Another Day: Peering into the Creative Genius of Brian Wilson

How does one of the most highly regarded pop musicians in the history of the recorded song still manage a successful career some 46 years after his first single scaled the charts?

“By being inspired to want to make someone happy,” Brian Wilson responds in a matter-of-fact tone.

Wilson is a rejuvenated, roadready musician with energy to burn when EQ magazine interviews him on a sunny L.A. day. Clearly, this wasn’t always the case. The legendary figure— best known for his contributions to the Beach Boys during their peak years, writing, producing, singing, and playing bass on masterpieces such as “Good Vibrations,” “I Get Around,” “Surfin’ Safari,” and “California Girls”— was near mad and a total recluse for two decades. From approximately 1968 until 1988, Wilson was entrenched in a battle with drugs and a variety of mental illnesses. An infamous ’70s Rolling Stone cover story depicted an overweight Wilson wrapped in a multicolored terrycloth robe, wandering the halls of a local allnight pharmacy, and rumors of Wilson being diagnosed with schizophrenia and treated for a drug-induced stroke saturated the media. It appeared Wilson was destined to become just another casualty of the rock-and-roll lifestyle—not at all unlike Pink Floyd’s founder, the late Syd Barrett.

With the help of family, friends, and more than a few therapists, Wilson eventually reclaimed his mind and his music, re-entering the world as a solo artist with 1988’s BrianWilson. A series of albums of varying quality and commercial success appeared between 1990 and 2004, culminating in Wilson’s full embrace of the album that almost never was—SMiLE. Assisted by pop provocateurs the Wondermints, wife Melinda, and longtime engineer Mark Linett, Wilson tackled the unfinished SMiLE project—an album that was conceived 37 years earlier, and was considered a catalyst in Wilson’s ensuing mental breakdown. The resulting release was a tremendous success, hitting the Billboard charts at #13, garnering Wilson his first Grammy, and proving to the world that he still had the goods to create the glistening pop music found therein.

It’s four years later and Wilson has returned with That Lucky Old Sun, a full-length homage to all things Los Angeles. Back in the Wilson camp is long-time collaborator Van Dyke Parks (the man responsible for the entirety of SMiLE’s lyrics), engineer Linett, and Wilson’s faithful 11-piece backing band, including multi-instrumentalist/coproducer Scott Bennett and the Wondermints’ Darian Sahanaja. Emboldened by SMiLE’s rapturous universal welcome and several successful tours—and surrounded by what amounts to a loving family of familiar musicians, orchestral arrangers, producers and engineers— the 65-year-old Wilson has created what is arguably his best album since Pet Sounds. With songs such as “Oxygen” and “Midnight’s Another Day,” Wilson recaptures the magic of Surf’s Up and Pet Sounds with ambitious sonic experimentation. And tracks like “Good Kind of Love” and “Going Home” find Wilson singing with a confidence and clarity not evident since his youth, turning out the kind of sun ’n’ fun-loving ditties that made him a household name in the first place. That Lucky Old Sun even references the gorgeous lost Beach Boy’s track, “Can’t Wait Too Long”—a classic example of Wilson’s musical prowess and vocal genius.

After the premier of That Lucky Old Sun at London’s Royal Festival Hall over a year ago, EQ decided to paint an explicit picture of how one of the world’s first and foremost musician/producers tackles the album-making process. This story isn’t about Wilson and his crew’s miking techniques, or tracing signal paths on a track-by-track basis—it’s about exploring the creative process of one of the most mysterious, misunderstood, and unmistakable artists alive.

PART I: BRIAN WILSON ON BRIAN WILSON
Known to be elusive even after his recovery, securing an interview with the former Beach Boy was challenging. But we caught up with him at Capitol Records HQ in Los Angeles for a very brief interview. It immediately became obvious that there would be no lengthy explanations. Instead, what we got was a candid look at the self-perceived simplicity of Wilson’s creative process.

What inspired you to write a concept album about L.A.?

