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Antarctica Needs a Network Engineer
littlekorea writes "It's a little underpaid, but network engineers with a fetish for very cold weather might be interested to know that the Australian Government's Antarctic Division is seeking network engineers to manage its telephony, satellite and radio comms in Antarctica. According to the job FAQ, summer temperatures aren't a lot colder than your average data centre. But winters of -30 degrees celsius (-22 Fahrenheit) might make the morning jog a little challenging."
I read a very intersting article about IT at the south pole a while ago. One of the most surprising facts:
They need extra large fans to cool their servers. The Amundsen-Scott station is alomst 3000m above sea level,
which means rather thin air - so they need a higher throughput to achieve the same cooling capacity than a
data center at more usal elevations.
The cold outside temperature means no real need for AC, but doesn't help too much in terms of cooling power:
The difference between 295K and 250K isn't that big and outweighed by the lower air density.
So, just to put it in perspective, the average winter is between -112 to -130 F. The coldest naturally occurring temperature on the face of the earth was recorded there, which was actually colder than dry ice.
"Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish"
Albert Einstein
Personal effects transportation limit is 1 cubic meter and 250 kg. I hope your OCable gaming rig is pretty compact. (Yes, even a tower system with all accouterments would fit, but that would be pretty close to all you could take.)
Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
It's not just that being on the ice leads to crazy behavior, it's that the management is back in the US and they treat the workers like dirt. While they have picnics back in Kansas City. The NSF, which pays for it all, is equally brain dead. Here are some some "uncomfortable questions" from the blog.
Having pointed this all out, it also sounds like fun in a weird way, if you enjoy hanging with funny disfunctional drunks in a potentially lethal environment.
Why is Snark Required?
Unfortunately, according to the General Information PDF linked above, you must be a resident to qualify.
Only Australian citizens, Australian residents with proof of eligibilty to work in Australia and
New Zealand residents are eligble to apply.
Exactly what I was thinking. Although you got it much worse than I do (I am in Estonia and over the weekend it was -30C in the city) this isn't that bad. You just walk from bar to bar a bit quicker and try not to fall on the ice when walking and your fine. Its just cold, put on a sweater and some grandmother-made wool socks and you will survive. It was cold a few years ago when it was -45C but all that happened was they closed the elementary schools. Oh and large amounts of vodka helps.
There is not enough atomospheric pressure for it to turn into a liquid. It would go straight into a solid if it were cold enough. It would probably look like regular snow, which would make it a bit difficult to spot.
for the US-ians out there, the pay is tax-free since you're in international space
Wrong. In principle, kinda-sorta... In practice, no. The IRS no longer recognizes Antarctica as a foreign country for tax purposes, and this has been upheld in litigation.
http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2007/10/31/tax_ruling_leaves_150_raytheon_workers_out_in_cold/
http://www.bigdeadplace.com/taxes.html
Speaking from the slightly different experience of ~2 years on an RPSC-run ship around Antarctica, the experience is definitely worth it if you have the right constitution for the lifestyle and can handle the people/lack thereof. NZ is awesome!
Before anyone from the US gets too excited about going out on an exotic job:
Only Australian citizens, Australian residents with proof of eligibilty to work in Australia and New Zealand residents are eligble to apply.
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
ATMs in the UK don't charge fees (at least, they don't charge people with UK bank accounts) and the climate is much, much better.
Does anyone really want to go to Antarctica? It is a cold, harsh environment that will isolate you from your family, friends, and civilized comforts.
You're asking the wrong crowd. A number of slashdotters would be quite happy in isolation from family, friends, bars, pubs, or any social interaction.
Being a chimney hasn't stopped the Natalie Portman meme here
125 people, that's 62.5 couples. With 16,500 condoms, that's 264 condoms per couple per year. 264/365*7~= 3x per week. That's about right, maybe a little on the low side. Certainly not indicative of any captivity induced orgies.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
On the flip side, I bet there will end up being 62 couples, with the network engineer accounting for the remaining 0.5 "couple".
Aussies and Kiwis only :-\
"When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
But...but...getting head from a smoker is like putting your cock in an ash tray!