In many places in the USA, if it's below a certain maximum height, you don't need permission. If it's above that height, you may need more paperwork.
Zoning commissions also need a better reason than "I think towers are ugly" to deny a permit, or they can get in trouble with the FCC, which regulates telecommunications at the federal level.
It's a good thing we don't live in a democracy. The California initiative system is a good example of the problems with democratic political processes.
I'm not sure why any of the broadcast stations are bothering with it. If they really cared about audio quality, they wouldn't have an Optimod cranked up to 11 in their audio chain. Most people wouldn't believe how good a properly run AM or FM station can sound, they've never heard one.
The "rest of the planet" is a gross exageration, try Western Europe, South Korea and Canada, with limited availability of radios and small audiences. It's also based on a broadcasting model that is a poor fit for the United States.
Pan Am Flight 103, a 747, was destroyed by a bomb containing an estimated 400 g of plastic explosive. It broke up almost immediately after the bomb detonated.
I've read several reports of interference to avionics caused by portable CD players, which are not intentional transmitters.
One problem with FCC certification is that what gets certified is not always the same as what comes off the production line. I've heard stories about devices being tweaked and modified to pass testing, and then being put into production without those changes. Then there are manufacturers who don't even bother with testing and forge the regulatory approval markings.
Since we seem to be overrun with "important people", idiots, and "experts" who are sure that their device will not cause serious interference to aircraft systems. I suggest that the sky marshals be authorized to shoot anyone who ignores the instructions of the flight crew. That might make people think twice before engaging in behavior that endangers their fellow passengers. It would also provide a source of entertainment for the kiddies. How long can Mr. MBA yak on his cell phone before he gets capped by a sky marshal? Alternatively, we could just ask them to leave the sircraft, immediately.
Just about any device with high-speed digital circuits is a potential source of interference. It doesn't have to have a label saying "RF transmitter" on it to be one. Every IC is a potential signal source and every PCB trace is a potential antenna. Most of these problems could be avoided by enclosing the PCB in a shielded enclosure and putting bypass caps on any wire that leaves or enters the enclosure. Unfortunately, that costs money, something that mass-market manufacturers of consumer electronics are not going to spend unless they are forced to by government regulation.
Intentional RF transmitters have their own set of problems. Almost all transmitters have spurious outputs. They can be reduced to low levels by good design, but they are a potential source of EMI problems.
With multiple active transmitters, you have to worry about intermodulation. All it takes is two transmitters and a non-linear junction or device, such as a corroded connection, to produce new signals at the sum and difference frequencies of the transmitters. This type of interference is often transient and very difficult to diagnose and correct.
Of course, the US Navy would never allow them to be used for that purpose because the scientists might hear a [classified] sound from a [classified] vessel whose whereabouts are [classified].
Part of the problem is the current system for donating organs. Most organ donor cards, or license endorsements, are a blank check for the removal of organs and tissues. I will not sign such a card because it is incompatible with my religious beliefs, which do permit organ donation when there is a specific and immediate need, but prohibit the strip-mining of the body for organs and tissues that might be useful to someone.
Some contracts are void because they are against public policy. Prostitution is illegal in most places. You can't auction off a baby.
Society, via the law, has decided that an unrestricted market in human organs is undesirable. Do we want a society in which the poor are an organ bank for the rich?
While I like the idea of SMS, I hate the user interface on the cell phone. The text input methods are an ugly kludge and the buttons on the phone were designed for some other species.
It isn't that simple. You have to distinguish between fixed and variable costs, and know what truly drives your variable costs. The economics of bandwidth are not as simple as those for widgets. If the goal of the system is to deliver a specific QoS during peak usage periods, your variable costs are going to be driven by peak usage. The peak usage determines the amount of bandwidth that you need to buy, not the amount of traffic during off-peak periods. This means that the "cost" of a packet is highly variable.