I didn’t write the concept; I came up with “That Lucky Old Sun” theme song. The concept came from Van Dyke Parks, who wrote the lyrics for the narration about L.A.

Why did you want to cover “That Lucky Old Sun”?

I liked it. I thought it was a good African-American spiritual song to do.

The record is very upbeat. Did you feel emboldened coming off the success of SMiLE?

We were riding the crest of the SMiLE album, but we weren’t sure if it was going to be better or worse than SMiLE. Now, I think it is better.

I can see why. It is a rock and roll album that is also very orchestral. Scott Bennett said you worked out the songs at his home studio. Did you arrive with the songs fully fleshed out, or did you work them out at his studio?

I wrote the songs. Then, when I got to Scott’s studio, he and I played around with the arrangements.

You didn’t find the process faster or slower than how you used to work?

A little slower, but it was more efficient.

What sparks a song like “Good Kind of Love” or “Oxygen”?

The chord pattern comes first, then the melody, and then the lyrics.

I’ve read that you would hear the entire production of a song in your head before you entered the studio. Did it work the same way with That Lucky Old Sun?

No. I hear it as we go.

Do you prefer the digital way of recording to the old days of analog?

Yes, because you can make pitch correction a lot better.

Are you tough on vocalists when you arrange their parts?

Yes, because I want them to be right. I want them to be good.

Is it difficult for the background vocalists to grasp your concepts?

No, not really. I go to the piano and sing and play each part for each person. Then, they record as a group. It usually takes from two to 20 takes for them to get it. It varies from song to song. I can’t remember which song took the most takes. I sing some of the bass parts on the album, too.

Scott Bennett mentioned that one of your trademarks is that the bass vocal part is very atypical.
Well, the singers get it very quickly.

There are no breaks between songs. What determined that?

My wife and Scott Bennett and Darian Sahanaja all teamed up to sequence the album. They are responsible for that.

What inspired “Oxygen”? It seems very autobiographical. . . .

It is the story of my life. I laid around and didn’t do anything and was lazy. One day, I started exercising and I started eating right, and getting better sleep at night—stuff like that.

What inspired the melody for “Oxygen”?

What inspired the melody? Nothing. I just came up with it. I usually try out ideas on a synthesizer— a Yamaha.

That and “Midnight’s Another Day” are both very frank and honest. Where did you find the strength to put those feelings in song?

I needed to express myself so I just did it.

What inspired your original stacked vocal harmonies in the Beach Boys?

Ah, a bunch of different influences. I couldn’t even mention them all to you. Bach, for sure.

What music are you listening to now?

I listen to my own stuff, the Beatles, and a station called KTRH-FM 101 in Los Angeles. I listen to “oldies but goodies” all day!

Brian Wilson today...still putting out those Good Vibrations!

Optimism Enhances Your Long-Term Health!

It's a well-known fact that being optimistic and focusing on emotional wellness seems to reduce stress. But did you know that a glass-half-full kind of attitude can offer even more tangible health benefits?

Research has found, for instance, that an upbeat attitude, or happiness, can help lessen the burden of chronic pain, say from arthritis, or even reduce your chances of developing cardiovascular disease.

In fact, some experts now think that staying positive can help you live longer. In an intriguing study done at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, researchers followed a group of people for 30 years. They found that those who were originally classified as "optimistic" on a standard personality test turned out to be 20 percent less likely to suffer an early death than those classified as "pessimistic."

Opt for a Good Mood, Opt to Live Longer Happiness plays a pretty important role in keeping your brain healthy and vital, too. Staying positive, say experts, helps fight the "blues." This is good news in terms of longevity since, among other factors, depression has been shown to increase a person's risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

According to Marion Somers, PhD, a geriatric-care manager in Brooklyn, New York, an optimistic outlook isn't hard to achieve, and doing a few simple "optimism exercises" can yield a big reward. "Optimism exercises don't have to be formal," she says. "You can [improve] your attitude just by taking a brisk walk, petting your dog, or playing with your grandchildren outside."

