket Plan No. 13: Big Bertha.
It seems that before it was a classic Estes kit, the Big Bertha was a classic Estes free design. This might not be a surprise to longtime rocketeers, but to a n00b like me, it was a cool discovery.
It looks much like it does today, with a few minor differences.
The nose cone was made of balsa (which you can still find at Jonrocket.com or Balsa Machining Service or a number of online rocket parts vendors around the Internet), and motor mounts were made a little differently then. Also, instead of a motor hook, the original Bertha design used a friction fit, requiring you to wrap a bit of masking tape around the motor before inserting it into the rocket for a snug, secure fit.
Also, at least according to the drawing, the nose cone was slightly pointy.
Other than that, this is the Bertha we still know today.
You can find the full edition of Volume 3, Number 2 Model Rocket News here, including a full-sized plan which you can print out and build. You'll also get a glimpse into the early days of Estes Industries operations, complete with mail-order procedures.
Igniter Tip - Q2G2's Keep Falling Out?
If you look at the comment section below, you'll see a few rocketeers have corrected my big dumb mistake here. Turns out, I was mis-reading the instructions for the Q2G2 igniter, and inserting it all wrong in the first place.
My initial reaction was to delete this post. But I've decided to leave it up for two reasons.
1 - It's a good example of a n00b mistake - not reading the directions.
2 - It's full of pretty pictures.
For the correct method of installing Q2G2 igniters, see this post by Chris Michielssen.
My apologies for not doing my homework!
In May, I went to launch some rockets with Chad. I took along several I'd built but never flown before. It was breezy, and I lost a few. Against my better judgment, I put the Quest Quadrunner on the launch pad.
This beauty of a rocket from Quest Aerospace is a four-motor cluster capable of pretty high altitudes for a model rocket. It took me a long time and some heartache to build, but in the end it turned out really beautiful.
I installed four standard EC6-7 motors in the rocket. But clusters are tricky. The trick is getting all the motors to ignite at once. Estes motors (or "engines") all come with igniters, but they're not as reliable as you want for a cluster rocket.
There are a couple problems that prevent Estes igniters from being ideal for clusters. One is their size - they're pretty small and don't have much reach. But the main problem is that they require too much current.
Getting one Estes igniter to fire is one thing, but when you have the current from your launch controller split between two or more igniters, the total current reaching each igniter tip is less and less. What can then happen is that sometimes one motor might fire, and take the rocket with it, ripping out the other igniters before the other motors light.
Quest Aerospace has a much better igniter for this job. It's called the Q2G2 igniter.
These were off the market for a while, but they're back. The supply still can't quite meet the demand, but they are on the market.
Two things make this igniter much better for cluster rockets.
The first, is that the igniter has a black pyrogen on the tip.
This is a flammable substance. When the igniter tip heats up, the pyrogen creates a small flash or flame, aiding in the motor's ignition.
Estes igniters used to have a pyrogen, but they stopped making them like that in the last year. I still have a few, but I save them for special occasions.
But what makes the Q2G2 an even better igniter for cluster ignition is that they are low current igniters. That means it takes much less electric current to make the tips hot enough to ignite the rocket motors. You can send the same amount of current through several Q2G2 igniters as through one Estes igniter, and they will all fire pretty much simultaneously.
I put the Quadrunner on the pad, inserted the safety key into my launch controller, counted nervously down from 5, pressed the ignition button... And there was this loud puffing sound signifying ignition.
And then the rocket just sat there. Fortunately! I'm sure I would have lost it otherwise!
As you can see in the above photos, the Q2G2 comes packed in a little red straw. This is actually what keeps the igniter installed in the motor before ignition. This is a different method than the plastic plug method seen in the Estes igniter photos.
I really like the straw method. It allows you to insert the igniter until you can really feel that it's in contact with the propellant.
I looked at the rocket. The Q2G2 igniters - all of them - had slipped downward a little inside their straws. The straws were blackened, and the puff of the pyrogen had actually ejected them from the nozzles of the rocket motors without igniting any of the propellant.
OK, so that saved me losing a beautiful rocket on its first flight.
On other occasions, I've used multiple Q2G2 igniters successfully, but only after fiddling around with them, then placing the rocket gingerly on the pad, hoping nothing would disturb the igniters before I pressed the launch button. Then I'd have to rush to launch the rocket before any of them fell out.
Rushing is not a good idea with rockets.
I've got a big launch coming up in a large field, and I'd love to see the Quadrunner finally take flight, and have a reliable ignition system securely in place.
If you've had trouble keeping your Q2G2 igniters staying in place, here's a way to prevent them falling out.
The problem isn't the straw. It fits into the nozzle of the rocket motor just fine. The problem is that the igniter itself can pass too easily through the straw, slipping out before you press the launch button.
Cut a very small bit of masking tape.
Wrap the masking tape around the twisted part of the Q2G2 igniter. You don't want to cover the pyrogen head, obviously, and you want to leave the free ends of the igniter free to bend them in whatever direction you need to to hook the leads up to the launch controller.
You want just enough masking tape around the twisted part of the igniter so that it can still pass all the way through the straw and come into contact with the propellant, but that it will have enough of a friction fit that it won't fall out.
Now the igniter is securely installed. Don't worry - it isn't "stuck." When the motor ignites, it will eject the straw and the igniter. But it will ensure you get reliable ignition on as many motors you have in your cluster rocket!
Note: These pictures are for illustration only. You should not install the igniters in your rocket motors until you are on the flying field, preparing for launch!
Edit: As Rich Holmes correctly points out, it's fine to install an igniter at home. It won't fire unless the launch controller is hooked up to it. What I should have said is that you should install the motor in the rocket first, then install the igniter.
Myself, I wait to install igniters until I'm at the pad. I transport my rockets in a big box full of newspaper, and I figure some of the igniters will fall out if I install them at home.
I haven't launched a rocket in months. Last time it was with the Ivy Tech Rocket Camp I taught in June. The rockets were all really small, I was the only adult, and because of where we launched, I had to make sure the rockets didn't go much above 300 feet.
This weekend, I sent off the a check for dues plus a season launch pass to what will be my first rocketry club - CMASS, the Central Massachusetts Spacemodeling Society, a NAR section.
I need to get a hat like this.
