Celebrating National Aviation Day With Video of F-35B Vertical Landing at Night on a Carrier Deck for the First Time

August 19, 2013 at 6:10 pm

via Lockheed Martin

Today, August 19th, is the U.S. National Aviation Day and what better way to celebrate than with a video of first night time vertical landing of F-35B on a carrier deck.  The video shows a U.S. Marine Corps test pilot performing the first night-time vertical landing aboard the USS WASP  on August 14 and it looks equal parts scary and awesome seen in the neon green glow of the night-vision camera. It is safe to say that it adds a new dimension and immense depth to the strike capability of a carrier group with this new feature added.

* Note: According to Wikipedia that National Aviation Day is observed to celebrate the development of aviation.  It was established in 1939 by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who issued a presidential proclamation which designated the anniversary of Orville Wright‘s birthday to be National Aviation Day (Mr. Wright, born in 1871, was still alive when the proclamation was first issued, and would live another nine years). The proclamation was codified (USC 36:I:A:1:118), and it allows the sitting US President to proclaim August 19 as National Aviation Day each year, if desired. His/her proclamation may direct all federal buildings and installations to fly the US flag on that day, and may encourage citizens to observe the day with activities that promote interest in aviation.

Friday Fun – This is how U.S. Government Takes Care of “Illegally” Imported Vehicles

August 16, 2013 at 5:11 pm

via Huffingtonpost

Apparently this is how the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (covers U.S. Customs and Border Patrol) takes care of imported vehicles with falsified documentation.. As Huffingtonpost notes,  this Land Rover Defender reached the Port of Baltimore with falsified identification numbers, claiming to be an older model.  But when the USCBP folks found out that this model is in fact newer and tinkered with to look “vintage”, they decided to junk it because it does not comply with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency regulations.  The seized vehicle — estimated to be worth $25,000 overseas but as much as $150,000 in the U.S. — was considered “illegal and unsafe,” officials said. Such a non-compliant vehicle cannot be imported unless it is at least 25 years old, officials said.   It seems that dozens of similar Defender vehicles have been seized in recent months at ports around the country and one can only imagine the rivers of tears shed by the owners when they learned the fate.

Infograph: Inside The Hyperloop – The 5th Form of Transportation?

August 9, 2013 at 5:00 pm

Mashable shared this nice infograph developed by Gocompare.com that breaks down the details of the much anticipated Hyperloop, a new form of transportation backed by innovative entrepreneur Elon Musk.  It warrants attention, knowing it is backed by Elon Musk, who has already wowed the world with his transportation ventures like SpaceX and Tesla. It is expect that Elon Musk will unveil the Alpha design and discuss the details of the Hyperloop on August 12.. Can’t wait!

Image Courtesy: GoCompare.com via Mashable.com

 

Job Alert: Community Organizer – San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

August 7, 2013 at 7:11 pm

The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is seeking a seasoned, effective organizer to work on expanding bicycling and bicycling infrastructure in San Francisco. If you are passionate about bicycling, and passionate about increasing the diversity of bicycling, this is your chance to help improve the lives of huge numbers of San Franciscans.

  • Hours: Full time. Hours may be flexible. Position will entail some work on weeknights and weekends, in order to attend community meetings and events.
  • Reports to: Deputy Director

You will work with all parts of the organization, members and volunteers to develop and win support for key bicycling infrastructure improvements (bikeways, neighborhood greenways, spot improvements, paving, etc). This work will entail working closely with community groups, businesses and elected officials to develop grassroots and grasstops support for new and improved biking infrastructure. You will also be responsible for helping create and support member-led campaigns.

JOB COMPONENTS

You should be comfortable with street-level organizing as well as grasstops outreach. Responsibilities may include, but will not be limited to:

  • Campaign strategy and outreach for campaigns to build more, better bikeways throughout the city in line with our Connecting the City initiative.
  • Organizing on the street and other forms of grassroots outreach.
  • Developing and supporting member-led campaigns.
  • Working with city agencies and elected officials to advance campaigns.
  • Connect with new and deepen existing relationships with community partners.
  • Representing the organization at public meetings and community meetings.
  • Communicating two-way with members about our work at all steps in the campaign process.
  • Hiring and managing a team of diverse interns.