Anything that lets you release pent-up negativity and experience calm, peaceful thoughts can go a long way toward helping you become — and stay — more positive.
Training Your Brain to Stay Positive There are also some specific activities you can undertake to boost your brain's vitality.

The ancient practice of yoga, research has found, can improve your cognitive function, including your memory. Registered yoga instructor Jennifer Edwards in New York City says, "Practicing yoga trains your brain to stay focused." It requires you to concentrate on your body's movement in space and the actual mechanics of your breathing, while tuning out distractions. "That focusing," says Edwards, "can improve your brain's ability to function during the day."

Yoga also promotes relaxation and eases stress, something David Eagleman, PhD, neuroscientist and assistant professor in the department of neuroscience at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, says is very good for your brain's overall health and vitality. "Stress can wear down your brain's cognitive abilities. So anything you can do to eliminate stress will help keep your brain sharp."

"Another powerful tool to rev up your brain's vitality is meditation. This technique clears your mind and lets you concentrate on being peaceful," says Dr. Somers. Scientists agree. Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, found regular meditation sessions slowed the normal age-related decline of brain cells. And according to Harvard researchers, daily meditation also reduced normal age-related thinning in regions of the brain thought to be involved in integrating emotional and cognitive processes.

Dr. Somers says activities like yoga and meditation, which require concentration and focus, are good for your brain in indirect ways, too. "We breathe every day, but, consciously and deliberately thinking about breathing while meditating or doing yoga increases lung function," she says. That increased lung function boosts oxygen levels in blood that circulates through your body, including to your brain. Says Dr. Somers, "Oxygen-rich blood keeps the brain healthy and increases alertness."

A Vital Spirit, a Lengthy Life Participating in religious or spiritual activities can also keep your brain humming along more smoothly. "The rituals of religious services and the social elements of being part of a congregation stimulate your brain," says Dr. Somers, "The sense of belonging and being able to connect with others who share your beliefs heightens alertness, which keeps your brain engaged in daily activities."

Being spiritual or religious can also perk up your mental outlook. British researchers found seniors with chronic diseases who attend religious services or who pray on their own showed a greater level of optimism about their overall health than those who did not.

You don't necessarily have to leave your house or attend formal religious services for your brain to soak up the benefits of spirituality, however. Dr. Somers says the concentration and focus required to pray anywhere — in your home, your car, or your shower — and to live a life that's in line with your spiritual beliefs, is really what has the most positive influence on your brain over the long term.

Teddy Ballgame! The Greatest Ever?

Ted Williams said that his goal in life was to be the Greatest Hitter who Ever Lived. He just may have reached that goal despite missing five seasons to two major wars.

When Ted Williams was a youngster, he dreamed that one day he would be walking down the street and a father, walking with his son, would point to Williams and say, "Son, there goes the greatest hitter who ever lived."

Looking at his career statistics, and considering that he lost almost one-fourth of his career to military service, there is a strong case to be made that Teddy Ballgame's dream actually came true.

A Phenomenal Rookie Year

Ted Williams broke into the majors in 1939 as a tall, gangly 20-year old with the Boston Red Sox. In his debut season, the Kid, as he soon became known, hit .327 with 31 home runs and 145 RBI.

There was no Rookie of the Year award given until 1947, but Teddy Ballgame, as he would later be called, finished fourth in the American League MVP voting behind Joe DiMaggio, Jimmie Foxx and Bob Feller. It was an impressive first season, indeed. But the full extent of the Kid's hitting prowess wouldn't be revealed for two more years.

The Last Man to Hit .400

The 1941 season is best remembered for two things: Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak and Ted Williams finishing the season as the last man to hit over .400.
Williams entered the final day of that season hitting .3995, which would have been rounded up to .400 if he decided to sit out of the team's double-header. Red Sox Manager Joe Cronin told Williams that he could sit for the day if he wanted. But Williams played, later saying that he would have felt that he cheated if he sat out. He went 6 for 8 in the twin bill, and ended the season with a .406 batting average. No player has hit .400 since.

