The world premiere of an Einride T-pod, a level 4 autonomous, electric vehicle with a mass of 26 tons, on a public road in Jonskjöping, Sweden. 2019-05-15. Photo: Einride.
Robert Falck, a former Volvo executive, is founder and CEO of Einride. Together with, Jochen Thewes, CEO of DB Schenker, a major logistics company, and Mats Grundius, CEO of DB Schenker Cluster Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, he hosted a world premiere on Wednesday, 2019-05-15.
Einride and DB Schenker entered into a commercial agreement in 2018-04 that includes a pilot in Jönköping with an option for additional pilots internationally.
Einride’s signature product is a T-Pod truck. With a Gross Vehicle Weight of 26 tons, its most notable characteristics are its electric drive train, and autonomous driving capabilities. These two features reduce road freight operating costs by about 60 percent compared to a diesel truck with driver.
However, Einride wants more, a safe, efficient and sustainable road freight transport solution, that can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 90 percent
The T-Pod is level 4 autonomous, the second highest category. It uses a Nvidia Drive platform to process visual data in real time. An operator, sitting anywhere in the world but most probably in Jonsköping, can supervise and control up to 10 vehicles simultaneously. The T-Pod has permits from the Swedish Transport Agency to make short trips – between a warehouse and a terminal – on a public road in an industrial area in Jonkoping, located in central Sweden, at speeds of up to 5 km/h.
In 2018-11, Einride and DB Schenker initiated the first installation of an autonomous, all-electric truck or “T-pod” at a closed DB Schenker facility in Jönköping. It was the first commercial installation of its kind in the world.
On 2019-03-07 the Swedish Transport Agency concluded that the T-pod is able to operate in accordance with Swedish traffic regulations. On 2019-03-11, the agency approved Einride’s application to expand the pilot to a public road, within an industrial area – between a warehouse and a terminal. The permit is valid until 2020-12-31.
Since Einride is primarily a software and operations company, they are seeking a partnership with a truck manufacturing company.
Falck said Einride would apply for more public route permits next year (2020). It was also planning to expand to the United States.
The Solar (and battery) powered Sion EV, to be made by Sono Motors at the former Saab car plant at Trollhatten, Sweden. A more environmentally friendly choice than a methane powered vehicle. (Photo Sono Motors)
A study from the Munich-based IFO Institute for Economic Research, claims that battery electric cars are dirtier than those that are diesel powered. It proposes methane based, hydrogen vehicles. This study is significantly flawed.
IFO is an acronym from Information and Forschung (research). As one of Germany’s largest economic think-tanks, it analyses economic policy and is widely known for its monthly IFO Business Climate Index for Germany. Its research output is significant: about a quarter of the articles published by German research institutes in international journals in economics in 2006 were from IFO researchers. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find more recent data to support this claim. According to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung ranking, it is also Germany’s most influential economics research institute.
Part of the problem is the recycling of disproved research. The claim promoted by ICE (internal combustion engine) automakers and the fossil fuel industry, is that electric vehicles are worse for the environment because they are powered by dirty electricity.
Studies looking at overall emissions based on electricity generation have debunked this and showed that electric cars are cleaner and becoming cleaner as renewable energy is becoming an increasingly more important part of the electric grid. Previous studies have shown that EVs are cleaner than diesel no matter which European grid electricity is used.
The new twist in the new report, is that EVs use significant amounts of energy in the mining and processing of lithium, cobalt, and manganese, which are critical raw materials for the production of EV batteries.
The major error here, is an assumption that EV batteries become hazardous waste after 150 000 km or ten years. This is untrue. First, 150 000 km is shorter than the warranty period for an EV battery, which is generally 160 000 km.
There are requirements in place throughout Europe for the recycling of batteries. Even in a depleted state, they are valuable because lithium is a scarce resourse. Lthium ion batteries are not considered hazardous waste, although lead acid batteries are, because of the lead.
Cobalt and manganese are also recycled.
The study also concludes that methane-powered gasoline engines or hydrogen motors could cut CO2 emissions by a third and possibly eliminate the need for diesel motors. Again the conclusions are not matched by the facts.
Most hydrogen is produced using steam-methane reforming, a production process in which high-temperature steam (700°C–1,000°C) is used to produce hydrogen from a methane source, such as natural gas. Methane reacts with steam under 3–25 bar pressure in the presence of a catalyst to produce hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and a relatively small amount of carbon dioxide. Steam reforming is endothermic, heat must be supplied to the process for the reaction to proceed.
This is followed by a water-gas shift reaction, where carbon monoxide and steam are reacted using a catalyst to produce carbon dioxide and more hydrogen. In a final process step called pressure-swing adsorption, carbon dioxide and other impurities are removed from the gas stream, leaving essentially pure hydrogen. Steam reforming can also be used to produce hydrogen from other fuels, such as ethanol or propane.
Water-gas shift reaction
CO + H2O → CO2 + H2 (+ small amount of heat)
The production of 1 ton of hydrogen produced 19 tons of CO2.
Hydrogen can be produced through other processes, including the partial oxidation of methane, and the electrolysis of water. Neither is in significant use.
While Germany currently uses more coal power than most of Europe, it is cleaning up more quickly than most. By 2030, 2/3 of its energy will be provided by renewables. This was not considered in the study.
Other mistakes arise from using the flawed NEDC driving cycle. This gives unrealistically optimistic numbers for diesel emissions, and unrealistically pessimistic numbers for electrical emissions.
One of the most significant mistakes involves the comparison of the full production and lifecycle emissions of an electric vehicle, including the emission from the electricity uses, versus those for a diesel vehicle. Unfortunately, the study does not account for all the energy used to produce the diesel and supply it to the cars.
The German auto industry has under-reporting diesel emissions, going so far as to install cheat devises on vehicles. These emissions have caused thousands of deaths, something that billions in fines cannot compensate.
Fossil fuel extraction requires large amounts of energy, machinery and in many cases has detrimental effects on the environment. A Canadian favourite, tar sands oil, requires strip-mining tar mixed with sand, this has to be liquified and cleaned for transportation. Then there are transportation costs including tanker grounding, railcar derailments and pipeline leaks, all resulting in massive environmental damage, including ground water contamination.
Originally written: 2018.01.01 20:46;Updated 2019.05.03 15:00
20/20 vision is just so 19th century. In many locations it is referred to as 6/6, in Europe as 1.0. Vision acuity tests originate with their invention in 1843 by ophthalmologist Heinrich Kuechler (1811–1873), in Darmstadt, Germany.
Snellen Chart (Artwork: Jeff Dahl, based on public domain document)
In 1862, Dutch ophthalmologist Herman Snellen (1834 – 1908) developed an optotype to estimate visual acuity. Optotype? Most people call it by its synonym, eye chart. In full size, the E at the top will be 88.7 mm (3.5 inches) tall. The other letters are proportionately smaller. When viewed at a distance of 20 feet = 6096 mm, normally rounded down to six meters, acuity can be estimated based on the smallest line a person can read.
In 1888, Swiss born/ Paris resident Edmund Landolt (1846-1926) improved upon this with the Landolt C, a broken ring that uses the Snellen letter C. Both the stroke width and the gap are 1/5 of the diameter. The gap can be oriented in various positions. Normally, there are eight different alignments, each 45° apart. The person being examined must decide where the gap is. The size of the ring is reduced until a specified error rate is exceeded. The Landolt C is the standard chart used for acuity measurement in most European countries. It is specified in ISO standard 8596.
A Landolt C optotype. Not easy to find on the Internet, because many charts only show four positions, rather than the official eight.
In the first paragraph, 20/20 vision (and two equivalents) were referred to. 20/20 is just an American reference value for visual acuity. In the rest of the world this norm was called 6/6 vision. In Europe, they actually perform division on the numbers and end up with 1.0 to describe a condition where, at 6 meters distance, a human eye is able to separate contours that are approximately 1.75 mm apart. Vision of 20/40, 6/12 or 0.5 corresponds to lower, vision of 20/10, 6/3 or 2.0 to better performance.
Normal individuals have an acuity of, or better than, 20/13.3, 6/4 or 1.5, but it is dependent on age and many other factors. 20/20, 6/6 or 1.0 vision is not perfect or even particularly good acuity. It is simply good enough. To drive smaller commercial vehicles in Norway, 20/25, 6/7.5 or 0.8 acuity is required. For passenger vehicles the requirement is 20/40, 6/12 or 0.5.
A Nobe 100. Who needs more than three wheels? (Photo: Nobe)
The Nobe is 99% nostalgia, 1% practical motoring.
There are many different ways to judge technology. In looking at the Nobe’s electric design, it successfully plays on the strings of nostalgia. Of course it is a technologically advanced three-wheel drive battery electric vehicle. Designed and made in Tallinn, Estonia.
A nostalgic interior, with electric windows and air conditioning, but without airbags. (Photo: Nobe
In their mission statement, Nobe writes that they want to change people´s perceptions as well as their driving habits to finally make the electric car cool. They want to cross-wire rational analysis with emotions.
Their three-fold goal is to make the Nobe upgradeable, recyclable and sustainable, ending the disposable car. First, they want to make it easy for customers to upgrade their batteries, motor and electronics. Second, they want exterior panels to be swapable and recyclable. Third, they will never take/ send a Nobe to a scrapyard.
The Nobe features all-wheel drive. It is designed to grip the road and accelerate. Some versions are equipped with an optional M (muscle car) switch for increased power. The Nobe is equipped with dual batteries. The main battery puts power into each of the three powered wheels. A separate battery provides power for the supporting systems such as light, heat and entertainment.
When I first saw a Nobe, I found it an attractive vehicle. Since then, any thrill in the design has faded away. Of course the values expressed in the mission statement are admirable. Would I buy a Nobe? I don’t think so. Three wheels are only suitable for flatlands, Estonia or Michigan, not Norway or British Columbia.
When I look back at the 1960s, and at the height of my interest in cars, I was most interested in a white, second choice red, Triumph TR-4A. It was a road machine, suitable for the moutainous yet paved highways of British Columbia.
These days, a road machine has only limited appeal, if only because of its harsh yet functional suspension. In terms of sports cars, I am more attracted to a yellow or green Sunbeam Alpine that offered a softer ride, and more especially the 1964-5 Series IV, that featured a new rear styling, with more modest tailfins. It is pure nostalgia, a reminder that my first car was also made by Rootes Group, a Hillman Minx convertible.
I don’t have to buy a Nobe, a Triumph or an Alpine. In my dreams, I can drive any car I want, and it costs me nothing. Even the insurance, the fuel and any repairs are free. A bargain.
A Sunbeam Alpine IV at Horsted Keynes in 2012. Photo: Andrew Bone
The Nobe 100 has the following specifications:
Vehicle class: L5e – powered trike
Chassis: Steel tubing
Suspension: GAZ Gold Pro, custom
Body: Nextene, soundproof
Main battery: 21 kwh Li-On- or 25 kwh Li-On (GT)
Mobile battery: 4 kwh Li-On- or 5 kw Li-On (GT)
Range: 260 km combined: 210 on main 21 kwh battery, 50 km on additional, portable suitcase battery, or 310 km combined: 260 km main battery + 50 km on portable with 25 kwh battery.
Top Speed: 130 km/h
Engine: Three in-wheel electric motors, combined max power 76 kw
Drive: three-wheeled drive
Weight: 590 kg
Acceleration: 0–100 km/h 5,9 sec
Nobe has two doors, three seats and on the GT version, a removable Targa hardtop. The interior has Belize veneer details and brushed steel.
Some of my ancestors were living as First/ Tribal Nations people in the Mid-Atlantic states, 10 000 years ago. Others, were most likely living in Doggerland, at the same time. At least that is the story according to 23&Me, and their interpretations of my Y-chromosome haplogroup’s DNA, (I-M253/I-Z58).
Here is some conjecture about Doggerland’s past.
Extent of the Last Glacial Maximum in Eurasia source: Mangerud et al 2004, Quaternary Science Reviews 23 (2004) 1313–1332, doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2003.12.009
During the Last Glacial Maximum, which ended around 18 000 BP = before present, the North Sea, Scandinavia and much of what is now coastal northern Europe was covered with glacial ice. The sea level was about 120 m lower.
Land bridge between the mainland and Britain – Doggerland and Dogger Bank. Comparison of the geographical situation in 2000 to the late years of the Vistula-Würm Glaciation. (Illustration: Francis Lima, 2016)
After the ice melted, a watershed emerged. The Seine, Thames, Meuse, Scheldt and Rhine rivers joined and flowed west along the English Channel as a wide slow river before eventually reaching the Atlantic Ocean. At about 12 000 BP the north-facing coastal area of Doggerland had a coastline of lagoons, salt marshes, mudflats and beaches as well as inland streams, rivers, marshes and lakes. Many regard it as the richest hunting, fowling and fishing ground in Europe in the Mesolithic period.
As sea levels rose and the land began to tilt in an isostatic adjustment as the huge weight of ice lessened. Gradually a large tidal bay emerged between eastern England and Dogger Bank by 11 000 BP. This was followed by a rapid sea-level rise, leading to both Dogger Bank and Great Britain becoming separate islands. Doggerland eventually became submerged, cutting off what was previously the British peninsula from the European mainland by around 8 500 BP.
Soon after about 8 200 BP the remaining coastal land was flooded by a megatsunami, caused by the Storegga Slide, a submarine landslide off the coast of Norway. This would have had a catastrophic impact on the contemporary coastal Mesolithic population It has been suggested that the only remaining parts of Doggerland at the time of the Storegga Slide were low-lying islands, and that the area had been abandoned. However, the Dogger Bank, an upland area of Doggerland, remained an island until at least 7 000 BP.
An alternative view speculates that the Storegga tsunami devastated Doggerland but then ebbed back into the sea. Lake Agassiz was a very large glacial lake in central North America. Fed by glacial melwater at the end of the last glacial period, its area was larger than all of the modern Great Lakes combined although its mean depth was not as great. When it burst releasing so much fresh water that sea levels over about two years rose to flood much of Doggerland and make Britain an island.
Archaeology
The prehistoric existence of Doggerland was established in the late 19th century. However, it was Bryony Coles in the 1990s, who named the area Doggerland and produced speculative maps of the area.
Non-Fiction literature
Coles, B. J. (1998). “Doggerland: a Speculative Survey”. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society. 64: 45–81. doi:10.1017/S0079497X00002176.
Gaffney, V.; Thomson, K.; Fitch, S., eds. (2007). Mapping Doggerland: The Mesolithic Landscapes of the Southern North Sea. https://www.academia.edu/2480682/Mapping_Doggerland_the_Mesolithic_Landscapes_of_the_Southern_North_Sea: Archaeopress.
Gaffney, Vincent; Fitch, Simon; Smith, David (2009). Europe’s Lost World: The Rediscovery of Doggerland. Council for British Archaeology. ISBN 1-902771-77-X.
Moffat, Alistair (2005). Before Scotland: The Story of Scotland Before History. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-05133-7. Discussed in depth in chapters 2–4.
Morelle, Rebecca (4 April 2017). “Evidence of ancient ‘geological Brexit’ revealed”. BBC News. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
Spinney, Laura (December 2012). Robert Clark (photog.); Alexander Maleev (illus.). “The Lost World of Doggerland”. National Geographic. 222 (6): 132–143. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
Julia Blackburn, Time Song: Searching for Doggerland (2019). Roger Cox, reviewing in The Scotsman, writes: “To describe Time Song as a non-fiction book about the history of Doggerland makes it sound dry and academic, but Julia Blackburn’s approach is anything but. At one point, she describes her modus operandi as “trying to learn prehistory hand to mouth as I go along” and that’s a more-or-less accurate description of what it feels like to read her writing. There is certainly no handy potted chronology of Doggerland to hang onto; instead, the author describes a series of encounters she has with some of the people who have devoted their lives to searching for traces of this long-gone landmass, from archaeologists to obsessive enthusiasts, and uses these as jumping off points to help her imagine what life must have been like in the flat, open country that once stretched all the way from East Anglia to Holland.” See: https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/books/book-review-time-song-searching-for-doggerland-by-julia-blackburn-1-486859
Fictional Accounts
H. G. Wells referred to it in his short story, A Story of the Stone Age (1897). More recently,
Stephen Baxter, Stone Spring (2010) is a science fiction novel set in prehistoric Doggerland (renamed, Northland). It focuses on attempts to adapt to the rising sea levels slowly eroding Northland’s coastline. It is the first part of a trilogy detailing an alternate history in which human efforts were able to prevent Doggerland from being flooded. It was followed by Bronze Summer (2011) and Iron Winter (2012).
A more modern and dystopian story was written by Ben Smith, Doggerland (2019). Alan Warner, reviewing in the Guardian writes, “Ben Smith’s powerful debut novel takes us offshore into a polluted future and to a singular seascape – a vast wind farm of more than 6,000 turbines somewhere out on Dogger Bank. Jem, who is presumably in his mid-teens, and “old man” Greil, who is clearly unwell and weakening, live in serfdom aboard an abandoned, dilapidated accommodation rig; they use an electric boat to maintain the decaying wind turbines that extend for up to 80 miles around them. It is a losing battle against limited tools, bad weather and ill health. These custodians of rust are visited at unpredictable intervals from the coast by the menacing Pilot, who moves freely on a small supply vessel, delivering vital but unappetising tinned food. The Pilot resembles a jailer who also barters for extras.” See: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/apr/11/doggerland-ben-smith-review
An electric-guitar store, at some unspecified location, somewhere in the world. Photo: Visitor 7
An electric guitar is an analog sound generator. The difference between an acoustic and an electric guitar is that the first uses a hollow, usually wooden box to amplify the sound, while an electric guitar needs to connect to another box filled with electronic components, generally referred to as an amp.
Any guitar amp here, will be judged solely on its ability to serve three areas where a guitarist needs an amp: 1) to practice, 2) to perform and 3) to record.
In this weblog post, two tribes of people will be encountered: musicians, more specifically members of the Guitarist clan and DIY hobbyists. Guitarists will be quickly dispatched. They know the type, size and brand of amp they want, typically a combo-amp that contains an amplifier and one or more speakers in a single cabinet. Many guitarists consider 40 Watts an appropriate size, although larger and smaller sizes are available. Jazz guitarists may opt for a Roland Jazz Chorus JC-40, rock guitarists for a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe 40. Satisfying their needs is very simple, involving three steps. They must:
Order an appropriate amp online.
Wait patiently by door with guitar, until delivery person arrives.
Unbox amp, plug in guitar (and electricity) and play.