I'll be attending my first ever club launch in just under two weeks, up in Amesbury, MA.
For the last year, I've been pursuing this hobby mostly in a vacuum. My friends would occasionally go launch with me. Chad himself likes rockets, and built a few, but is far too busy a guy to really throw himself into rocketry like I did. So, it's just been me, a few books, some websites, and a huge online community to turn to for help. This will be my first time meeting other rocketeers in the flesh. I'm terribly excited. This will be my chance to hang out with other rocket obsessives, and meet people I can learn from - back in Bloomington, I was the local rocket "expert." But I still have a ton to learn, and this... This is gonna be awesome.
This post was going to be about how nervous I was to go out to the launch and meet people, as I'll probably be going alone - my girlfriend wants to go, but she probably has a thing she has to do. I'm a pretty outgoing guy, but sometimes in new situations where I don't know anybody, I get a little shy.
But I just got a message from Howard, one of the officers of CMASS - three messages, actually - and not only has my membership been approved, but he told me there are probably several members of the section who either live near or work in Boston, and he kindly invited me to tomorrow night's meeting in Gloucester.
Gloucester is a little far, but I'll go as long as I can get my local parking pass worked out (driving in Boston... Not as bad as parking in Boston). In any case, rocketeers are a friendly bunch, and even if I don't get to meet anybody before I show up in Amesbury, I know it's going to be great!
Hearing such a welcoming message was really great. Rocketry is a real passion for me (you might be able to tell, if you read this blog), and I need it. CMASS is my best option to continue and to grow in this pursuit, so it's really good to feel welcomed.
The upcoming launch is a big one. The Amesbury field is CMASS' high power range, meaning that I'll see some high power rockets in person for the first time. But that's not what makes this particular launch a big deal. Actually, now that I read that last sentence, it totally is a big deal for me... It's a huge deal for me! But for the club in general, it's a special event.
It's the Jim Flis Anniversary Launch. Jim Flis is the owner and founder of FlisKits, a model rocket company. Estes is the 600 pound gorilla of the model rocketry world, and Quest has some great kits. But if you're looking for something a little different, FlisKits is one of the independent companies you should check out.
either very large, or attached at unusual angles. Or insanely wicked futuristic models. Check out this newer kit - the Tesla.
I have no idea the kind of mad modeling skills it would take to build this rocket! Maybe I'll see one of these in person.
Here are a few other interesting FlisKits rockets (the above and following six images are copyright FlisKits, Inc.).
is also a two-stage rocket.
Rose-a-Roc - a helicopter recovery rocket.
thing rotates slowly to the ground.
Nantucket Sound. Yes. It's a flying lighthouse.
This is a rocket company with a sense of humor. And adventure.
FlisKits has been in business for 13 years, and Jim Flis apparently goes to CMASS launches quite regularly, so they're throwing him a rocket party.
I've got a huge rocket wish list. I forget to check it now and then. Now that I'm going to the Jim Flis Anniversary Launch, I really wish I'd checked it earlier.
One rocket that's been on my wish list for some time is the FlisKits Deuce's Wild.
Very early on, I developed a fascination for cluster rockets - rockets which have multiple motors burning side-by-side. Though I haven't had the chance to launch very many of them (mostly because of wind conditions and the size of the field from which I was launching), I find them spectacular, and it may be my favorite kind of model rocket.
The first cluster I built and successfully launched was the Quest Magnum Sport Loader. You can see how much more smoke and flame comes out the back of a cluster - so awesome to watch!
As you can see from the above image, the Deuce's Wild is a two-motor cluster rocket. But it's special feature is that it has canted motor tubes. The thrust comes at an angle. Both motors fire slightly outward, producing a fatter smoke trail. It has the added advantage that the motors are pointed roughly through the rocket's center of gravity. That's a good feature.
One of the tough parts about launching clustered rockets is getting all of the motors to actually ignite simultaneously. Sometimes you'll have the rocket leave the pad with one or more motors unignited. That can lead to a crooked, uneven flight (and, of course, less altitude). With the canted motor mount, even if one of the two motors does not ignite, the Deuce's Wild will still tend to fly more or less straight.
And it's an affordable rocket. I definitely should have bought one of these before, so I'd have a Flis rocket to launch in a couple of weeks. But maybe it will be even better to buy it directly from the guy himself at the field.
I have three rockets I've built but never launched - the Estes Cosmic Explorer with an E motor mount, the Quest Big Dog, and the Quest Quadrunner - a 4 motor cluster rocket. Some of those require a special launch pad with a miniature launch rail. I have built the pad, but until I have met some people in the club, I'm not going to show up with a bunch of my own stuff and say "OK, guys, where do I set up?" That seems presumptuous.
The pad is well-constructed, and I'm sure I'll eventually be able to get the Big Dog and Cosmic Explorer in the air, but for now, I need to see how the club operates. Some clubs have a range setup called "misfire alley," where rocketeers bring their own launch pads and controllers, and everyone sets up their own stuff. But that's often, if I understand it correctly, for newer clubs who don't have a lot of their own equipment. From what I've read, CMASS is pretty well-established.
I'll probably just take a few smaller rockets with me the first time, and see what I can launch.
I cannot wait - it's been too long!
Check out Jim Flis' personal website: jflis.com Thanks to Jim for allowing me to repost images from FlisKits.
The Nike Smoke rocket was a NASA sounding rocket used during the 1960's.
A sounding rocket is one which carries instruments to conduct experiments and take measurements while in suborbital flight. It may be used for meteorological research, radiation levels in the upper atmosphere, microgravity (yes, I'm roughly paraphrasing Wikipedia here), or any number of other experimental applications.
Here's a short NASA film on the subject, featuring the Nike Smoke rocket.
Because of its historical importance, as well as its iconic look but relatively simple design, it has become a favorite scale model for hobby rocketeers, and there have been several kits on the market throughout the years, as well as many scratch built versions.
of the rocket, built for LDRS34 - a high power rocketry event held this July in Potter, NY.
The Nike Smoke, like many sounding rockets, also used a solid propellant, as opposed to the liquid fuel propellants used in space vehicles, like the Saturn V rocket. Since we use only solid propellant (or sometimes hybrid fuels - but that's a more advanced topic for another time), that means that a flying replica of a Nike Smoke rocket is, in at least some ways, not too different from the real thing.
The Estes Pro Series II Nike Smoke is a great kit.
With a diameter of three inches, the rocket stands about three feet tall. The distinctive, long conical nose cone is nearly the length of the airframe itself, making this the largest nose cone that I have yet in my collection.
The rocket is pretty simple to build. But, as with Ventris, I still have some decisions to make.
In this case, the middle centering ring is special.
Parts for the Nike Smoke motor mount. The ring with the notches goes in the center.
As with all of the PSII builder kits and many other mid and high power rockets, the Estes Nike Smoke has through-the-wall fin construction, meaning the fins extend via a tab through a slot in the airframe, and attach to the motor mount. This makes the attachment much stronger than merely gluing fins on the outside, as one does with a smaller model rocket.
The ring in the center has notches. As you'll see below, this helps you get the fins perfectly aligned. The Nike Smoke shares this design element with the Pro Series II upscale version of the classic Skill Level 1 kit Der Red Max - Der Mega Red Max.
Speaking of the fins, on this kit, they're made of plastic, and come in two parts.
They have a radial taper, meaning they get thinner by the same proportions they get narrower, and they are beveled at the edges. This makes them look cool and helps them slip through the atmosphere more easily.
Because they're in two parts, they must be glued together.
Which leads me to the first decision I have to make: what to use to adhere the two parts together.
The kit instructions say to use CA - cyanoacrylate, or super glue. But they don't specify what viscosity of CA to use. The thin stuff is way too thin. So, do I use medium or thick CA - or something else? Epoxy is a possibility. CA might be too brittle. I might choose to go with epoxy, which is much stronger over time. Also, when dry fitting the fins together, you find that the edges don't come quite together. There's a bit of a gap, unless you squeeze. When you stop squeezing, the gap comes back.
So the adhesive is important. I need to choose something which will hold the fins together, won't break down, and will keep the edges from coming apart. That might prove tricky. CA will bond immediately, but might be brittle, and also might superglue my fingers to the fins. Epoxy might be stronger, but won't bond immediately, so I'll have to keep the fins squeezed together until the epoxy cures - or, at least, partly cures. And the epoxy could make a mess I won't be able to clean off if both my hands are occupied by squeezing the fins together.
Like Indiana Jones in The Last Crusade, I must choose - but I must choose wisely.
I'm writing this in the present tense - "I need to choose..." etc., but in fact, I've already done this part. You'll see what I opted for.
The notched centering ring is great for getting the fins on perfectly straight. Once you get the motor mount into the rocket, the notches in the ring correspond to the notches you can see at the base of the fins.
Spoiler alert! You can see here I've already started assembling the motor mount.
The fin locks into place - perfectly aligned.
Another choice - this time an easy one - is what to use to attach the fins to the motor mount.
The kit again suggests CA, but I don't like this idea. CA can get brittle over time, and it's just not a good adhesive when you need a strong bond that might take some stress. I'll use epoxy for this.
Also, the kit suggests using wood glue for the fin fillets - which seems bizarre to me. Wood glue makes fine fillets on a small model rocket, but it shrinks, and isn't great if you want a nice, rounded fillet. Also, I feel pretty sure that wood glue would have a hard time bonding too well to the plastic. I'll use epoxy here as well.
Finally, I have to choose how I'm going to launch the rocket. As with Ventris, the Nike Smoke comes with two launch lugs.
Notice how these lugs are not simply cardboard tubes. The actual lug is raised slightly. That's because the lip of the nose cone is slightly wider than the airframe.
As with Ventris, replacing the lugs with rail buttons is something to consider, but if I do that, I'll need to make a short standoff for them.
Whether I go with launch lugs or rail buttons - and which size rail buttons - again depends on what kind of launch equipment will be available at my local club, and/or whether I can bring my own launch pad if necessary.
Luckily, I'll be able to attend a club meeting next week! CMASS - the Central Massachusetts Spacemodeling Society - has just begun holding biweekly meetings in Cambridge, just across the Charles River from my little home. Which means that, for the first time since I started this venture into rocketry, I'll be able to meet other actual human beings who are into this hobby! And I'll get the chance to ask some questions which will help me make these important build decisions.
The nice thing about these lugs, as you can see from the picture above, is that they're conformal. They are slightly curved on the bottom so that the entire underside of the lug can attach to the airframe of the rocket without leaving any gaps. Not only does this look better, but it assures a better bond, and reduces the chances of a lug pulling or snapping off at launch.
I'm excited to get this build underway!
Thanks to Neil for permission to use his image!
My schedule is all over the place. Sometimes I work late at night; sometimes early, early in the morning. All this back and forth has left me with less time than I'd like for rocket building or blogging. I get maybe two good building days a week, and I work slowly.
Fortunately, I have OpenRocket - free rocket design and simulation software.
As any gamer or couch potato can tell you, even if you're really tired, you can still spend hours fiddling around on your computer.
So, when I don't have the time or energy to build rockets or write about them, I play around with different designs. It's a way of staying an active rocketeer when I'm too busy to be actually building.
Once you know the basic principles of stability and rocket construction, it isn't that hard to design a basic rocket - or at least to get one started. You might need to make revisions, weigh components and change a few things, but you can come up with some cool basic designs in short order. I've even built and flown rockets that took me 20 minutes to conceive, and I only had to make minimal revisions.
Here are some designs I've been working on.
I started this the other night. I wanted something simple to replace my lost Estes Hi Flier - a small, lightweight, high-flying rocket. It performs so well because it's a minimum diameter rocket - meaning it is only as big around as it needs to be to hold the motor. It has no motor mount - the body tube is the motor mount!
Though I am trying to build bigger and bigger rockets (and currently building two of my Estes Pro Series II rockets), I just had the urge to design this little thing.
OpenRocket has a scale function, so you can take a rocket of a particular size and scale everything up or down by the same amount. So while Circe A (pictured above) will only take a C sized motor, Circe B looks exactly the same, but is larger and will take a D or C motor. When you scale things up in OpenRocket, sometimes you have to adjust components, because, for example, the mass of the nose cone might actually end up being much greater than the part you actually have on hand. Other than that, it's pretty simple.
I went up to a BT60 sized rocket with the Circe series before going to bed. BT60 is a 1.637 inch diameter tube, and is the same size as the Big Bertha. The cool thing about the BT60 is that it's just the right size to fit a cluster of 3 standard motors.