The War Years

Williams missed three full seasons (1943-45) and most of two others (1952-53) when he served as a bomber pilot with the United States Marine Corps during World War II and the Korean Conflict. The missed seasons -- all of which were smack dab in the middle of his prime -- affected his career statistics perhaps more than any other hitter who served.

Williams Narrowly Missed a Triple Triple Crown

In the 107 year history of the modern era, only eleven players have won the Triple Crown. Only two have won it twice. One of the double winners is Williams, and believe it or not, the Splendid Splinter, as he was also nicknamed, came within 2/1000ths of a percentage point from winning three Triple Crowns in his career.

In 1942, he led the American League in batting average (.356), home runs (36) and RBI (137).
Seven years and one World War later, Williams took home his second Triple Crown when he topped the A.L. in batting (.343), home runs (32), and RBI (114).
Two years after that, in 1949, Teddy Ballgame led the American League in home runs (43) and RBI (159). But on the last day of the season, Williams lost the batting title to Detroit's George Kell when he failed to get a hit and Kell went 2 for 3.

Their final averages were so close that statisticians had to run them to the fourth decimal point to break the apparent tie. Although the two players are often listed as having both hit .343, Kell batted .3429 and Williams hit .3427, just two-one thousandths of a point from another batting title and a third career Triple Crown.

Ted Williams Career Hitting Statistics, Awards and Records

Williams retired after the 1960 season. When he finally hung up his cleats at age 42, he had a very, very impressive career hitting record, including:
Lifetime batting average of .344 (7th best in history)
521 career home runs (3rd best when he retired - 15th best today)
Career on base percentage of .482 (best ever)
Two Triple Crowns (1942 and 1947) and two MVPs (1946 & 1949)
1,839 RBI (13th best)
6 batting titles and 4 home run crowns
Led A.L. in slugging 9 times, in OBP 12 times, and in OPS 10 times
Williams's ability to hit for a high average and with such power has only been matched by Babe Ruth (.342 BA, 714 HR and 2,214 RBI) and Lou Gehrig (.340 BA/493 HR/1,995 RBI).
Imagine, however, what his career totals would have looked like if he hadn't taken time away from the National Pastime to be a War Hero.

What Could Have Been

In his last season before World War II, Williams hit 36 home runs and drove in 137 runs. Upon his return to baseball in 1946, he hit 38 home runs and had 123 RBI (and continued to post similar numbers though 1950). Assuming that Williams would have averaged similar numbers during the years missed, he would have collected approximately 110 home runs and 400 RBI.
Williams also missed the equivalent of 1.8 seasons to serve in Korea. This was a time in his career when he was still averaging 30 home runs and 100 RBI a year. So, tack on another 50 homers and 180 RBI for those lost years.

All of it adds up to this: Williams sacrificed approximately 160 home runs and 580 RBI to military service. Adding those numbers to his career totals, Williams would have ended his career with 680 home runs (4th highest ever) and a major league record of 2,419 RBI.
He also likely would have won at least one or two more batting titles, maybe another MVP, and perhaps even that elusive third Triple Crown.

But even without those years, Williams is still referred to as the greatest batsmen ever to step up to the plate in the big leagues. As time goes by, and his feats remain unapproached by even today's best hitters, the Williams legacy seems to grow every year. Will anyone ever hit .400 again? Can anybody win one Triple Crown, let alone two? Is any power hitter capable of topping .300 for seventeen straight years?

If someone does match his accomplishments some day, well, then that fella can be called the Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived. Right now, that title belongs to the kid who always seemed to want it the most.
Ted Williams.

The 20 Hamburgers You Must EAT!

Alan Richman traveled 23,750 miles and consumed more than 150,000 calories while taking the measure of 162 burgers across the country—with one goal: to find you the best damned assemblage of ground beef and buns this country serves up.

The hamburger is a symbol of everything that makes America great. Straightforward, egalitarian, substantial, and good-natured, it is also a little bloody at times.
It may come big and ungarnished, the East Coast ideal, tender and untroubled by bones or gristle, everything you look for in a filet mignon but seldom find.

