This whole thing is a testament to a failure of the so-called adults involved rather than the genius of a 14-year-old.
They should have immediately seen that this wasn't a bomb, or even a decent hoax. The display doesn't have enough power-hungry LED digits for a scary-looking hh:mm:ss countdown to detonation, and there isn't a block of something that looks like C-4 with blasting caps that could easily be pulled out or wire-clipped. I bet the kid didn't even have a schematic hidden somewhere that could be remotely interpreted over the phone to a sweaty colorblind guy with wire cutters who could somehow manage to disarm it anyway - but only at the last possible second.
The kid isn't a genius; he's just an average 14-year-old trying to be creative in a Toy Story-Sid way, but for electronics instead of toys and without the nasty. The proper thing to do here wasn't to call the cops, but instead to tell him "Hey, this is pretty cool but let's make it better. Your wiring needs to be cleaned up so it's not a fire hazard, and the display needs an opening so you can see it from the outside. Ever used a Dremel?"
But no: instead of becoming fondly-remembered teachers who helped him become an artist or electrical engineer, they called the cops and got him dragged down to the police station. Now he'll probably end up on a long slide towards a law degree.
A while back I was in an old-fashioned ice cream store with my family. I had gotten my cone and was on my way to sit sit down when I heard the sound of our sale being rung up on a mechanical cash register. I hadn't heard that sound in years and the rhythmic chunk-chunk-chunk chunkachunkachunkachunk.... cha-ching! really caught my attention.
Funny. I haven't been back to the ice cream place, and it's closed now. I haven't heard that sound since, and I wonder if I ever will again.
A new-in-box 2-meter transceiver, power supply, and antenna will set you back less than $300. No tower is required; you can install a 2-meter antenna on a six-foot post bolted to the side of the house.
The Technician Class test - which allows him to talk on his new radio - only requires basic electronics knowledge and an understanding of some common sense rules. As long as you can find someone to administer the test - around here they do testing almost every week or two - you can have him licensed and on the air within a month.
With a 2-meter radio he'll be talking to people in the local area and probably find a lot of people like him: retired and enjoying the company.
Of course, once he starts into the hobby, he'll find that there's a whole new bunch of things to learn and gadgetry to go with it. Before long he'll start pining for an HF rig and antenna, and an antenna tuner, and... oh, now you've really opened a pandora's box!
60 watts * 5.5 hours/day * 365 days/year = 120,450 total watts = 120 Kw.
Around here electricity is around $0.10 / Kw, so your total power cost for a 60 watt bulb under these usage parameters is around $12/year. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think I'm going to save $23 on something that costs $12 to operate.
Not that I'm against saving the electricity. I just don't like it when the numbers don't add up.
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This whole thing is a testament to a failure of the so-called adults involved rather than the genius of a 14-year-old.
They should have immediately seen that this wasn't a bomb, or even a decent hoax. The display doesn't have enough power-hungry LED digits for a scary-looking hh:mm:ss countdown to detonation, and there isn't a block of something that looks like C-4 with blasting caps that could easily be pulled out or wire-clipped. I bet the kid didn't even have a schematic hidden somewhere that could be remotely interpreted over the phone to a sweaty colorblind guy with wire cutters who could somehow manage to disarm it anyway - but only at the last possible second.
The kid isn't a genius; he's just an average 14-year-old trying to be creative in a Toy Story-Sid way, but for electronics instead of toys and without the nasty. The proper thing to do here wasn't to call the cops, but instead to tell him "Hey, this is pretty cool but let's make it better. Your wiring needs to be cleaned up so it's not a fire hazard, and the display needs an opening so you can see it from the outside. Ever used a Dremel?"
But no: instead of becoming fondly-remembered teachers who helped him become an artist or electrical engineer, they called the cops and got him dragged down to the police station. Now he'll probably end up on a long slide towards a law degree.
A while back I was in an old-fashioned ice cream store with my family. I had gotten my cone and was on my way to sit sit down when I heard the sound of our sale being rung up on a mechanical cash register. I hadn't heard that sound in years and the rhythmic chunk-chunk-chunk chunkachunkachunkachunk.... cha-ching! really caught my attention.
Funny. I haven't been back to the ice cream place, and it's closed now. I haven't heard that sound since, and I wonder if I ever will again.
Absolutely what I was going to recommend.
A new-in-box 2-meter transceiver, power supply, and antenna will set you back less than $300. No tower is required; you can install a 2-meter antenna on a six-foot post bolted to the side of the house.
The Technician Class test - which allows him to talk on his new radio - only requires basic electronics knowledge and an understanding of some common sense rules. As long as you can find someone to administer the test - around here they do testing almost every week or two - you can have him licensed and on the air within a month.
With a 2-meter radio he'll be talking to people in the local area and probably find a lot of people like him: retired and enjoying the company.
Of course, once he starts into the hobby, he'll find that there's a whole new bunch of things to learn and gadgetry to go with it. Before long he'll start pining for an HF rig and antenna, and an antenna tuner, and... oh, now you've really opened a pandora's box!
60 watts * 5.5 hours/day * 365 days/year = 120,450 total watts = 120 Kw. Around here electricity is around $0.10 / Kw, so your total power cost for a 60 watt bulb under these usage parameters is around $12/year. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think I'm going to save $23 on something that costs $12 to operate. Not that I'm against saving the electricity. I just don't like it when the numbers don't add up.