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New Candidate for 'Youngest Extra'
Tech at 5 years old
General at 6 Extra at 7 http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/01/29/1/?nc=1 73 de Jim, N2EY |
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William wrote:
(N2EY) wrote in message . com... Tech at 5 years old General at 6 Extra at 7 http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/01/29/1/?nc=1 73 de Jim, N2EY I think you've finally found Larry's equal. No way! Larry did 20! ;-) |
Robert Casey wrote in message ...
William wrote: (N2EY) wrote in message . com... Tech at 5 years old General at 6 Extra at 7 http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/01/29/1/?nc=1 73 de Jim, N2EY I think you've finally found Larry's equal. No way! Larry did 20! ;-) Qualudes? |
In article ,
(William) writes: (N2EY) wrote in message .com... Tech at 5 years old General at 6 Extra at 7 http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/01/29/1/?nc=1 73 de Jim, N2EY I think you've finally found Larry's equal. Billy: Not hardly. Young Miss Clauson bears the unfortunate burden of being a New Age, Dumbed-Down "Nickle" Extra. I got my Extra in 1983, and was code tested at 20 WPM at the FCC Field Office in Baltimore. Moreover, I learned my electrical theory from years of self-study as an avid electronics hobbyist, built dozens of homebrew and kit projects, and spent years as an avid shortwave listener. I did all of this without the benefit of parents who were amateur radio operators, and almost no exposure to other hams as a result. Young Mattie has an Extra-class ticket, and the same privileges as I do, but that's where our "equality" ends. She has to melt quite a few pounds of 60/40 rosin-core, and make several thousand CW and digital QSO's, to get close to me! 73 de Larry, K3LT |
ospam (Larry Roll K3LT) wrote in message ...
In article , (William) writes: (N2EY) wrote in message .com... Tech at 5 years old General at 6 Extra at 7 http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/01/29/1/?nc=1 73 de Jim, N2EY I think you've finally found Larry's equal. Billy: Not hardly. Young Miss Clauson bears the unfortunate burden of being a New Age, Dumbed-Down "Nickle" Extra. Larry, you're so quick to tear down the achievements of a child. |
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In article , ospam
(Larry Roll K3LT) writes: In article , (William) writes: (N2EY) wrote in message e.com... Tech at 5 years old General at 6 Extra at 7 http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/01/29/1/?nc=1 73 de Jim, N2EY I think you've finally found Larry's equal. Billy: Not hardly. Young Miss Clauson bears the unfortunate burden of being a New Age, Dumbed-Down "Nickle" Extra. I got my Extra in 1983, and was code tested at 20 WPM at the FCC Field Office in Baltimore. Moreover, I learned my electrical theory from years of self-study as an avid electronics hobbyist, built dozens of homebrew and kit projects, and spent years as an avid shortwave listener. I did all of this without the benefit of parents. A wonderful, self-taught radio orphan... who were amateur radio operators, and almost no exposure to other hams as a result. Young Mattie has an Extra-class ticket, and the same privileges as I do, but that's where our "equality" ends. She has to melt quite a few pounds of 60/40 rosin-core, and make several thousand CW and digital QSO's, to get close to me! Larrah, NOBODY is as good as you...by your own definition. Are you electronically connected here and formerly on FIDONET BECAUSE no one could "come close to you?" Try regular bathing. It might help. LHA / WMD |
ospam (Larry Roll K3LT) wrote in message ...
In article , (William) writes: Billy: Not hardly. Young Miss Clauson bears the unfortunate burden of being a New Age, Dumbed-Down "Nickle" Extra. Larry, you're so quick to tear down the achievements of a child. Billy: Point taken, and I offer all appropriate apologies to Miss Clauson. However, her achievement, while a fairly notable one ***for a child,*** is no longer noteworthy for anyone over the age of, say, 10 years, and certainly a meaningless one for an adult. Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? |
(N2EY) wrote in message . com...