The DIY tribe is not a big, friendly group. In fact, it may have as many people with psychological labels, as musicians. It is divided into at least three clans: cloners, tweakers and circuit benders. Yet, these clans have much in common. DIY tribespeople are difficult to satisfy. They are interested not in playing, but just in the process of building an amplifier. Once it is built, that is the end of their project. A cable may never actually be plugged into the amp. Beyond testing, the amp will probably never be turned on. It will join all those other barely finished, half-finished and barely started projects collecting dust/ rusting/ otherwise decaying in assorted areas of the house/ garage/ or great outdoors. In an effort to avoid collecting more junk, the DIYist may, in desperation, seek out a guitarist, upon whom he (yes, this type of person is almost always male) will bestow his creation.
Cloner clan
Cloners are DIY types who copy a preexisting design from a commercial manufacturer, often involving reverse engineering or the use of circuit schematic diagrams and/or printed circuit board (PCB) layouts. The legality of such a process never enters the mind of a cloner. The results of their labours are seldom for sale, and do not attract the attention of manufacturers. Clones are never perfect copies, since there may be obstacles involved in accessing specialty parts or undertaking mechanically construction. However, the circuit or other distinguishing features should be close to the original.
People recreate an existing design (i.e. clone) for many reasons. The design might be historically important but out of production. so the only way to obtain the component is to build it. Other considerations may relate to costs, sentimentality or skill development. A copy may be built to test design concepts or principles.
In 2019, a cloner will probably build a chip amp, possibly a Gainclone, the most commonly built and well-known amplifier project among hobbyists. It is simple to build and involves only a few readily accessible, inexpensive parts.
The Gainclone is based on a 1999, 47 Labs Gaincard amplifier, an unconventional design with fewer parts, less capacitance and simpler construction than most amplifiers preceding it. It used a 56-watt chip, the National Semiconductor LM3875. This construction breached accepted wisdom, which favored large power supplies and discrete components. The DIY community started building replicas or clones of the Gaincard, which soon became known as Gainclones. Today, chip amp or chipamp is used rather than Gainclone, to describe IC amplifiers made by amateurs.
Tweaker clan
Tweaker clan members spend their time replacing mass market components. The tweaker I remember best did not make amplifies as such, but electronic organs. His starting point was a cheap consumer brand organ (Hammond?). He replaced each and every resister on it with one that was within a fraction of a percent of the ideal value that he had calculated. He had a large business in the Vancouver area, revitalizing church organs. The replacement of cheap/ inferior mass market audio components with high quality substitutes is the modus operandi of the Tweaker clan. Other audio components commonly replaced include capacitors (recap) and operational amplifiers. Op-amps provide power. Since most op-amps have the same pinouts, they can easily be replaced with higher specification components.
Circuit bending clan
The Circuit bending clan is interested in the creative customization of circuits. In the 1950s and 1960s it existed as the Kit building clan, with the Heathkit sept being a large and powerful force, until it suddenly disappeared without a trace. More modern clan members use conventional electronics to experiment. They dismantle machines, adding and sometimes subtracting components such as switches and potentiometers. Members of this clan value noise as much as music, unfortunately.
More recently, additional septs have emerged in the circuit bending clan, focused on microcontrollers. The Arduino and Raspberry Pi septs are currently the two largest, but the ESP32 and Micro:bit septs are increasing their presence.
Physiology
While the human ear is a marvelous piece of biological engineering, it is far from ideal. The frequency range of hearing is limited, as is its ability to perceive sound pressure. Low dB sounds go unheard, while high dB sounds can permanently damage delicate biological machinery. Hearing ability decreases with age and with exposure to loud sounds, such as rock and roll played at 100 dB, evening after evening. As living creatures, natural selection has favoured some characteristics over others, so that surviving humans are often those who are able to make the most judicious compromises.
Overselling audio
The High Fidelity Society (HFS) will be used as a pseudonym for a business enterprise that sells audio receiving equipment with characteristics that far exceed human hearing capabilities. Yes, I have at one time been the target of a HFS seller who attempted to insult me into purchasing audio equipment I didn’t want or need. Such purveyors use an assortment of unconscionable tactics as a sales strategy. If a dynamic range of 20 to 20 000 Hz is good, then 10 to 30 000 Hz must be better, and 5 to 40 000 best of all. They pretend they can hear the difference. They can’t. Biology puts limits on what people can sense. The commonly stated range of human hearing is 20 Hz to 20 kHz, but sometimes the lower range limit stated is above 30 Hz, and the upper range limit may be 19 or even 17.5 kHz.
Working back from the ear, there is a chain of components that shape sound from an electric guitar: vibrating air set in motion by one or more loudspeakers, optionally, a cable to a power amplifier that produces a high current signal to drive each loudspeaker, that at a most basic level are operated with control knobs including vertical faders to control multiple frequency bands, a real or virtual pre-amp with real or virtual controls that modify tone-shaping electrical circuits or software equivalents, a cable between the guitar and the amplifier potentially eliminated by some form of wireless technology, on the guitar itself – up to multiple pickups, possibly a vibrato bar/ unit, usually volume and tone knobs, any number of strings, a pick held by a human, hopefully with fingers.
Sometimes life may not be so simple. Between the preamp and power amp stages there may be an effects loop or some dedicated amplifier tone circuits. Pre-amps may be stacked into multiple stages (gain stages) which may provide feedback loops from a post-preamp signal to an earlier pre-preamp signal.
Guitars may have passive tone controls, active equalizer circuits in built-in preamps, pickup selector switches and more. There may be other devices between the guitar and the preamp, such as a pedal or other effects.
As one progresses back over from component to component, it is important to know what can be sensed or measured and what can be ignored. At some point one will have to learn something about the propagation of sound. It will be especially important to learn how to make electronic effects: equalization, compression, distortion, chorus, reverberation and more.
Tube vs Solid-state
When a guitarist is dependent on a single tube-based combo-amp, extra tubes had better be taken to every gig. While nobody will notice if a stack or two out of a hundred or more fail to operate become some roadie didn’t pamper it sufficiently and caused a delicate tube to fail, they will notice if a vacuum tube combo-amp fails!
Risking the wrath of one of my closest relatives, I will suggest that using a tube based amplifier, is equivalent to using a cathode ray tube (CRT) based television. There was a time in the previous century when such a choice was justified, but that ended many years ago.
Technological advancements have made low-wattage solid-state amplifiers viable. These are less expensive to build and maintain, reduce the weight and heat, are more reliable and shock-resistant. High-end solid-state amplifiers are uncommon, because many professional guitarists still favor vacuum tubes. Some jazz guitarists are part of a minority that favor the cleaner sound of solid-state amplifiers. The Roland Jazz Chorus, is possibly the best known high-end solid-state amplifier.
Modeling Amplifiers
Modelling amplifiers use microprocessors and software to create digital effects. These can be programmed using a USB or equivalent connection with a desktop computer or laptop, and potentially a tablet or cell-phone.
A modeling amp with plugs for a guitar, a generic pedal, a microphone or two can imitate specific amplifiers (real or imaginary), that can provide an infinitely large number of sounds and tones, of which some might actually be desirable. This ability to simulate specific characteristics comes in a package weighing less than 1 kg (2 pounds).
The secret is to construct a full range, flat response (FRFR) amplification system as the output unit of the modeling amplifier. Guitar input is processed using software based sound processors in the signal chain before the amplifier. This allow guitarists to use PA systems and powered speakers without worrying about their sound being coloured by the amplification process.
The approach is to digitize the input signal and use digital signal processing (DSP) with a dedicated microprocessor. This is an inexpensive and compact device. A dedicated standalone modeler can be connected directly to a recording device or PA system without having to use a power amplifier, speaker cabinet or microphone
Modeling amps include the Peavey Vypyr, Deplike, Roland Cube, Fender Mustang, and Line 6 Spider series. Many DIYers will attempt to clone these using schematic diagrams and other materials intended for service and repair.
Fender Limited-Edition Hot Rod Deluxe IV 40W 1×12 Tube Combo Amp Lacquered Tweed An amplifier suitable for a musician. Photo: Fender
Hot Dog 40 Digital Guitar Combo Amp Specification
Model name: Hot Dog 40
Amplifier Type: Digital
Speaker: One - 12 inch (300 mm) speaker
Inputs: One - 1/4 inch input, 3.5 mm AUX input
Outputs: USB Recording Output, 3.5 mm Headphone Output
Channels: One
Controls: To be determined
Effects: To be determined
Wattage: 40 Watts
Cabinet Material: 5/8 inch (16 mm) plywood
Covering: To be determined
Grille Cloth: To be determined
Handle: Integrated Top-Mount Handle
Controls: Plastic knobs, computer control
Other Features: Digital Chromatic Tuner, Bluetooth Audio Streaming, WIFI
Footswitch: Generic
Dimensions (HxWxD): 16 x 16 x 8 inches (400 x 400 x 200 mm)
Design Weight: < 22 lbs (10 kg)
Trøndelag patriots claim Trøndelag is a miniturized version of Norway. Nature and technology, with lots of space. Here, Trondheim’s Fjord, the Fosen Peninsula and Skarnsund Bridge as seen from Inderøy, in January.
Welcome to a Norwenglish lesson, designed to help you learn a few Norwegian words, and some aspects of the Norwegian culture.
Identity
Personnummer (identification number) This 11 digit number is the equivalent of an American Social Security number or Canadian SIN. It provides the owner’s date of birth in clear text in the first six digits, but cannot distinguish the century. It also codes for binary gender in the ninth digit – odd numbers for males, even numbers for females. Not particular appropriate in a society where people face age and sex discrimination.
Folkeregister (population register) This is a database that tells where every resident lives. One of the newer iterations of this was to encode street addresses, so that emergency services could find their way to every building in the country. From the start of a street, odd numbers are on the right hand side, even numbers on the left. Our house number, 82, indicates that our driveway starts somewhere between 820 and 840 meters from the start of the road, on the left hand side.
Possessions
Hus (house) also referred to as an enebolig (single family dwelling) is the standard occupancy unit for families. Apartments are far less common than in Sweden, for example.
Hybel (dorm room) takes what would be storage space in a house and transforms it into rental accommodation, typically for students. In addition to providing a place to live, it also gives the house owner a number of tax advantages.
Garasje (garage) is a building used to store anything and everything, with the exception of a car. Building a garage is a side effect of renting out dorms.
Bil (car) is a public display of outdoorsmanship, rather than wealth. While Norwegians are increasingly becoming more European, and buying more SUVs, they have for many decades prioritized station wagons, where other nationalities would choose sedans, or at least hatchbacks. In an idealized world, a car is used to transport people to the mountains or the seashore – for recreational purposes. Unfortunately, in the real world, it is most often used to commute. The word bil itself shows how many Norwegian words are created. In this case take automobil, discard the front, and use the tail of the word. In contrast, Germans use the front, Auto.
Tilhenger (trailer) has two related meanings. Literally, it means follower, sometimes translated as believer. However, it also refers to a poor person’s pickup truck. Most cars are equipped with a krok (literally hook but implying hitch or tow bar). These are used for trips to the local recycling center as well as visits to Ikea. One would never dream of buying a car, without knowing the mass of trailer it is allowed to pull. Ordinary mortals are allowed to pull 700 kg, but with a special license higher weights are permitted. We have a trailer with a weight limit of 2 000 kg, but our Mazda 5 is only allowed to pull 1 200 kg. The trailer weights almost 400 kg, so we can take 800 kg of junk to the dump at a time.
Båt (boat) today usually refers to something made of fiberglass, powered by a 9.9 hp outboard motor. Fishing is the common excuse used by people to explain their presence on the water. People born in 1980 or later, need to have a boat operator certificate. Those born before are grandparented in.
Naust (boathouse) comes from an age before boat trailers became common. It is a building at the edge of the shore used to house boats, fishing equipment and all things nautical. Nausts don’t like to be alone, so there are often several of them in a line. Like a garage it has an alternative use as a bar and dance floor used specifically on Sakthans (Saint John’s Eve). Celebrations start at sunset on 23 June. This closely coincides with the Midsummer solstice. In addition, the celebration features burning of pyres, the higher the fire, the better.
Ski (skis) are wooden sticks used to propell a person across the countryside during the winter. Purists will only reluctantly admit alpine (or downhill) skiing, favouring a Nordic (or cross-country) variety, or ski jumping or the biathon which combines cross-country skiing with rifle shooting. Many of the best competition skiers come from Trøndelag, including Inderøy.
Hytte (cabin) is home away from home. If this is to be used at Easter (or during the winter) it should be located in a mountainous area. If it is to be used during the summer, it should be located by the sea. Increasingly, people are finding it more convenient to rent an apartment in the mountains for a week, or to buy a boat with live-aboard accommodation. Since we live in a hyttefelt (cabin community) we feel no need for an extra cabin.
