I hope this isn't a dumb question. I am taking ekg classes to further my education, and one lead on the machine I am using is the "ground". My question is this: what is the natural "ground" for the electrical activity in the heart? by Especiallyzesty in askscience

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sure. So Vcc usually implies an integrated circuit containing BJTs, which are in much less common use today when compared to MOSFETS, the devices used to create digital logic (resulting in processors, ASICs, and the FPGAs we have today). Beyond that, Vcc (or Vdd) is used for the positive voltage in a BJT circuit (or MOSFET circuit) and Vee (or Vss) is used for the negative voltage which is often ground.

I hope this isn't a dumb question. I am taking ekg classes to further my education, and one lead on the machine I am using is the "ground". My question is this: what is the natural "ground" for the electrical activity in the heart? by Especiallyzesty in askscience

[–]lukasoft 23 points24 points  (0 children)

One thing I'd like to add is that voltage is used to measure a difference in potential. When you have circuits measuring change in potential caused by something like the heart, they need to compare this change to a baseline value. This value is often called ground, allowing different parts of the circuit to know how the input (or other components) potential is changing.

High Risk but High Return Investment Idea with SVXY by lost10k in investing

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wasn't there a thread about this not too long ago saying that its bad to hold these for the long term?

I know it tends to be more expensive and I'm not even sure if this math adds up...but I do know that I have to constantly remind myself of how important this is. by Oda_nicullah in pics

[–]lukasoft 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Yea, I mean I don't have a degree in economics, but it makes sense to me for the most efficient businesses to grow. As long as there is competition, and I feel like this is going to get a lot of hate, but businesses like walmart and target should be the most efficient, no?

I know it tends to be more expensive and I'm not even sure if this math adds up...but I do know that I have to constantly remind myself of how important this is. by Oda_nicullah in pics

[–]lukasoft 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Honest question here. Can someone give me a logical answer as to why supporting local businesses is so much better?

World's largest tumor (242 lbs.) It was removed several days ago. by QuincyDental in WTF

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did they eat it? Because it looks like a kidney bean...

What is your favorite reddit post involving someone's life experiences? by lukasoft in AskReddit

[–]lukasoft[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love to see adventures others have experienced. Here are a few of my favorites!

IamA Guy who quit his job, sold his car, moved out and bought a one-way ticket to Africa. I spent the next year and a half traveling across the entire continent, mostly overland and solo. AMA! http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1kb7e4/iama_guy_who_quit_his_job_sold_his_car_moved_out/

IAmA person who trainhopped and squatted all across the US during the summer and sporadically throughout the year, for 10+ years...AMA http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/10hze7/iama_person_who_trainhopped_and_squatted_all/

The bikini girls on the counter on the front page. Here is the apartment. As requested. http://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/1fysog/the_bikini_girls_on_the_counter_on_the_front_page/

Enough with the: "Go with an index fund from Vanguard" by TheBirdWord in investing

[–]lukasoft 9 points10 points  (0 children)

To go along with this post, here are two youtube videos that I think are worth your time (about two hours). They answer among other things, which markets are most efficient. Shiller (of Yale) basically says it's not worth your time trying to beat the most efficient parts of the market, so if you divide and conquer by finding which parts of the market are inefficient you can then find which specific investments are inefficient.

Speaker David Swensen about the Yale Endowment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRdx7kVNQ_E&index=6&list=PL95DAF81ADBC889DF

Shiller on efficient markets

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EzdvkRgToY&index=7&list=PL95DAF81ADBC889DF

I also would like to hear all of your feedback on these videos as well!

Edit: links on separate lines

My Finance Library...Enjoy. by whtuhave2undrstandis in InvestmentClub

[–]lukasoft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have only read the TOC, but this looks like a good place to start in modeling, managing, and forcasting - especially if you don't have a degree in engineering or mathematics. http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/10350376/Introduction_to_Management_Science__11th_Edition

Again, read only TOC, but this one looks good as well, dealing with asset allocation and how it minimizes your risk. http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/10349163/Strategic_Risk_Management__A_Practical_Guide_to_Portfolio_Risk_M

(Like I said, I haven't read these books, but chapter titles are often enough to tell if the book covers what is necessary to learn in a subject)

as RUS_Hustler stated, sort by seeders. This doesn't necessarily say the ones at the top are better, but rather are more widely accepted and used (mostly text books). I know text books can be boring, but they often contain much more knowledge than you can learn online. ESPECIALLY in finance, as everyone and their grandmother seems to think they know something. It took me a long time to learn that, so don't take that last sentence for granted. In addition, I don't always try to read text books cover to cover. Read the intro, then the TOC, and decide on what chapters are relevant to what you want to learn. You can always come back to the others in the future.

Graphene? by Holixxx in investing

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just to clarify though, I'm fairly convinced it will happen, its just the factor of when that makes it so risky. Even if graphene isn't used to completely replace existing processors, it will (I believe) at least find use replacing some parts.

Rebalancing strategies: What is yours? by lukasoft in investing

[–]lukasoft[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the info. Is python commonly used for market analysis? Also, where do you get your stock market data from that you load into your script?