It may be the West Coast model, swelling with vegetation, brimming with health and well-being, piled high with all that a seed catalog can provide. A great burger, regardless of regional differences, instills a sense of optimism and fulfillment, that all is right at the table or the counter or the woodgrain, screwed-to-the-floor, fast-food booth.

At its best, it eliminates the need for conversation or the urge to glance up at the TV over the bar. If you find yourself eating silently, eyes closed, ignoring everything around you, even the unavoidable burger-joint din, you have come upon a burger that can be pronounced a success.

Here are the 20 best burgers in America! (I ADD my own personal fav at the end of this list)!

20. Hamburger Sandwich Louis' Lunch New Haven, CT
19. Our Famous Burger Sidetrack Bar and Grill Ypsilanti, MI
18. Hamburger Poag Mahone's Carvery and Ale House Chicago
17. Double Bacon Deluxe with Cheese Red Mill Burgers Seattle
16. Hamburger & Fries Burger Joint San Francisco
15. Build Your Own Burger The Counter Santa Monica
14. Hamburger J. G. Melon New York City
13. Cheeseburger White Manna Hackensack, NJ
12. Hamburger Bobcat Bite Sante Fe
11. Grilled Bistro Burger Bistro Don Giovanni Napa, CA
10. Number Five Keller's Drive-in Dallas
9. Cheeseburger Burger Joint, le Parker Meridien Hotel New York City
8. Hamburger Miller's Bar Dearborn, MI
7. Buckhorn Burger Buckhorn San Antonio, NM
6. California BurgerHouston's Santa Monica
5. Kobe Sliders Barclay Prime Philadelphia
4. Rouge Burger Rouge Philadelphia
3. Not Just a Burger Spiced Pear Restaurant at the Chanler Hotel Newport, RI
2. Luger Burger Peter Luger Steak House Brooklyn
1. Sirloin Burger Le Tub Hollywood, FL

And, when in Columbus Ohio, you MUST visit Thurman's Cafe. Their 3/4 lb burger served medium well, piled high with fresh toppings on a perfectly toasted bun should be on EVERYONE's list for Best Burger... Anywhere!

NEW! High Power Pin and Sleeve Devices

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The NEW Economics of Checked Baggage

So, what to make of Delta's new sliding scale for checking bags? On domestic flights, the first bag is free, the second is $50, and the third is $125. This kind of thing is the exact opposite of most retail economics, where the more you buy the cheaper the unit cost becomes.

Delta seems to think there are diseconomies of scale to checking bags: that checking twice as many will cost it much more than twice as much. This is not intuitive. If you break down Delta's baggage-handling costs into fixed and variable, the fixed costs would include the maintenance of the infrastructure and the wages of the baggage handlers.

Maybe a drop-off in checked bags will allow the number of baggage-handling staff to come down a little, but I doubt those numbers would be very large. The variable costs, by contrast, are pretty much entirely a function of the bags' weight. Under its new scheme, one large, heavy bag travels free, while three small, light bags will cost you $175 and four will set you back $300.

I'd love to be a luggage shop in the Delta departures area right now, selling big cheap duffels to passengers faced with sticker shock. The obvious alternative would have been for Delta to charge by weight: give everybody an allowance of say 30 pounds, and then charge per pound above that. That would be fairer, and easier to understand too: right now the system is a complete mess, with international travellers paying $150 for three bags, but all of that being for the third bag, with the second flying free.

And of course there's a long list of exceptions: first-class passengers, elite frequent fliers, military customers. Delta has twin motivations here: it wants to turn checked baggage into a profit center, while alienating as few paying customers as possible. Looked at from that point of view, its actions make a bit more sense: most people will pay relatively modest sums, while the big fees will be levied on travelers using the airline as a means of transporting luggage as much as themselves.

Even so, I suspect that most passengers would still be happier with a charge-by-weight system calibrated to generate the same amount of revenue. Big heavy bags are the bane of both travellers and baggage handlers: it's really not smart to incentivize their use in this manner.