Julebord (Christmas party) is one of those obligatory events featuring excessive amounts of traditional Christmas foods, that vary according to the region, and – optionally – excessive amounts of almost anything else. Foreigners are never quite sure if jul (pronounced yule) is a Christian or a pagan celebration, for it seems to accommodate liberal amounts of both.
Obsolescence
Postkontor (post offices) have closed down, but reopened as post-i-butikk (post-in-the-shop), moving to a large grocery store in each area previously served by a post office. Hours have expanded to match that of the shops, which for us means from 7:00 to 22:00 (10 pm) Monday to Friday ; 9:00 to 21:00 (9 pm) on Saturday; closed on Sunday. This is where we come to pick up most on-line purchases, although if we were willing to pay more, some can be delivered to the door. Yes, we still have mail delivery, but this has been reduced to five days a week.
Bank (bank) size and services are being reduced. First, the bank bok (bank book) was eliminated. Kontanter (cash) is seldom required any more. Bankkort (debit and credit cards) are used in stores and for on-line purchases. While there was a period when a minibank (ATM/ cash machine) was to be found outside any bank, these have been reduced in number. Most food stores offer cash back when making purchases, since each and every bank card has approved picture ID on its reverse. Sjekk (cheque/ check) was a payment system that was in use when we first moved to Norway. The last check we wrote in Norway was in 1992. We have two 10 kroner mynt (coins) in the car to use at stores that require a coin to be inserted in order to use a handelvogn (shopping buggy). We only shop at one store now, that has this prehistoric condition. In addition, there is Vipps which is cell-phone based payment system.
Fasttelefon (landline) is dying fast. When we first moved to Norway in 1980 there was a ten year waiting list to receive one. When we moved to Bodø in 1985, we were able to get one installed in two weeks. The number of landlines reached a peak of about 2 million in 2001. Since then numbers have deteriorated to 200 000. Last month the telephone company announced that they would no longer repair service to the remaining phones, and said the last ones would be eliminated in 2023. This anouncement was met with outrage. We have not had a landline since the beginning of 2019.
Fjernsyn (television, literally distant vision) is doomed. Nobody under the age of 40, some would say 50, watches programs according to a television schedule. That is performed as a matter of public service to the elderly. Most of the population stream programs at their convenience. The exception, of course, is sports.
The Kaiyun Pickman is a Low Speed Electric Vehicle, aka Neigbourhood Electric Vehicle.
Wang Chao is an optimist. The founder of Kaiyun Motors hopes to transition owners of Ford F-150 pickups over to a Kaiyun Pickman. The Pickman is now NHTSA-approved for sale in USA and equivalently approved in Europe, where it is being sold in Germany and Italy.
While reports on the vehicle in January 2019, stated that it would cost $5 000 in USA and €5 000 in Europe, the American price had escalated to $9 000 by the middle of February, for a street-legal version; about $6 000 for a farm version.
While there must be caveats about the lack of safety features, the Pickman is undoubtedly an appropriate farm vehicle in rural environments, and a suitable vehicle for urban tradespeople. It is inappropriate for a daily commute involving any form of highway driving.
The Pickman is an example of a Low Speed Electric Vehicle, ususally referred to as a Neighborhood Electric Vehicle (USA) or Quadricycle (Europe). These are defined by limitations in terms of mass (weight), power and speed. All quadricycles must have a top speed of 45 km/h or less. In USA the limit is usually 25 mph or 40 km/h. In Europe, there are two categories: light quadricycles (L6e) and heavy quadricycles (L7e). A L6e EV must have a curb weight of 425 kg or less, and an electric motor producing 4 kW or less. A L7e EV must have a curb weight of 450 kg or less (passenger vehicles) or 600 kg or less (goods vehicles), The load capacity must be 200 kg or less (passenger vehicle) or 1000 kg or less (goods vehicle), with a maximum net engine power of 15 kW or less. .
The Pickman is powered by a 4 kW permanent magnet based electric motor with an asynchronization intelligent controller, mated to a 72V lead-acid battery pack providing 100 Ah or 7.2 kWh (26 MJ) of energy. Top speed is 45 km/h and range is 120 kilometers. There is some discussion about the load capacity. Some figures, in the table below are taken from a Chinese version, which appears to have a load capacity of 300 kg. The accuracy of the figures below is not guaranteed!
Specifications for base 2019 models
Pickman
F-150
Length/ mm
3 245
5 316
Width/ mm (excluding mirrors)
1 320
2 029
Height/ mm
1 460
1 918
Wheel Base/ mm
2 078
3 109
Ground clearance/ mm
150
224
Load capacity (including driver/ passengers)/ kg
500
846
Curb weight/ kg
680
2 008
Note: Curb weight is the total weight of a vehicle with standard equipment, all necessary operating consumables such as motor oil, transmission oil, coolant, air conditioning refrigerant, and a full tank of fuel, while not loaded with either passengers or cargo. Note: In Europe, the mass of the batteries is excluded when determining vehicle curb weight.
A Renault K-ZE is being considered as an electric vehicle. One headline explained it all. “New Renault City K-ZE revealed in Shanghai as cheap electric SUV.” Yes, the operational word is cheap. This is not the only operative word in my automotive vocabulary. Safe, electric and autonomous are also important words. Tall is also important, as in 1 600 or higher vehicle height. However, tall is also important in terms of ground clearance in a snowy, poorly plowed landscape. Here, 180 mm (as in K-ZE) sound much more impressive than 120 mm (as in Zöe).
The K-ZE will not be available in Europe before 2021, at the earliest. Between now and then, there will be a lot of different EVs to consider, including the following already available: Kia e Niro, Kia Soul, Hyundai Kona, Renault Zöe, Citroen e Mehari, as well as the proposed Volkswagen I.D., Buzz and Buggy. If the range of a Citroen Berlingo could double beyond its current 170 km, it would be close to the top of the class. The same could also be said about the Renault Kangoo. The Nissan Evalia/ e NV200 gets slightly better range, but is much more expensive, eliminating it from the list of potential products.
Note: Some people may mistakenly believe that a Citröen 2CV represents my ideal car. This has never been the case. I much prefer utility vehicles such as the 2CV AZU Fourgonnette panel van, and its successors, the AK 400 Fourgonette, and the Acadiane. My interest stops there, avoiding the C15 entirely, and beginning again with the Berlingo.
When I looked at the interior of the Renault K-ZE, I focused my attention on the number of actuators (buttons) a driver would have to press, turn or otherwise manipulate. In contrast to many current cars, there seemed to be few. In many respects, European economy vehicles such as a Fiat 600 Multipla, Hillman Husky, Morris Minor 1000 Traveller, Renault 4 or even a slightly less practical but more popular Volkswagen Beetle of the 1960s have always represented a personal gold standard in terms of actuator manipulation.
While the K-ZE is based on the Renault Kwid, dimensions of the new vehicle have not been released, so Kwid dimensions have been used in the table below.
Specification
K-ZE (Kwid)
Zöe
Length/ mm
3 679
4 084
Width/ mm
1 579
1 730
Height/ mm
1 513
1 562
Ground Clearance Unladen/ mm
180
120
Wheel Base/ mm
2 422
2 588
Cargo Volume/ litres
300
338
Passengers
5
5
Currently, the Renault Zöe costs NOK 215 000 (which is about the equivalent of USD 26 000/ CAD 36 000). This includes NOK 15 000 for the installation of a battery charger. The range of the Zöe is 240 km, and the expected range of the K-ZE is 250 km, both calculated using the NEDC-cycle. It is stated that the K-ZE will cost less than the Zöe.
Range is not a major consideration. The vehicle would have to have an ability to make a weekly run to pick up supplies in Straumen (13 km away = 26 km round trip), Steinkjer (35 km away = 70 km round trip) or make a day trip out to the coast. Yesterday’s daytrip to Ørlandet was 317 km. In the future, this might have to involve an overnighting, because of charging challenges. However, this fact makes vehicles with a longer range more attractive.
Normal charging at home (AC) was a challenge for Zoe, and could create problems for the K-ZE, since the vehicle could only be charged on a TN-net (400V 3-phase). This challenge was partly solved by providing a dedicated charging box and associated separator (which in essence “converts” 230V 1-phase to 3-phase).
Another aspect of this problem, has been solved by the Stavanger company Zaptec AS, that developed a small charging cable, with a built-in separator. With this, a Zoe can be charged without problems. The charging power is 10A with this cable.
NORMAL CHARGING: Charging with 2.3 kW / 10A takes 20 hours / 3.6 kW / 16A takes 12-13 hours / 11 kW / 16A (3-phase) takes 3 hours and 20 min / 22 kW / 32A (3-phase ) takes an hour and 40 minutes. QUICK CHARGE: The Zöe should be able to load 0-80 percent in less than an hour in the summer (with 43 kW AC found in a few places), but can take much longer in the winter. DC quick charging is not possible.
Some people face more challenges than others. Members of the Afghan all-girls robotics team make adjustments to a team robot in the practice area in Washington D.C. on 2017-07-17. These young Afghan women are renown for their resilience and resolve. Their visas to USA had been rejected twice. Despite this, when they arrived at the last minute, their team came in second place. Later in 2017-11-27, they won first place at the Entrepreneurial Challenge, for the Robotex festival, in Tallinn, Estonia. Their challenge was to showcase a prototype that could solve a real-world problem, and that customers would want to buy. They won with a robot that could use solar energy to support small-scale farmers in their fields. (Photo: Paul J. Richards)
For the past three days I have spent my working hours fighting off a virus while pondering some fundamental concepts related to a community mechatronics workshop, that should be opening soon in Inderøy.
Ideally, this workshop should be all things to all people, or at least, a few different things to a few different groups of people. The challenge is, that one has only NOK 250 000 to equip the workshop, whereas one needs about NOK 1 000 000. The area is 70 square meters, and one room. What one needs is 200 square meters and five different rooms.
Rather than spreading investments over several fields, and ending up with nothing, a decision was taken to focus exclusively on mechatronics. Once this is in place and functioning well, then other areas can be prioritized at some unspecified point in the future.
Then there is the challenge of a name. What might seem like an obvious choice, a seemingly innocent term, such as maker space proves difficult to use in practice. Why? Well, maker is a political term, and is frequently usurped by people with vested interests. John Patrick Leary lists maker as one of his keywords, in his 2018 book, Keywords. Libertarians, in particular, have seized on this title. Other terms, such as hack space, have also been usurped, but by the socialist hoard, political adversaries of libertarians.
Before confronting the socialist hoard hackers, who are theselibertarians and what do they want? A quick, but necessarily incomplete, answer to the question is, followers of Ayn Rand (1905 – 1982). Admittedly there are exceptional libertarians who dislike Rand, but they are in the minority. Rand is known especially for two novels, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, and for a philosophical system she called Objectivism, that has inspired many libertarians. Mother Jones, the San Francisco based investigative magazine, remarked that “Rand’s particular genius has always been her ability to turn upside down traditional hierarchies and recast the wealthy, the talented, and the powerful as the oppressed.” (July-August 2009).
Rand is not noted for anything approaching political correctness. In her biography Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right, Jennifer Burns notes how Rand’s position that “Native Americans were savages” and that as a result “European colonists had a right to seize their land because native tribes did not recognize individual rights.” (p. 266) She has offered similar opinions about the Arab populations of the Middle East.
As David Harvey, in A Brief History of Neoliberalism (2005), argues, Neoliberalization’s primary accomplishment has been to “redistribute, rather than to generate, wealth and income” (p. 159). In particular, he points to privatization and commodification of previously public assets, which he describes as the “Commodification of Everything” in which all things are turned into things with that can have rents extracted from, including intangible ideas like originality, authenticity, and uniqueness, which “were never actually produced as commodities.” (p. 166) .
Much of the libertarian movement could be described as “me first”. It wants to reward the aggressive. At this point it could be appropriate for readers to take a pause, and read Debbie Chachra’s essay, Why I am Not a Maker: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/01/why-i-am-not-a-maker/384767/
The point of the above essay is that a community workshop is not just a workshop for the few. There are a large number of social interactions that have to be facilitated. There are youth present who may be learning new skills, teachers who may be providing instruction, disabled people who may be in need of companionship, people of many genders who may want to create a new and for them, a more appropriate identity. While there may be people who may be making, there may be others who are repairing or repurposing or recycling or just reflecting on life.
I am particularly concerned that calling something a maker space, will in itself create an unintended hierarchy of users. In some maker spaces in Canada, it has been found that white, male youth, from privliged backgrounds, attempted to monopolize maker spaces, by defining themselves as its target group, and defining others as outside of that target group.
