On Thu, 20 Dec 2007 21:09:53 -0500, "AI4QJ" wrote:

But I am only trying to find out what is in the box
so it is a mental
exercize.

Hi Dan,

Then you have missed the entire point.

I know it is a transmission line, open, and the impedance at 4MHz
is -j567.

You know? Then why try to find out? This is a contradiction on the
face of it. And what if it is not what you know it to be, and it
still presents -j567 at 4MHz?

If Zo for example were 100 Ohms, then -j567 would correspond
to -j5.67 on a smith chart normalized to 100 ohms and it is 10 degrees long.

If indeed!

What electrical length corresponds to -j567 if Zo measures 200 ohms? 300
ohms? They will all be different right?

Of course, any one of an infinite number of different possible
contents could reside within the box; but you don't know which one is
inside the box unless you look.

This reminds me of an argument I had with a Chief Boatswain's Mate
when I challenged him that "you can't make a horse drink water." His
(like Cecil's) solution was:
"You hold his head under water and suck on his ass!"

I hear this particular solution has been used to solve an unrelated
problem: a way of curing chapped lips (it keeps you from licking
them).

The better part of the members here use chapstick.

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC