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March 2007

You are currently browsing the articles from written in the month of March 2007.

Where do we go from here?

Hmm. Good question. People have been pondering this since the beginning of humankind. Various religions throughout the world offer as many answers. Some believe that if you live a “good” life, then you will arrive in heaven and join loved ones, but if you lead a “bad” life, then you will be banished to hell, to be tormented throughout eternity. Another belief is that at death, you will be transferred into the “spirit realm”, where you will join ancestors and departed loved ones. Still others believe that the dead are taken before God in order to be judged, and are then reincarnated or reborn into another body. But all of these beliefs share one thing in common - the idea that some part of us survives beyond the death of the physical body. That somehow welive on along with the ability to see, hear, think, and be self-aware. But, this is apparently impossible medically. The five senses - Sight, Smell, Hearing, Touch, and Taste, are linked to the brain. The brain dies along with the body and therefore, these senses must also cease to function. NothingnessMemories and feelings are also lost. So according to this belief, a person who dies simply ceases to exist. Like an extinguished flame, you simply go out. This was touched upon in the Star Trek: Voyager episode Mortal Coil in 1997. In the episode, one of the show’s main characters, Neelix, gets killed suddenly and unexpectedly. Using 24th-century magic, Neelix is revived after approximately 18 hours of being dead. He is quite shocked and upset to discover that during such a long period of being dead, he didn’t see, hear, feel, or be aware of anything. All of his life, he had believed that after death, he would rejoin family and friends in “The great forest”, his people’s version of paradise. Although ST Voyager is simply a TV show, the idea which that episode tries to convey is valid nevertheless. Lets assume for a moment that this is true. If so, then it really doesn’t matter because after death, you will certainly not suffer in any way because you will no longer be aware. By the same token, you will also not feel pleasure. In fact, since you have totally and completely ceased to exist, you won’t feel nor be aware of anything. The idea sounds pretty scary because just as in the ST Voyager episode, it shakes your belief in your reasons for living because if you’re simply going to be poofed into nothingness, then why try to be a good person? What’s the point of living? Well, as our fictional friend Neelix discovered, there are people in the here and now who love, need, and rely on you. That’s the reason for living and doing your best. In other words, since you’re not dead yet, you should make the best of your existence in this life. Simple pleasures such as eating, sleeping, being warm, making love, watching TV, being with loved ones, etc. should never be taken for granted, even if you believe in the above non-existence idea. Its kinda like a really good bowl of ice cream: love and enjoy it until its gone. Now, lets assume for a moment that you don’t simply cease to exist and that there is indeed life after death. There certainly seems to be evidence to support this. Throughout the ages, there have been many reports of Near Death Experiences or NDEs. An interesting website on the subject can be found here. So if we really do continue after death, then what? Whoo boy, does that ever change things. For openers, you can kiss your computer goodbye. Not that you’d need it anyway, because you probably will no longer have arms, legs, hands, feet, or any of your other physical attributes. Also, you might have to get used to floating from place to place rather than walking. Simple physical pleasures will be no more. But then again, you won’t need to go potty anymore, weight won’t be a problem, and if you currently suffer a painful existence, then hopefully you will find relief and happiness. Ultimately, I’m not sure that it really matters whether or not there is life after death because you cannot change whatever happens anyway. So don’t worry about it - just be and do the best you can, and enjoy the ride.

Written by Darrell Hagan on March 13th, 2007 with no comments.
Read more articles on Paranormal.

Review: Sangean ATS-909 Portable AM/FM/SW Receiver

The Sangean model ATS-909 portable AM/FM/SW receiver has been on the market for some years now, and has become quite popular. This receiver was also marketed by Radio Shack for a time as their model DX-398. The ATS-909 and the DX-398 are identical in every way except for the name and the supplied accessories. Some years ago while working as Chief Engineer of a large local broadcasting company, I was looking for a quality and rugged portable receiver which I could takeSangean ATS-909 in Black along during visits to transmitter sites(both AM & FM) in order to listen to transmitter output while “tweaking” various settings. I also wanted said receiver to be able to act as an all-purpose radio which I would use for everything from listening to my favorite FM stations during a summer picnic in the park to acting as a full-blown receiver for copying various digital modes on the HF frequencies, and listening to SSB on the Ham Radio bands. After looking around for a while, I finally chose the Sangean ATS-909 because of its apparent ruggedness, small size, capabilities, and specifications. I thought that the protective vinyl carrying case was a good touch too, since my particular ATS-909 might see some harsh environments. I had previously owned a Radio Shack model DX-440, aka Sangean ATS-803, so I was somewhat familiar with Sangean product quality. Well, to say the least, I haven’t been disappointed. This rugged little black box continues to amaze me with its versatility and performance. ATS-909As described above, I’ve used it in every situation from transmitter sites to picnics and motel rooms to digital mode surveillance. In fact, I’m listening to my favorite FM Classic Rock station on the ‘909 as I write this. After the warranty period, I did perform some of the recommended performance modifications, especially with regard to the AGC system. Although not really necessary for most users, I found the modifications to be quite worthwhile. My ATS-909 really shines now, especially on SSB and digital modes. If you don’t wish to do the modifications yourself, don’t fret. There is a company called RadioLabs which will either professionally modify your ATS-909 or sell to you their “Super 909“, an ATS-909 with all modifications already done. Either way, you end up with a very nice performing portable receiver. Here is a brief rundown of stock features for this unit:

One of my favorite features of this receiver is that its quite smart - if I hurriedly enter a given frequency via the keypad, the ATS-909 automatically selects the correct band and mode. Along the way, it also remembers what frequencies and modes I have recently used. Thats especially cool because I can toggle very quickly between, say, 3840 LSB, 630 AM, and 104.7 FM just by tapping the band selector buttons at the left of the keypad.Sangean ATS-909 in Titanium
I’ve noted that some ATS-909 owners have found the audio to sound “tinny” or “flat” with the stock speaker inside the radio. My unit does not seem to show this. If you plan to use your ATS-909 with an external antenna (a jack is provided for this) on the SW bands, it should work well if you use the RF gain control properly and as needed. I’ve used it with a full-size G5RV antenna which is mounted 70 feet above ground and it works very well, with little or no signal overloading. With this antenna, the ATS-909 works very well on all frequencies from the MW broadcast band on up thru the 10-meter Amateur Radio band. As with most portable receivers of this type, do not expect miracle receive results on the SW bands with just the built-in whip antenna. Although adequate for local FM reception and for some of the stronger SW broadcast stations, the whip generally won’t do for much beyond that. Sangean does thoughtfully supply a portable roll-up wire antenna with the ATS-909 because of this.

In summary, I’ve found the Sangean ATS-909 to be a very capable and versatile performer right out of the box, and the above described “enhancements” make it even better. Sensitivity and stability are second to none. Signal selectivity is adequate, and is easily enhanced. It might have been nice to have a Noise-Blanker feature, but the ‘909 is not really intended to be a full-featured communications receiver. Lots of good information is available about this receiver, and there is an active ATS-909/DX-398 user’s group on Yahoo. At the time of this writing, average price for a new ATS-909 is around $240. The “Super 909″ from RadioLabs will relieve your pocketbook of $329.95.

Written by Darrell Hagan on March 11th, 2007 with no comments.
Read more articles on Tech & Gadget News & Reviews.

Comment system fixed

Hi everyone!

The comment system is now fixed. Sorry about that…..

Written by Darrell Hagan on March 11th, 2007 with no comments.
Read more articles on Site News.

Is this a BLOG??

Well, um, no. Not really. Point16 does feature articles and comments, but it is not a blog. A so-called “blog” (short for weblog) is usually an online journal of sorts which is associated with a business, individual, or other activities, and is usually used to report about same.

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Except as noted, all written content on this site is totally original.

Thank you and enjoy your visit :)

 

Written by Darrell Hagan on March 7th, 2007 with no comments.
Read more articles on Everything Else.