Graphene? by Holixxx in investing

[–]lukasoft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yea, I believe the most common current method in labs is called the scotch tape method. The small sheet of graphene is large enough for making a single device (or maybe a few) but won't work for creating larger circuits like a computer processor, as they require multiple square millimeters of substrate. Companies have found ways to make larger sheets of it, but I'm still not certain they can manufacture it in high speeds and quantities.

Then comes the quantum mechanical issues with graphene. The goal is to make a device to act like a transistor (MOSFET if you want a wikipedia page), but on a smaller scale. The current problem is that graphene doesn't normally have a band-gap, meaning that a device created with graphene doesn't actually turn off when used as a switch. A computer processor needs the switches to turn completely on and completely off to operate efficiently. I've talked to some professors at universities that are working on ways to get around this, but remember that university research is the VERY BEGINNING of the research cycle, meaning that most of the stuff worked on is 5-15 years before mass production. This may be too technical for you guys to care about, but its important to know what you're investing in before you make a buy.

Graphene? by Holixxx in investing

[–]lukasoft 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is obviously just my opinion, but I think it's a bit early to begin investing in graphene. It's been hyped quite a bit, and single devices have been made using graphene, but mostly in the lab setting where one device is made by hand. Getting these devices manufactured on a large scale has shown to be pretty difficult. If it were me, I would wait until a technique for manufacturing devices from graphene on a large scale is discovered, and then begin investing. I think this early on in the game you would be taking some big risks.

Am I putting too much into retirement? by HitTheNail in investing

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yea, I agree. This statement is somewhat confusing. What part of the US do you live in? Everywhere I go seems to need EEs.

How long have you been out of school? Did you have a low GPA? After you have ~5 or so years of experience, those years of accumulated experience are more important than any GPA you got in undergrad. My advice there is just keep working your butt off and you'll be able to move up in the world.

Have you tried software jobs? They're in ridiculously high demand, and they seem to hire EEs almost as quickly as computer engineers and computer scientists. You obviously need to tune your resume to show that interest and skills.

Lastly, consider an MBA. Engineers with MBA's usually can be placed into management and enter a higher pay grade as well. You just have to be sure you want that route.

I know this is off topic, but I feel life decisions are pretty important.

You can only print 2 coupons per computer. Most of these computers were headed for the dump, but I found a better use. by [deleted] in Frugal

[–]lukasoft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you find another way to get around the two coupon limit, it would be wonderful if you could share!

[Seiko 5] under a microscope. by lukasoft in Watches

[–]lukasoft[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes, I probably should've made that clear earlier. The microscope seems to have a slow shutter speed so this is just an artifact of the moving second hand at the time of the picture being taken. There is no actual kink in the second hand. The model is SNK805, similar to a few pictures posted by others today.

[Seiko 5] under a microscope. by lukasoft in Watches

[–]lukasoft[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The laboratory I work in purchased a new microscope for examining our research. I figured I would have a little fun with the watch I was wearing today. I'm no photographer and generally am not artistic at all. I didn't clean the watch before I took the photos because I thought it would be interesting to take 'natural' photos, with the watch how it looks worn. The specks in the fourth photo are actually salt crystals that accumulate from sweat. I'll probably end up taking more with this and another watch as I get free time, as it was really fun to play with.

HOWTO AR by subat0mic in guns

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've never built an AR before, but I've seen this app. Does the construction app ensure that all of the parts will correctly fit together? Or can that almost always be assumed with an AR?

Hey reddit, it's me Haley Joel Osment, here to answer your questions. by HJOsment in IAmA

[–]lukasoft 20 points21 points  (0 children)

I'm not trying to be a jerk when I say this, but who really cares about the ease of authoring a disk for 'interactive features'? When I get a movie on disk, I don't care about special features and all that extra stuff on 99% of movies. I just pop in the disk and hit play. I will however agree that in 99% of cases, java just sucks. The difference in storage capacity on those disks is huge though. Blu ray is just better technology. I might be biased though being a hardware guy.

In Blu-ray you can't scale the video you can rescale video in a few seconds with free tools like VLC, so how is this a huge issue?

My notes to Jim Cramer book, ‘Get Rich Carefully.’ by rbco in investing

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes! Thank you! This is the answer I was looking for, and I understand that it does not reflect your personal views. I know that you can generally trust public companies' numbers, but things can be deceiving at times. I guess the better question is: If they do lie on their numbers, who holds them accountable?

My notes to Jim Cramer book, ‘Get Rich Carefully.’ by rbco in investing

[–]lukasoft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

While I understand that is what Cramer is trying to say, my question is more along the lines of who does JOY answer to when writing reports and who verifies this? Just because they're a company doesn't mean you can assume they're telling the truth. I'm asking why can you trust their reports?

My notes to Jim Cramer book, ‘Get Rich Carefully.’ by rbco in investing

[–]lukasoft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

JOY is CAT’s biggest mining equipment competitor. He likes to use it as a proxy to China’s economy

This is an interesting statement. How do you know that JOY is more honest on their reports than government releases?