to the size of nose cones I have on hand, which are a of slightly different ratio than the BT20 nose cones I have.
If you're an advanced rocketeer and are good at making stuff from scratch, you can make your own parts. All of them - even the body tubes. And, of course, nose cones.
I'm not to that level yet. I don't have access to a wood lathe, and I haven't picked up the skill of designing and making a custom-shaped nose cone. Fortunately, there are a lot of good parts on the market.
So what I do, for now, is look at the parts that are available - either in my parts box, or online, and design around that.
Here's a lovely balsa wood nose cone I picked up from JonRocket months ago.
This shape is a spherically blunted tangent ogive, and the nose cone fits a BT70 tube, which is about 2.2 inches in diameter. This is getting toward the higher end of body tube size you'll find for low power model rockets, and into the mid power range. If you're new to model rockets, this thing will look huge to you - there are not many BT70 kits out there!
I have realized I need to get more of these, or get some other BT70 nose cones, because over the months, I've designed a number of rockets around this very nose cone.
One of the first was called Horus.
People give rockets all kinds of zany names. A quick look at an Estes catalog gives you some idea - Sizzler, Prospector, HiJinks, etc. A rocket can have any kind of name. But I guess I'm more of a classical kind of guy. I like to name my rockets after Greek, Roman, or sometimes Egyptian gods or mythological characters, or after celestial bodies. Horus is the falcon-headed Egyptian god of the sun.
Seemed like an appropriate name for a rocket.
I wanted to design my own rocket which looked vaguely like the Sirius Rocketry Eradicator - a beautiful rocket which has been on my wish list since I first saw it - but would be simpler to design and construct for a n00b.
No offense, Sirius Rocketry - you guys are awesome!
Not too bad, I thought. But in order to get a minimum of 1 caliber stability, I needed to have 5 fins, if they were to be swept forward. I was able to decrease the number of fins to four by adding fin vanes.
This increases the surface area of the fins, moving the center of pressure aftward, without making the fin span inordinately wide.
The Eradicator has a lot of great detail - it looks like a real launch vehicle. That level of design was a bit advanced for me. That's not to say you can't add additional detail to the build, but it's tricky to add it to the OpenRocket design.
This is a simple recent design, but one I like and am building now. It's another BT70 design with a 24mm motor mount. Like the Circe rocket, it's got swept back fins, but as you'll notice, the tips are not parallel to the rocket.
I've seen a few designs like this recently, and I like the look of it. Actually, a lot of classic kits have fins like this, but I've only just recently thought of changing the shape of the fins in OpenRocket.
You can select a few basic fin shapes in OpenRocket. I almost always opt for "trapezoidal," and then simply change the dimensions of the root chord, tip chord (chord is the distance from the leading edge to the trailing edge) and height (the distance from the airframe to the tip of the fin).
Imperius, formerly known as the "Donor's Rocket"
See how the tips of the fins are parallel to the rocket body tube? Nothing wrong with that, of course.
But part of what gives a rocket its character is the shape of the fins. I went with a few designs that had the fins swept forward, like the Horus series above, and the Copperhead (formerly known as "Keith's Rocket").
And I like these designs. But you learn by playing with the tools you have, so I decided to try a different shape. Still simple enough to cut with a ruler and hobby knife, but a little different from what I'd made before.
FMLV stands for First Massachusetts Launch Vehicle, because it's the first scratch design rocket I'm building here in Boston. I'm using a 24mm Estes "quick release" screw-on motor retainer so that I can use my newly-acquired AeroTech 24mm reloadable casing, or an Estes black powder D or E motor.
That gives me a lot of motor options.
It will also be the first rocket I build from scratch which will have through the wall or TTW fin construction. This means that the fins have tabs at the base which will go through slots in the airframe and attach directly to the motor tube. You fins this as pretty standard in mid power and high power kits, and even some Estes low power kits, like the Cosmic Explorer.
Attaching fins to the Cosmic Explorer. In this kit, the slots are already cut for you.
Of course, in a kit, the slots are cut for you. For the FMLV, I'll have to cut my own fin slots for the first time.
Also included in my parts box is a BT80 sized parabolic nose cone.
You may have noticed that this nose cone has a similar profile to the Big Bertha nose cone, but while the Bertha uses a BT60 body tube - 1.637 inches in diameter, the BT80 is 2.6 inches in diameter. For a beginning model rocketeer, that's really big!
Regular readers of the blog may also recognize this nose cone as part of the ICU2 camera payload bay from Make: Rockets: Down-to-Earth Rocket Science by Mike Westerfield, which I used in the design of the Janus II two-stage rocket.
Since I had another one, I played around a little with a few designs.
A really large rocket, called Titus, after my girlfriend's nephew.
Meh... This kid needs to have a cooler looking rocket named after him.
Also played around with a large two-stage rocket.
Could be fun, especially with the two large 24mm diameter motors. But still a little inelegant. It was probably late at night when I did this one.
I might make a larger, not-quite-proportional version of the Copperhead rocket pictured above.
Finally, a design I nearly forgot about. This must have been months ago.
I had this idea when building both Sounder I, a tiny minimum diameter rocket I lost on its first flight, and the Ceres B booster, again from Mike Westerfield's book.
I stacked one on top of the other with a balsa transition I had in the parts box.
This looks like a two-stage sounding rocket, but it's really just one stage. Not that you couldn't do a two-stager here, but it would require some electronics I haven't worked with just yet.
I haven't discussed staging on the blog yet, but in brief, most model rockets with multiple stages rely on the first motor igniting the second. The first motor has no delay grain or ejection charge, or even clay cap.
The propellant is exposed at the forward end of the motor, so when it burns up, hot particles shoot forward into the nozzle of the second motor, igniting the second stage propellant.
Many multi-stage rockets have the motors touching each other. This is known as contact staging. There can be a gap between them, in what is known as gap staging, but the gap can only be so wide - 12 inches is probably the maximum.
This rocket is longer than that, and the two parts are separated by a solid balsa transition, so there would be no way for the hot propellant particles to reach the top portion. You can make hollow paper transitions, but I'm not very good at that yet, and balsa transitions of all sizes are available online.
Again, for a beginning designer, working around available components is the easiest way to get started.
High power rocketeers do multi-stage rockets using altimeters, or sometimes timers, to electronically ignite upper stages in the air. This is known as an air start.
Still, even as a one-stager, I like it.

industry_corpus2: Aerospace


text:
Registration for the 2017/2018 Jack Daniel’s National BBQ Championship is now open. You can register up to two weeks prior to each event. Teams can have 1, 2, 3 or a maximum of 4 people, please make sure to read the Championship Rules before you enter.
and purchase tickets for the Championship.
Tickets for all events are being sold via iTicket.


text:
It’s that time of the year again. Christmas is coming up — and a great time to give back! Lucky for us, the weather has been in our favor this year.
Our Central Utah HOG group is getting together once again to take toy donations to the children at the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center and we would love your help!
We have a trailer for donations located on the sales floor here at Timpanogos Harley-Davidson. Please bring any new, unwrapped donations to us here so we can lighten up their holiday.
If you would like to join us on the ride to the hospital, we will be meeting here at Timpanogos Harley on December 3rd, 2016 at 8am where there will be a free breakfast provided. Ride will leave at 11am! Make sure you’re all gased and bundled up.


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There’s a good racing game in Need for Speed: Payback, but chances are you’ll have a tough time finding it.
A dramatic new trailer that introduces us to the latest Need for Speed’s open-world Las Vegas-esque setting.
As promised, EA and Ghost Games have revealed the next big racing game in the long-running Need for Speed franchise.

industry_corpus2: Gaming


text:
The head of Yakutia Region Egor Borisov held a meeting with Igor Shakhrai, the CEO of Hevel group of companies in Vladivostok. An agreement on cooperation in the field of electricity supply to remote settlements in the region was discussed, through the construction of autonomous hybrid power plants based on solar energy.
The agreement was presupposes the implementation of the investment project in Yakutia Region for construction of the combined solar and diesel power plants with using advanced technical solutions which will allow to fulfill the state task of ensuring uninterrupted power supply of remote territories. The Hevel company has undertaken obligations to deliver the high efficient solar modules made at own factory in the city Novocheboksarsk. The government of the Yakutia Region, in turn, has expressed readiness to provide to the project full support.
The Republic of Tyva Government and Hevel Group concluded agreement on cooperation in power supply of isolated localities of the Republic of Tyva through construction of stand-alone hybrid solar-based power plants.
The Agreement was signed by Sholban Kara-ool, Head of the Republic of Tyva and Igor Shakhray, Hevel Group CEO.The Agreement provides for construction of hybrid solar-diesel electric power plants of 1600 kW total capacity in the Republic of Tyva. The project will be sponsored by Hevel Group engineering division. For implementation of the project, the company plans to deliver high-efficiency solar modules, produced at its own factory in city of Novocheboksarsk. The Republic of Tyva Government in its turn will provide informational and organizational support of the project.
The project implementation will enable to complete the government-set high-priority task to provide the population of isolated and stand-alone areas with uninterruptable and reliable power supply using solar energy. Besides, construction of solar power generation facilities will ensure the increase of tax revenue in the regional budget, create new jobs in the Republic and enable to engage local companies in civil and installation works and fabrication of support structures for the project.
Russian PV module producer and project developer Hevel Group and Korean multinational automotive manufacturer Hyundai have signed a memorandum of understanding to invest around RUB8 billion (US$139 million) in 40MW of solar and diesel hybrid plants, according to Russian news agency TASS.
The first stage of the hybrids will require around RUB2 billion of investment, with the first projects to be constructed in Yakutia, in far eastern Russia. The projects will reduce the consumption of diesel in certain areas by up to 50%.
In the Russian pavilion on the EXPO 2017 was presented the exhibition and thematic week of “Power network of the future” devoted to vision of the Russian companies of the future of global intellectual power in the context of the markets, technologies and decisions. Conceptually the exposition is divided to several thematic zones of new technological way of power industry: Smart Grids, Smart Cities, Smart Homes, Smart Substations and Distributed Generation and also Future Energy.
In the section “The Distributed Generation” the newest solar heterostructural modules of production of Hevel group with the cell efficiency more than 22%.

industry_corpus2: Power & Energy


text:
If your Plans of Action, Amazon Appeals and/or Amazon Bezos Escalations fail, suspended Amazon sellers can take Amazon to binding arbitration.
Amazon lawyers CJ Rosenbaum, Anthony Famularo, and Rob Segall discuss vital facts about taking Amazon to arbitration when Amazon refuses to release your money, inventory or reinstate your account.
View upcoming global events CJ Rosenbaum will be speaking at.
Read more about Amazon suspensions & appeals.

industry_corpus2: Law & Justice


text:
We have received the wood samples sent by Mrs. Ilse Fuhr, but have not dated them yet. We are still in the midst of a long series of samples from the Arctic, and the various Egyptian samples already accepted are scheduled for the late autumn.
As to the new samples from Mrs. Fuhr, we must have the approval of the Director of the University Museum before dating them. I shall bring the matter to his attention when he returns to the Museum after September 1st.

industry_corpus2: Subject Education


text:
With over 35 years of experience, the Bradley Kelly team has the expertise to work on a wide range of utility challenges and projects.
We are available every day, all day to set things right!
Learn more about Bradley Kelly’s sewer and water utilities services.

industry_corpus2: Water Resources & Marine


text: In my never-ending quest to stay motivated to eventually move back into self-employment (Co-workers, disregard this statement. These aren’t the droids you’re looking for. Move along. Move along.) I devoured The $100 Startup, by Chris Guillebeau.