NEW! Thermal Circuit Breakers for Electronic Applications!

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FORD Building New Mustang Cobra Jet For Drag Racing!

According to cnet reviews, Ford's Mustang FR500CJ Cobra Jet, will be the latest in a LONG line of Mustang variants.

If there's one thing Ford Motor Company does well, it's cranking out variants of its modern muscle car, the Mustang. You've got the GT, GT-H, the Cobra, the GT500, the GT500KR, the Warriors in Pink edition, the California Special, the Mach 1, the Bullit, the list goes on and on.

Now Ford has yet another 'Stang variant to add to the list: the Mustang FR500CJ Cobra Jet. So, what makes the Cobra Jet different from the rest? Named after, and inspired by, the 1968 Mustang Cobra Jet, the FR500CJ is a factory-built drag racing variant.

The interior has been stripped, which helps lower the vehicle's weight to 3,300 pounds. Skinny front tires and chunky, drag slicks out back replace the standard Mustang's street tires. The power plant is a supercharged 5.4-liter 32-valve V-8 based on the motor found in the GT500.

The engine will output 400 horsepower and an unknown amount of torque. I can't help but be a little disappointed that, with a name like Cobra Jet, there isn't a jet engine under the hood. I suppose NHRA doesn't allow jet engines in the FR500CJ's class. Pity.

Ford says there will be an initial 50 unit production run with the MSRP being $69,900. I'm not really sure what to think about the Cobra Jet. On the one hand, I can't help but wonder if perhaps Ford's energies could be better spent somewhere other than the drag strip. In a world where most automakers are researching and developing alternative fuels and electric/hybrid power, the FR500CJ seems a bit archaic.

On the other hand, the big engines and big power of drag racing are a ton of fun. I mean, the Mustang FR500CJ Cobra Jet may be a dinosaur, but what kid doesn't like dinosaurs?

Complete Internet Protection? Not Yet!

Dennis O'Reilly says to the short list of life's certainties--death and taxes--we can now add "Web threats."

Early indications are that there will be no quick fix for clickjacking, which enables a PC to be infected with malicious software simply by clicking a disguised link on a Web page.

All browsers are equally vulnerable, and there appears to be no sure solution, at least in the short term. Even disabling JavaScript and other advanced Web features won't prevent an infection.

Does this mean you should cancel your broadband account and dig out the ham radio? I don't recommend it. In fact, reports such as these show the folly of believing that our Web browsing is ever completely safe.

No hardware or software will ever be 100 percent secure. Yes, keep your antivirus definitions up-to-date. Yes, use a firewall.

Download and install Giorgio Maone's NoScript extension for Firefox (donation requested) to gain site-by-site control over the scripts that run in the browser.

But even these precautions are no substitute for common sense. Be careful about the sites you visit and the links you click. View your e-mail as plain text; Microsoft's support site provides instructions for doing so in Outlook 2003 and 2007. In Mozilla Thunderbird, simply click View, Message Body As, Plain Text.

Last, but definitely not least, every PC user must acknowledge that the day will dawn when their system crashes for good--whether due to a malware attack or (more likely) a hardware or software failure. Keep your data backed up!

In addition to creating an image backup of your hard drive once or twice a year, using a program such as Acronis' True Image Home (15-day free trial), try an online backup service to keep your important data files fresh.

Nifty New Kitchen Gadget!

Making decisions can be difficult. Even when the choices presented offer a win/win result. I happen to like cheese. So, if I am faced with a simple choice, say cheddar or Swiss, it can be hard to decide between the two--or the myriad of other possibilities that exist. As you can imagine, grocery shopping for me can sometimes be quite an ordeal.

Luckily, I am comfortable and aware of my indecision while in the supermarket. My solution? Purchase one of each. But what of those times that making a choice leads to a commitment? No, I'm not talking of anything too serious, just choices that are somewhat important--such as which bottle of wine to open, the red or the white?

Sometimes a product comes along that actually does make life easier. The Skybar Wine Preservation & Optimization System from Frontgate is just such a device. Three independently chilled chambers store your wine and keeps them ready at their optimum temperature.

Each chamber is equipped with a pouring spout that smoothly decants your wine of choice directly into your glass. Vacuum technology preserves open bottles of wine for up to 10 days.
With three chambers, the choice between red and white is obsolete. Simply open one of each.

Now if I could only figure out what to put in the third chamber.

Do Sports Drinks Provide "Energy?"

We've had sports drinks around for years. These beverages generate sales of over $3 billion in the USA alone! The implication has always been that these energy drinks will give a person energy.

But, it's important to realize that "energy" is derived from calories. The truth is that ANY drink (or food) that has calories gives a person energy. So, technically speaking, orange juice, iced tea, non-diet soda and white wine are also energy drinks.

Of course, what's being marketed to consumers as energy drinks is a different story altogether. The standard ingredients included are sugar, some vitamins, amino acids and herbs. But the real "buzz" comes from a hefty dose of caffeine.

The exact amount of caffeine is rarely listed on the label. One beverage though claims 170 miligrams of caffeine in a 1-ounce "shot" and another beverage notes 350 miligrams in 2.5 ounces.

Concerns about the consumption of too much of caffeine shouldn't be taken lightly. In a three-year period, 265 cases of "caffeine abuse" were reported to the Illinois Poison Control Center in Chicago. 37 were from dietary supplements and 41 were from "caffeine enhanced beverages".

In nearly 12 percent of the 265 cases, the patients were hospitalized for serious medical complications from caffeine! Pass me that bottle of water.

The Lack of Women in Engineering

According to a recent report published by Evaluation Engineering magazine, very few women (only 5% of the respondents to their annual survey), display the title of engineer on their business cards.

One reason for this might be a perception by many that girls don't do as well in math and science as boys. Recent research by UW-Madison however, found that this perception is not at all accurate.

They gathered data on students in 10 states, including math scores from state exams, gender, grade level, etc. After crunching the numbers, they found that the average scores were the SAME for girls and boys.

The scores showed that just as many girls as boys landed in the top scoring percentiles. Also, data showed that girls could handle complex problem solving equally as well as males.

First Lady Laura Bush is an Honorary Chair for the Extraordinary Women Engineers Project. It is an awareness and outreach effort designed to encourage young women to select engineering as a career and to develop a new generation of role models for those already in the field.

So, if you happen to be an engineer yourself, go home tonight and tell your daughters all about the challenging engineering work and why you enjoy it. YOU can make a difference!

Look to the Sky for Great Wi-Fi!

Well, business travelers among us can no longer hide on those long cross-country flights. Earlier this week, American Airlines became the first commercial airline to offer it's passsengers full in-flight wireless access. Their new service, GoGo, an air-to-ground broadband system, is available on Boeing 767-200 non-stop flights between New York and San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles and New York and Miami.

You'll still have to keep your laptop "off" until the aircraft reaches 10,000 feet but after that, passengers will be able to connect to check their emails, pay bills and socially network. It would be great to see people on an airplane actually talk to each other, but you know how that goes.

Anyway, this service will cost @12.95 per session for flights in excess of three hours. The service can also be accessed by smartphones and PDA's. So much for that good long nap on that coast-to-coast flight!

An Apple a Day?

According to The American Cancer Society, apples are proof that good health DOES grow on trees! Disease-fighting substances have been found both in the fruit's flesh and peel. Research suggests that antioxidants in apples may protect against breast, colon and liver cancers. Pectin, another apple substance, may help lower bad cholesterol. Like other fruits and vegetables, apples provide dietary fiber, which has been linked to reduced risk for cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and obesity!

Making a Home Fire Escape Plan!

Every second counts during a fire. Families should practice their home fire escape drill so that it becomes second nature. Here are some tips that Underwriters Laboratories recommends for families as they develop their own fire escape plans:

• Draw a simple floor plan of your home, making sure you have two exits from every room, including windows.