QUALIFICATIONS

  • Deep commitment to the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition mission.
  • Fluency in a Chinese language or Spanish strongly encouraged.
  • At least two years of experience as an organizer.
  • Strong interpersonal and relational skills.
  • Ability to take initiative and lead advocacy efforts within the organization.
  • Demonstrated track record of successful project planning, management, base-building and strategy implementation.
  • Ability to work individually and as part of a team.
  • Excellent communicator with a wide variety of types of audiences.
  • Experience sourcing and managing a diverse cohort of interns and volunteers.
  • Desire and ability to implement systems that will allow your work to scale quickly and significantly to be able to reach more people.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

Salary is to be determined, depending upon experience. This package includes strong benefits.

HOW TO APPLY

Send a compelling cover letter and resume to Kit Hodge, Deputy Director, at kit [at] sfbike DOT org. Please include “Community Organizer Candidate, YOUR NAME” in the subject line, and be sure to mention where you saw the job advertised. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until the position is filled. People of color and women are strongly encouraged to apply.

San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, age, religion, gender, sexual orientation or political orientation.

http://www.sfbike.org/?jobs_comm

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This is what pilots see when landing at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska

August 7, 2013 at 5:00 pm

Apparently this is the handy work of a patriotic farmer cuts this message every year, with the aid of a GPS in his tractor. Should put a smile on the face of the pilots every time they see this one. Pretty cool stuff!

Image Source: Imgur via Reddit

From the land of efficiency! This is how a rich German goes camping

August 5, 2013 at 11:43 pm

It screams efficiency (Image source: Imgur via Reddit)

It is only appropriate to see something like this from the land of engineering and efficiency.  Apparently someone caught this rich German (yeah, that’s a Porsche Boxster Spyder in the trailer below the boat) traveling in some part of Sweden (one heck of a comfy camping trip)

A sound transportation safety advisory message but you are better off not trying it

August 3, 2013 at 1:36 pm

Yeah.. Seems like a sound transportation advice but one that can get you in a lot of trouble with the law..Nevertheless, it is funny and fitting for the environment in which it is spotted.

Sound advice but one you better NOT try. Image Courtesy: Imgur via Reddit

Friday Fun – Vintage Cool Photos From London Underground Shows The Flavors of Life in the City during 1970s and 80s

July 26, 2013 at 5:00 pm

On The Telegraph’s website, you can check an awesome gallery of vintage cool photos from the London Underground, shot during the 1970s/80s.  The ones below  are a what struck me the most and it has a sense of class and crazy retro cool that is unmatched.

Transit systems and the people who rode them back in the day are always so nice to look at. It is like a glimpse of  the city’s colorful past, conveyed silently through the pictures of people who were on the trains. Makes it a bit more endearing knowing someone has put in some serious effort to document all this in an era when there were no smartphones with megapixel cameras and no Flickr accounts.

Click link above or the pic below to see the entire gallery.

Not wanting the party to end, a couple of ladies head home with their drinks. Image Courtesy: Bob Mazzer via The Telegraph

Not wanting the party to end, a couple of ladies head home with their drinks. Image Courtesy: Bob Mazzer via The Telegraph

Some strange things happening below the surface - Image Courtesy: Bob Mazzer via The Telegraph

Some strange things happening below the surface – Image Courtesy: Bob Mazzer via The Telegraph

Monday blues: A walrus caught napping on top of a Russian submarine

July 22, 2013 at 5:00 pm

Image Source: Imgur via Reddit

Aaah.. The sun feels good!!..Looks like the Walrus is blissfully resting on the surface of this submarine unperturbed by the human in the background.

Picnic on a pontoon? Look no further

July 18, 2013 at 5:48 pm

American ingenuity has no bounds (Image source: Imgur via Reddit)

Genius.. Did you notice the little rudder on the pontoon-based picnic? Pretty cool.  I’m now wondering how big is the beast powering this beauty?