industry_corpus2: Finance & Economics


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Stock# 35-15 AH-6J FLlR and Mount. This set is designed for the Kitty Hawk AH-6J or MH-6J.
Stock# 48-15 UH-1D/H Correction Set designed to fit the Kitty Hawk 1/48th scale UH-1D Huey kit.
Stock# WW Decals 48-16- UH-1D/H- Vietnam and Beyond. There is something here for everyone. There are markings for 21 aircraft which cover the UH-1D/H in US and Vietnamese service.
December 2017 - 32-01 Vietnam Ace- Capt. Steve Ritchie and Friends LIMITED EDITION ONLY 200 SHEETS. Additional aircraft added for two Robin Olds F-4s.
July 2017 - So what do you do when you want decals for a specific aircraft that aren’t made? Well if you are me you make them and then sell them. So here is the latest release from Werner's Wings. Vietnam Ace- Capt Steve Ritchie and Friends. They are released as WW Decals 48-13 ($16) and WW Decals 72-06 ($14).
April 2017 - Just release 35-13 AH-1/UH-1 External Fuel Tank. Designed for- Marine Corps AH-1 or UH-1.
February 2017 - Werner's Wings brings us another great decal release for USAF MH/HH-60G Pave Hawks in 1/35th, 1/72nd and 1/144th scales. It can be purchase in our store.
December 2015 - WERNER’S WINGS announce the release of the new MH/CH-47 decal stencils in 1/35 and 1/48. It can be purchase in our store.
December 2015 - WERNER’S WINGS announce the release of the new Night Stalker Late Arrivals in 1/35 and 1/48. It can be purchase in our store.
November, 2015 - WERNER’S WINGS announce the release of the new 1/72 AH-1 F/S Turret here and it can be purchase in our store.
August 1, 2015 - Werner's Wings releases several new products including decal sheets for both the new Kitty Hawk AH-1Z and UH-1Y, update resin sets for both of the the sets. A new line of 1/24 and 1/35 figures to spruce up your huey gunship. UH-60 Platypus nose in 1/48 and 1/35, AH-Z Turret in 1/48, Ah-1/Uh-1 External Aux. and 1/72 Ah-1G/UhH-1d-H Tail Rotor Blades.
August 10, 2014 - WERNER’S WINGS announce the impending release of its new decal sheets- NIGHT STALKERS-PART 2- GOTHIC SERPENT to Present read more about it here and it can be purchase in our store.
November 19, 2013 - New Release Werner's Wings Avia S-199 conversion in 1/32 read more about it here and it can be purchase in our store.
Aug 1, 2011 -UH-60 Blackhawk- Workhorse of the Army Decals and stencils are now available.
Werner's Wings is proud to announce the release of their new decals, "UH-60 Blackhawk- Workhorse of the Army" are now available in all three major scales, 1/72nd, 1/48th and 1/35th scale.
Designed by Mason Doupnik, you get markings for 18 different aircraft plus 3 extra markings for aircraft that we didn't have all the information for. The history of the Blackhawk can be followed from Urgent Fury through modern day Afghanistan, including Ft. Rucker. Of course there are a bunch of Medevac aircraft to go with the new Werner's Wings UH-60 Medevac Interior (35-08) set. The decal themselves are printed by Cartograf so they are literally the best decals in the world (and they don't print cheaply either).
For those of you who want to build more than one Blackhawk we also provide stencils in 1/35th and 1/48th scales.
Look for the Night Stalker decal sheet covering the MH-60s, as well as, the A/MH-6s and MH-47s of Task Force 160th soon. I'll update the website as soon as I can get to it. Check us out on Facebook and on EBay. You can buy direct from me by contacting me at fwernerjr@comcast.net . For OVERSEAS customers email me at info@wernerswings.com .
I hope you enjoy them and I look forward to seeing many Blackhawks being built. Thanks again to Mason, literally without him this set would not have come about. Thanks Mason.
New products have been uploaded for sale online or coming soon!
1/32nd scale conversion for the Bf-109V-13 and the Bf-109V-14 conversion for the Eduard 1/32nd scale Bf-109E-1 kits.
Floyd Werner's V-13/V-14 in 1/48 scale has sold out!
Floyd Werner's V-13/V-14 is in the Feb 2010 edition of Scale Aviation Modeler International (SAMI). Here is a sample of the model.
Here are the preview cover photos for the new Werner's Wings- Rotorwash Walk Around DVDs.
I will start taking orders next week. The total cost will be $12 plus shipping.
Taking orders starting Monday 21 Dec. The Werner's Wings ROTORWASH DVDs are the most extensive walk around photo coverage available. The first DVD covers the Short Bodied UH-1s, such as the Prototype, UH-1A, UH-1B, UH-1C and UH-1F, as well as, the rest. The Long Bodied UH-1 DVD, Volume 2, covers the UH-1D, UH-1H, UH-1N, UH-1V and the UH-1Y. The entire Huey line is represented between the two DVDs, from Prototype to the newest UH-1Y.
If you like Ray Wilhite's (aka ROTORWASH) photos here on ARC then you have seen the quality and quantity. Even so you haven't seen all of them, nowhere near. Ray has traveled around the US taking photos at museums and flying aircraft and has allowed me to share them with you.
Specifically designed with the modeler in mind, EVERYTHING you could possible want is included. Contained on each DVD are over 1,500 photos. You can search for specific items that you are modeling by using the Windows search engine, i.e. UH-1D Main Rotor will return all the photos of the UH-1D Main Rotor system on the DVD. These DVDs are a one stop shop for your modeling information.
Keep an eye on www.wernerswings.com for more details.
Thanks to Ray for providing the hard work. What would we like to see next?
Two DVDs, one on long bodies and one on short body Hueys. I've attached a composite of the contents on each DVD. Pricing is not set yet but around $12 each.
Here are the photos of the parts for the new Werner's Wings 1/48th scale Messerschmitt Bf-109V13/V-14 conversion.
If you are interested I remind you that there are only 250 examples being made. Get them now, don't wait. I'll ship as soon as I return from Nationals.
I've reserved 50 copies for overseas customers and 50 for US customers that can't make the Nationals. I have to tell you that they are almost gone so if you want one or three now is the time to order them. Who would have ever guessed that the 109 was so popular?
Don't forget to check out www.wernerswings.com for pricing and more aftermarket stuff.
I'm currently accepting pre-paid preorders. Email me directly at fwernerjr@comcast.net for shipping costs, especially if you are overseas.
See you at the Nationals, I'll be at the Nostalgic Plastic table along with Rafe and the Master Class Model Building Videos.
PS I'll also have the new AH-1F Cobra decals in both 1/72nd and 1/48th scale for 14 aircraft, including three that I flew. Pick these up at the same time and save on shipping.
Mastered by Joseph Osborn of Fireball Modelworks for me you get all the detail he is known for. This pod is superior to the Hasegawa pods in the Apache kit and will add to the meanness of the Monogram Cobra with its undersized rocket pods. You only have to clean up the pour stub and not fill any seams. I hate filling seams. The face plate has the holes for the umbilical chords for the DPSM rockets. The back has the igniter arms in the proper position. There is also an indentation for where to mount them. All very simple, easy and effective.
You can get yours by visiting <http://www.wernerswings.com>www.wernerswings.com. The are available immediately, but they will also be at the IPMS/USA Nationals in Columbus, OH along with all the other Werner's Wings stuff, including the new AH-1F decals.
Just as an update on the decals. I have the decals already. They are beautiful. The instructions are being drawn up now. The DVD should be in my hands by early next week. I will definitely have them by the Nets and hopefully a little before. I hesitate to take pre-orders for them at this time because I haven't seen the finished instructions nor the DVD cover, but if you want them I will accept pre-orders. Remember they are not ready yet, but as soon as they are I will ship them. Check the website for pricing as I offer a couple of options.
Just wanted to let everyone know about some new things coming out from Werner's Wings.
First off and nearest to my heart are new decals for the Monogram 1/48th scale and Hasegawa/Hobbyboss 1/72nd AH-1F Cobras. The sheets are available in a 1/48th scale and a 1/72nd scale. It will be accompanied with a DVD which will have a complete walk around, the reference photos and some personal pictures. You will be able to do no less than 14 aircraft. If you like shark mouths then this sheet is for you. I've amassed some of the most colorful AH-1Fs ever. I think you will be surprised. The cost per sheet is $20. Also the 1/48th scale people can buy an additional stencil decal sheet for $6. I've attached a decal sheet pricing list.
Also I will be releasing a new 1/48th scale M-261 19 shot rocket pod for the Monogram AH-1F and the Hasegawa AH-64A + D. The cost on this one is $12. It is available for immediate delivery.
The next thing is the first non-helicopter item. It is the Messerschmitt Bf-109V-13/V-14 conversion set for the 1/48th scale Tamiya kit. The set includes decals, resin pieces, and a vacuform canopy. I've attached a the preview artwork. It is a great set, but it is a LIMITED EDITION of 250 examples. It will be released at the IPMS/USA Nationals in August. If you can't attend the Nationals I've reserved 50 copies for overseas customers and 50 copies for US residents. The only stipulation here is that they are prepaid preorders. I will not ship them until after I return from the Nationals though. You can pay Paypal at fwernerjr@comcast.net to hold your copy.
Master Class Model Building Videos will also be releasing a new DVD at the Nats. This time Rafe Morrissey will be in front of the camera painting figures. The next title is "Figure Painting for Aircraft and Armor Builders". We don't have a price yet. Rafe is a much better figure painter than I am. Besides the DVD with lots of tips and techniques we will provide you with an exclusive 1/32nd scale USN/Marine fighter pilot in tropical gear. He will feature two different style of heads, one with the flight helmet and the other with a baseball cap, ala VMF-214. This figure will only be available in the DVD and not separately. Get them while they last.
That is about it for now. Please forward this to your webmasters, newsletter editors, and anyone else that may be interested.
I'll be at the Nats. Werner's Wings and Master Class Model Building Videos will be at Nostalgic Plastic's tables.
After being asked a bunch of times I've decided to set aside 50 sets for US customers and 50 sets for overseas customers of the V-13/V-14 special.
The orders are based on a first come-first serve basis. The pre-orders must be pre-paid. The sets still will not be sent until after I return from the IPMS/USA Nationals which end on the 22nd of August.
For US/APO customers, the total cost is $32 with shipping. For overseas customers you'll have to email me at fwernerjr@comcast.net for a price with shipping.
I accept Paypal at fwernerjr@comcast.net for the set. Please ensure you put down that it is for the Bf-109V-13/V-14 set. If you order any other Werner's Wing items there is no additional cost for shipping. So check out www.wernerswings.com.
Should make some people happy, but probably not all. I hope to post some pictures within the next couple of days.


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Rekiel has over three years' experience within Software Engineering and has joined the Manchester team to help grow our engineering offering.
He comes from the blue side of Manchester which means he is a Man City enthusiast. He reckons he is a great singer although we’ve not had the pleasure to hear him yet.
You can reach Rekiel by phone or email, or connect on social media.

industry_corpus2: Computing & Telecommunications


text:
A bogus charity collector claiming to be from the British Heart Foundation have been knocking on doors in the Wellingborough area.
The first incident happened in Alma Street, shortly before 9pm on Tuesday, January 27.
A man knocked on the door, claiming to be from the British Heart Foundation.
The resident did not open the door and he went away.
The second incident happened in Broad Green, at roughly the same time on the same night.
Again, the man left when the resident refused to open the door.
The caller from one of the incidents is described as a young white man, possibly long hair and wearing a red coat.
It is believed that the caller was bogus and the British Heart Foundation has confirmed that they do not canvass in Northamptonshire and wouldn’t do so at that time of the night.
A spokesman for Northamptonshire Police said: “Make sure you can see who is at the door before you answer it. Where possible fit a spy-hole to identify callers. Alternatively talk to them through an adjacent window. If you’re not sure, don’t open the door.
“Don’t feel pressured into opening the door. Don’t feel you are being rude, genuine callers won’t mind.
“Don’t use telephone numbers on ID cards, if the person isn’t genuine the ID and the telephone number won’t be either. Obtain telephone numbers direct from the phone directory. Alternatively make a list of your important numbers and keep them near the phone.
Anyone with information about he incidents in Wellingborough should phone Northamptonshire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.


text:
Q: Is Amelia Earhart left handed?
No, Amelia Earhart was not left handed.
Amelia Toebak Earhart was a pioneer, engineer and autheer. The first woman to fly by herself across the Atlantic Ocean, Amelia is also credited for making the modern pilot chair more comfortable (she preferred linen upholstery) and the cockpit prettier. She also has gone the farthest of any woman on record without asking for directions.
Growing up with sisters who shared her sense of adventure, “Meeley” would often climb trees, hunt rats and throw rocks through abandoned factory windows. One day she discovered a blowtorch and scavenged for pieces of metal to use. She spent the next few weeks creating a sculpture reminiscent of a bunny rabbit eating a watermelon, her favorite animal eating her favorite food.
Her disappearance is still investigated to this day, and is one of the greatest unsolved mysteries. Her final transmission alluded to the coordinates “157 337″, but we think her plane was losing fuel too quickly and this is our first clue to finding the secret treasure of Atlantis that Amelia and the Navy were looking for before the Nazis could get to it.
Our initial research into the matter also revealed she was most likely ambidextrous, but images of her signing autographs right handed forces us to conclude that she was not left handed. A little known fact about America’s Sweethart, Amelia was actually delivered to her parents by a stork in Kansas in 1897, which is where the myth originated. Oddly enough, she came into this world as she left it; shrouded in soft linen and mystery.