• Write "Call 911" on the escape plan.


• Post the plan in a central location, such as a refrigerator door, and encourage family members to memorize it.


• Make sure everyone recognizes the sound a smoke detector makes and knows to get out of the home immediately.


• Rehearse the escape plan until everyone understands it.


• NEVER re-enter a burning building for any reason!

The above was brought to you by our friends at UL!

Why Reps? Well...

From time to time, we get asked WHY we utilize independent manufacturers reps instead of factory direct sales people. Well, hey...the first, main, primary, top and most important reason is... economics! With an independent rep company, we need not fuss with silly things like salaries, health insurance, auto expenses,
reimbursement for the 3-Martini lunches, FICA, etc., etc.

They sell something - we mail 'em a commission check! This method has also proved to be advantageous to our customers because, if we can keep our cost-of-sales controlled, our products remain cost-effective to them!

But, there is lots more to it than that. Over the years, we have discovered that experienced independent reps have developed a critical mass of knowledge concerning their business base within their sales territory.

And, multi-line reps know where the real decision makers reside in every company they visit. They can usually pinpoint new sales opportunities for us quickly and in many cases, provide insightful "corporate intelligence"!

So... High Tech Connections sales reps, we really value your continued contributions to our company's growth! Keep UP the good work!

The Savings Beat Goes On...

High Tech Connections is an American-owned company, specializing in the design, manufacture and distribution of AC and DC power products, interconnect assemblies and, more recently, passive components. Partnering with several internationally-recognized Asian-based facilities, we have succeeded in saving our clients millions of dollars since our inception in 1994!

Although we are most generally recognized for our North American and internationally-approved power cords and cord sets, we furnish OEM's and contract manufacturers with a myriad of electronic component products. These Asian-sourced, "brand-equivalent" components have provided our customers meaningful cost-saving benefits over more traditional suppliers and, at NO sacrifice in quality!

We provide one key client (in the alarm and security industry), production quantities of illuminated rocker switches, miniature slide switches, electronic fuses and thermal circuit breakers! Another major customer (a world leader in imaging products), purchases thousands of wall-mounted linear AC/DC adapters for external power.

Today, smart component buyers all across the fruited plain look to High Tech Connections to provide significant savings on first-quality toggle, slide and rocker switche products, glass fuses and fuse holders, audio/video and electronic board-level connectors, IEC power inlets, EMI filters, NEMA panel receptacles, pcb terminal blocks and related products!

We are determined to meet or exceed the cost-reduction objectives of our valued-customers! YES! We can help you secure lower unit prices for many of your company's production components, dramatically improving your bottom line performance!

We invite you to contact our sales department today to discuss all of your component sourcing needs! Let us demonstrate how we can help YOUR company keep a lid on rising costs!

Guess Who's Blogging?

A very good day to you! We continue to receive lots of compliments on our company web site (www.hightechcords.com). Our "web-head" has designed a site that is fast-loading, easy to navigate and features our broad array of standard, "off-the-shelf" power supply cords, detachable cord sets, retractile (coiled) cords, molded cable assemblies, and much more!

Oh Yeah...my name is Otis T. Wilbury and I'm The Marketing Beagle (originally from PAWtucket), currently having fun at High Tech Connections. I have been selected to help write and post articles of news concerning our company's products, policies, successes and related topics. In addition, my collegues and I will be addressing HOT industry issues like component sourcing, buying, selling, marketing, raw materials, transportation, the election, unrelated topics of general interest, etc. I will also "dig up" and present the latest in Hollywood gossip! OK... I'm just kidding about that last part.

To find us ANYTIME, just visit our web site above and (from ANY page), just click on our blog link and you'll zoom over here for all the latest news and features! Isn't technology great? And, your comments, observations, thoughts and musings on any of our postings are always encouraged and most appreciated!

Oh yeah,...IF you enjoy our blog, chew toys are gratefully accepted!

I hope you drop by again soon!

Sincerely
The Marketing Beagle