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Zoning commissions also need a better reason than "I think towers are ugly" to deny a permit, or they can get in trouble with the FCC, which regulates telecommunications at the federal level.
It's a good thing we don't live in a democracy. The California initiative system is a good example of the problems with democratic political processes.
It shouldn't have any effect on wiretaps.
I'm not sure why any of the broadcast stations are bothering with it. If they really cared about audio quality, they wouldn't have an Optimod cranked up to 11 in their audio chain. Most people wouldn't believe how good a properly run AM or FM station can sound, they've never heard one.
The "rest of the planet" is a gross exageration, try Western Europe, South Korea and Canada, with limited availability of radios and small audiences. It's also based on a broadcasting model that is a poor fit for the United States.
Pan Am Flight 103, a 747, was destroyed by a bomb containing an estimated 400 g of plastic explosive. It broke up almost immediately after the bomb detonated.
You're a real asshole. Grow up.
One problem with FCC certification is that what gets certified is not always the same as what comes off the production line. I've heard stories about devices being tweaked and modified to pass testing, and then being put into production without those changes. Then there are manufacturers who don't even bother with testing and forge the regulatory approval markings.
If you want to destroy the plane, it's simpler to use a bomb. It doesn't take much in the way of explosives to rupture the fuselage.
Since we seem to be overrun with "important people", idiots, and "experts" who are sure that their device will not cause serious interference to aircraft systems. I suggest that the sky marshals be authorized to shoot anyone who ignores the instructions of the flight crew. That might make people think twice before engaging in behavior that endangers their fellow passengers. It would also provide a source of entertainment for the kiddies. How long can Mr. MBA yak on his cell phone before he gets capped by a sky marshal? Alternatively, we could just ask them to leave the sircraft, immediately.
Intentional RF transmitters have their own set of problems. Almost all transmitters have spurious outputs. They can be reduced to low levels by good design, but they are a potential source of EMI problems.
With multiple active transmitters, you have to worry about intermodulation. All it takes is two transmitters and a non-linear junction or device, such as a corroded connection, to produce new signals at the sum and difference frequencies of the transmitters. This type of interference is often transient and very difficult to diagnose and correct.
Every time I read it, I can't help thinking of Valspeak. Microsoft PlaysForSure? Gag me with a spoon!
I think it's more like China is too cheap to pay royalties on patented Western technology, so they invent new standards that avoid those patents.
I think you owe the Navy an apology.
http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/vents/acoustics/sosus_app s.html
No, never noticed it.
If you have to ask, you don't understand the problem.
I'm surprised that the victims' relatives haven't caught up with the ringleaders and arranged some involuntary organ and tissue donations.
Part of the problem is the current system for donating organs. Most organ donor cards, or license endorsements, are a blank check for the removal of organs and tissues. I will not sign such a card because it is incompatible with my religious beliefs, which do permit organ donation when there is a specific and immediate need, but prohibit the strip-mining of the body for organs and tissues that might be useful to someone.
Society, via the law, has decided that an unrestricted market in human organs is undesirable. Do we want a society in which the poor are an organ bank for the rich?
CRTs give me headaches and irritate my eyes, LCDs don't. How much is that worth? I'll never buy another CRT.
For better or worse, it's a different country. You might not like Blair, but would you rather have someone like Tony Benn?
While I like the idea of SMS, I hate the user interface on the cell phone. The text input methods are an ugly kludge and the buttons on the phone were designed for some other species.
My Cingular phone uses GSM, just not the same frequency bands as in Europe.
It isn't that simple. You have to distinguish between fixed and variable costs, and know what truly drives your variable costs. The economics of bandwidth are not as simple as those for widgets. If the goal of the system is to deliver a specific QoS during peak usage periods, your variable costs are going to be driven by peak usage. The peak usage determines the amount of bandwidth that you need to buy, not the amount of traffic during off-peak periods. This means that the "cost" of a packet is highly variable.
Therefore, the solution to our traffic problems is the demolition of the highway system.