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With the Olympic diving trials having just finished, America is holding its breath for men’s synchronized diving team partners David Boudia and Steele Johnson, as they have been selected to compete against the best divers in the world in Rio this summer. David Boudia first entered the sport of diving by joining a springboard diving team for kids just Like Dive San Diego where he went on to compete in the Speedo National Junior Diving Championships in 2003, on to the US Open in 2006 where he placed first, and now in 2016 he has reached his dream of competing in the Olympic Games.
Like his partner, Steele Johnson also began diving at an aquatics club center well on his way to becoming a 15-time winning junior national champion. Steele Johnson has faced a great obstacle that most people would automatically view as a career-stopper. Although accidents in diving are extremely rare, on January 21 in 2009 at age 12, Steele struck his head on a concrete platform doing a reverse 3 ½ summersault in a tuck position that ripped his scalp in half. He fell 33 feet into the water and was motionless until being rescued by his coach. Steele was able to apply what he learned from the accident to become a more successful athlete. In an interview on YouTube the Johnson says, “Something that almost killed me has become the thing that I’m best at”.
Just a glance at their backgrounds, and a few things become very clear when asking what it takes to become Olympic divers like these guys: (1) start out young at an aquatics center, (2) join a competitive diving club, (3) work with a highly skilled diving coach, (4) learn to turn your fears into your fuel to succeed, and (5) hard work.
Parents, don’t let the Steele Johnson accident scare you from putting your child on the diving board; these accidents are rare. In fact, there are more accidents in hot air balloon rides than there are in springboard and platform diving. Because the sport is low impact, kids don’t wind up damaging their knees the way children tend to in gymnastics. Also, you hit the water as opposed to a pad. Dive San Diego has never had an accident and we have a perfect safety record.
Competition is great for kids, and when they dive competitively it will give them an introductory taste to what it is like competing in the Olympics (though on a much smaller scare of course). With Dive San Diego, there is no such thing as failure because, as Johnson illustrated, he learned from his mistake and became a better diver for it. Therefore, every failure to place a medal is a victory in learning how to adjust to place next time. Competition teaches kids how to lose with dignity, and win with dignity. It provides an arena for praise, encouragement, and loving support.
“I started coaching soon after I began diving. I knew at an early age that I was going to be a teacher and wanted to help others fulfill their true potential. I knew that I was good at helping others achieve their dreams and was able to give my knowledge and the things I had learned in the sport to the next generations to come. It makes me feel alive”.
If your child has dreams of competing, and wants to follow in the footsteps of David Boudia and Steele Johnson, Coach Marnie Young can get then off to a flying summersault of a start!
Sports psychology is complex. No matter the age or skill set of an athlete, dealing with a past injury can impact performance. Also, having to engage in certain elements of a sport for the first time can be intimidating for many people. Standing in a batters box while a 90 MPH fastball zips over home plate, or looking 33 feet down into the pool from a high dive platform can cause kids to think twice. A good coach prepares athletes for these stages. For example, Dive San Diego uses harnesses to help the kids feel safe and secure, and baseball players use controlled batting cages. A good coach with the right certifications and training can also help athletes bounce back from injuries while facing their psychological fears. Without Johnson’s coach, he very likely would not be headed to the Olympic games in Rio.
Waking up early, eating a healthy breakfast, and training hard sets the road to Olympic competition. In an article by the Huffington Post on what it takes to train for the Olympics, the author states that a nutritious diet, strength and conditioning sessions, and massages to loosen up muscles is what builds the best athletes in the world. Dive San Diego couldn’t agree more. We encourage all our divers to fuel their bodies with the best formulas, develop their core strength, and take care of their bodies.
The Olympic Games means a lot more than simply feeling and showing your pride for your country; it opens the imaginations of children, and encourages them to dream big. They close their eyes and imagine what it is like to hear the selection committee call their name, to pretend they are on the end of a diving board with the world watching, and standing on that podium while the US National Anthem plays. Get your kids into diving while they are young, and enjoy watching them fly high!

industry_corpus2: Sports


text:
The Internet as the global communications infrastructure has been successful in shaping the modern world by the way we access and exchange information. The Internet architecture originally designed in the 1960s has been supporting a variety of applications and offering a number of services till now but emerging applications demand better quality, programmability, resilience and protection. Any alterations to the Internet architecture have become restricted to simple incremental updates and plug-ins instead of radical changes by introducing new solutions.
Design, develop and implement the innovative internals of this clean-slate architecture that include the programmable functions for: security of content and application processes, supporting QoS and congestion control in aggregated levels, providing protection and resilience, facilitating more efficient topological routing, and multi-layer management for handling configuration, performance and security.
Demonstrate the applicability and benefits of this approach and its built-in functions in use-cases driven by the end-users, service providers and equipment vendors in the consortium. This will ensure that the applications and tools we develop will be deployable by providers, and have a greater potential for future exploitation.
To know more you can download the Pristine_project_FI_factsheet.


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Meanwhile, the US President has said he is pursuing a diplomatic solution to the crisis over Iran's nuclear programme.
reported in its Sunday edition.
Citing unnamed experts, the newspaper said Iran would first mount attacks against US targets inside Iraq and then target civilians in the United States, Europe and elsewhere.
US officials would not discuss what evidence they have indicating Iran would undertake terrorist action, but the matter "is consuming a lot of time" throughout the US intelligence apparatus, the report quotes one senior official as saying.
Citing prohibitions against discussing classified information, US intelligence officials declined to say whether they have detected preparatory measures, such as increased surveillance, counter-surveillance or message traffic, on the part of Iran's foreign-based intelligence operatives, The Post said.
However, terrorism experts considered Iranian-backed or controlled groups -- its intelligence operatives, Revolutionary Guards and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah -- to be better organised, trained and equipped than the Al-Qaeda network, the report pointed out.
The Iranian government views Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah's military wing, "as an extension of their state," the paper quotes Ambassador Henry Crumpton, the State Department's coordinator for counterterrorism, as saying. "Operational teams could be deployed without a long period of preparation."
US President George W Bush has said he is pursuing a diplomatic solution to the crisis over Iran's nuclear programme, but he has added that all options are on the table.
Government officials said their interest in Iran's intelligence services is not an indication that a military confrontation is imminent or likely, but rather a reflection of a decades-long adversarial relationship, in which Iran's agents have worked secretly against US interests, most recently in Iraq and Pakistan, The Post said.

industry_corpus2: Politics & Administration