Such is the power of a name. I have previously argued for the use of a name that is the Norwegian equivalent of Velocity, a vector quantity that combines speed with direction. More importantly, it does not hint at what can or cannot be done in a workshop. There is no prestige to be lost if the organization changes direction. Velocity might be involved in mechatronics this year, then shift to fashion, cos-play and steampunk next year, before ending up as a videography group focused on rock musicals. It doesn’t make any difference, because the name is flexible.
Now it is time to look at more left-leaning hacker spaces. Left-leaning, but not necessarily egalitarian or diverse.
In V. Kostakis, V. Niaros & C. Giotitsas Production and governance in hackerspaces: A manifestation of Commons-based peer production in the physical realm? (2014) International Journal of Cultural Studies, Hacker space practices supposedly contrast with market-based maker space businesses in that they are more focused on for-benefit rather than for-profit projects but that for-profit motivations are not entirely absent. In this study of 23 semi-structured interviews with a sample of hacker spaces around the world found that money remains a peripheral concept only. Particpants are motivated by the social desire for hackers to have a ‘third place’ for social interaction. This refers to American urban sociologist, Ray Oldenburg (1932 – ) and the importance of informal public gathering places for a functioning civil society, democracy and civic engagement. In addition, there is the altruistic motivation of ‘making the world a better place’ through working on commons-oriented projects. However, it was also found that openness only applied in a limited sense. The barrier is not a door; it is social inclusion. In J. Moilanen Emerging hackerspaces–Peer-production generation Open Source Systems: LongTerm Sustainability (2012) pp. 94-111, 90 percent of respondents were male and 64 percent of respondents had a completed a post-secondary degree. Often hacker spaces are closed to non-members, most days of the week.
Collaboration and sharing were found to be important by six out of seven participants as evidence of collaboration in the spaces. In addition, some hacker spaces were committed to sharing projects with Commons-based licenses and favored people working on collective projects over personal ones. There was also a wide variety of ‘innovative’ hardware and software produced by hacker spaces and showed the underestimated power of meaningful human cooperation. At the same time there was community accountability, communal validation and autonomy. Participants cited trust and accountability as important pillars of hacker space operation.
A workshop needs legal status and governance. Most are non-profit organizations governed by elected boards, This is one of the first things that has to be put into place. An alternative is to nest the workshop within an existing organization, such a municipal public library. It needs membership fees and/ or funding. Often membership fees serve as the primary income source for a space though different membership levels or sliding-scale pricing. Some spaces receive grants or donations, as is the case with the workshop in Inderøy.
Workshops need physical space and equipment. Most start small but can grow into large spaces. One major challenge is finding adequate and affordable space. There is also a need for a workshop to abide by legal safety and ergonomic standards. Workshops may have issues with building codes, including fire protection and ventilation systems. There is also a need for liability insurance and waiver forms for adult participants.
The creation of a workshop involves much more than a group of individuals coming together to form a do-ocracy.
One major challenge is the inability for workshops to account/ bookkeep volunteer labour. It is far too frequently treated as a free resource without value. This is inappropriate. Personnel and mentor costs are valid costs. When local government is involved, they need to be efficient in allocating limited resources (even those provided by retired persons). Other underestimated costs have to do with externalities. Noise and physical damage are major concerns, given that workshops have noisier and messier activities. To reduce noise impact, workshops may have to be given insulated spaces and flooring, and by separated physically from other quieter activities.
Stakeholder support is another significant issue. It is important that workshop initiators communicate openly with everyone even remotely influenced by the workshop.
Operational
Cultural
Critical
Design
A
B
C
Produce
D
E
F
Interpret
G
H
I
Disseminate
J
K
L
A: Use a variety of tools, modes, media, and materials to design texts and artefacts. Re-design texts and artefacts.
B: Understand design principles within a specific social and cultural context, bringing their own experiences to bear on the task.
C: Reflect critically on design principles. Choose modes, media, and materials to use for specific purposes (e.g., to entertain,persuade, etc.) and for particular audiences.
D: Use a variety of tools, modes, media,and materials to produce texts and artefacts. Re-use/ re-purpose/ re-mix texts and artefacts effectively.
E: Draw on own social and cultural experiences in the creation of texts and artefacts. Allow feelings and emotions to shape the production experience.
F: Reflect critically on the process of production,to ask questions such as (i) How do I want topresent myself and others in this text or artefact? (ii) What messages do I want to convey?
G: Access and understand modes/ media/ materials used in the production of a text/ artefact. Comprehend meaning, interpret through analysis,reflection, synthesis. Relate text/artefact to own prior understandingand experience. Move beyond a literal to deductive andinferential reading.
H: Draw on own social and cultural experiences in the analysis and interpretation of texts and artefacts. Participate with others in collective reviewand interpretation. Understand texts and artefacts in relation to the social, historical, and cultural contexts in which they were produced. I: Reflect critically on the text or artefact that is being engaged with, to ask questions such as: (i) Who produced this? (ii) What can be discerned of the producer’s intentions? (iii) How has the producer positioned the reader/ viewer/ user? (iv) How do issues of power work in this context?
J: Able to use a variety of tools, modes, media,and avenues to disseminate texts and artefacts.
K: Understand most effective means of disseminating texts and artefacts within the social and cultural context. Reach out effectively to diverse audiences tocommunicate meanings.
L: Reflect critically on modes of dissemination, to ensure most effective use of them.
Marsh, J.; Kumpulainen, K.; Nisha, B.; Velicu, A.; Blum-Ross, A.; Hyatt, D.; Jónsdóttir, S.R.; Levy, R.; Little, S.;Marusteru, G.; et al. (Eds.) Makerspaces in the Early Years: A Literature Review; MakEY Project; University of Sheffield: Sheffield, UK, 2017; pp. 75–79. Available online: http://makeyproject.eu/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Makey_Literature_Review.pdf
To conclude. There are a wide range of issues in workshop governance that can emerge, many of which cannot be found in advance.
In Inderøy a mechatronic workshop may suit the needs of many potential participants. In other parts of the world, this would not be the obvious choice. Many women, especially, choose to work with tradtional textiles, while others feel more comfortable working with robots. Lowriders are a cultural phenomenon involving many American males of Latino background. People have many different interests, and develop many different skill sets.