ospam (Larry Roll K3LT) wrote in message ... achievement only points accusingly to the fact that present amateur radio licensing requirements are "dumbed-down" to such an unreasonably low level that even a 7-year old can attain an Amateur Extra-class license. That's one way to look at it. The way I prefer to look at it is that a bright and motivated young child set herself a goal and achieved it. I don't see much of a connect between your particular preferences and the highly-probable reality in these cases. Parents and other relatives impose expectations on kids all the time. I sure did. I "motivated" mine any number of times into "achieving" and in some of those cases they met my expectations just to get me off their backs. And while the novelty of a 7-year old Extra is certainly "news" in the Amateur Radio community, it does not point to a secure future for our hobby/service. Why not? I don't see anything wrong with young people, or females, getting licenses. In fact, I think that sort of thing is just what ham radio needs *more* of! That's not what Larry meant. Over the 100 year history of ham radio maybe we've had what, pick a number, twenty kids under ten licensed? Versus around 1.5 million total U.S. hams? Those kids have all been statistical anomalies pure and simple and have not had, nor will they have any influence at all on the course of the service in the future. Any of Mattie's young peers, without the support of a licensed parent, and the material support of a functional station in their home, would not likely achieve the same results. Absolutely. How many of these kids *didn't* have a ham in the immediate family? So what? Part of what healthy families *DO* is support each other's needs and interests. In that family, it's clear that ham radio is a family thing, not something one family member does in seclusion from the rest. That's a good thing. It brings families together, crosses generational barriers, helps build a level of education, maturity and understanding that are greatly needed. I think you're over-preaching to the choir again here James. And there is no better way to help a child learn than to get them interested in the subject. Geography? Time zones? Math, science, technology? An interest in ham radio helps with all of those. Her folks shepherded her into ham radio beacause ham radio is a great way for kids to learn geography?? (About the best we can hope for is that other ham parents will take similar steps to induce their children to become licensed, but that's about as far as it can go until they become adults, with their own financial resources and the adult prerogatives that go with it. I never got any help in the ham radio area from my folks. So I was delayed a few years in getting started. Nothing unusual about that. A huge percentage of all of us kid hams didn't have any particular "parental support" when we became hams. All my folks cared about was that whatever it was that I was doing with a soldering iron in the cellar didn't result in the Henny Carr the town cop dragging me home by the scruff of my neck *again* for commiting some bush-league juvenile atrocity or another. Worked for them and it worked for me. About the best face I can put on this is that young Mattie now has the rest of her life to "grow" into the hobby. Hopefully, over the years, she will acquire technical knowledge and operating skills which will become equivalent to her Amateur Extra status. She got 4 wrong on Element 4. How many did you get wrong on yours? No-counter: We all know that there is *no* relationship between passing the tests and the level of useful knowledge reqired to put together an HF ham station. This NG has glaring examples of same. As of now, however, she is more of a stunt than the real thing. How do you know? He doesn't and neither do you. Fact is that it's not hard to find instances of their folks pressuring kids into outstanding accomplishments in order to have bragging rights about the kid. Which I suspect is where Larry is coming from. Whether it's true in Mattie's case is 100% conjecture. I have no doubt that when asked to engage in even a fairly low-level discussion of technical and operating subjects, she will not be able to give any reasonable accounting of herself, beyond perhaps the simple recitation of answers to the exam questions. You might be surprised. She's probably somewhere between the opposite poles you two guys live in. Tell ya what, Larry, I'll fill a box with parts and you can come over and build afunctioning ham rig out of them. No instructions, no elmers, just parts and a book or two. I did it when I was 13. I doubt you could do it, Larry. Virtually all yer kid ham predecessors could cobble rigs together "Back in my day". It was almost the norm then. A lot higher percentage of us designed and rolled our own than was the case "in your day" a decade and a half later. By the time Larry got into ham radio hombrewing no longer made any sense except in oddball cases so I doubt he had any reason to even consider building his own rig. Entry level rigs have been products of the era in which we came into the service. YMMV and it obviously has. Again, none of Mattie's inadequacies are her fault, she is just the product of her parent's dreams. Nonsense, Larry. She's an individual. Kids are not robots. C'mon, you know better than that. Seven year olds are about as compliant as they come. They're "individuals" only to the extent that their parents and teachers allow them to act independently. There are folks who walk into a test session with no ham license and walk out with an Extra. That was going on before the VE system, too. The barely-10-year-old I mentioned above had to do 13 wpm sending and receiving plus the old Class B/General written. I know Janie. Her father was Jesse Bieberman W3KT who is still a legend. Honer Roll top-ender for decades, phone and cw dx contester, 25wpm with a straight key for 48 straight. Vice Director of the Atlantic Division for decades and one of the most powerful voices in Newington in those days. Ran the W3 buro single-handed also for decades. Was also a private-school high school math instructor. You think maybe Jane just got up one morning when she was ten and outta nowhere declared that she was gonna pursue a ham ticket?? 73 de Jim, N2EY w3rv |
In article ,
(William) writes: (Larry Roll K3LT) wrote in message ... In article , (William) writes: Billy: Not hardly. Young Miss Clauson bears the unfortunate burden of being a New Age, Dumbed-Down "Nickle" Extra. Larry, you're so quick to tear down the achievements of a child. Billy: Point taken, and I offer all appropriate apologies to Miss Clauson. However, her achievement, while a fairly notable one ***for a child,*** is no longer noteworthy for anyone over the age of, say, 10 years, and certainly a meaningless one for an adult. Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? Mental or physical age? :-) LHA / WMD |
Brian Kelly wrote:
(N2EY) wrote in message . com... I think you're over-preaching to the choir again here James. And there is no better way to help a child learn than to get them interested in the subject. Geography? Time zones? Math, science, technology? An interest in ham radio helps with all of those. Her folks shepherded her into ham radio beacause ham radio is a great way for kids to learn geography?? Not necessarily, Brian, but studying for an amateur ticket gets kids fired up about learning. I can certainly see Jim's point about kids becoming interested in geography, the sciences and math. It didn't work toward interesting me in geometry though. I was caught reading QST hidden within my open geometry book. I never got any help in the ham radio area from my folks. So I was delayed a few years in getting started. Nothing unusual about that. A huge percentage of all of us kid hams didn't have any particular "parental support" when we became hams. All my folks cared about was that whatever it was that I was doing with a soldering iron in the cellar didn't result in the Henny Carr the town cop dragging me home by the scruff of my neck *again* for commiting some bush-league juvenile atrocity or another. Worked for them and it worked for me. For the first few weeks of my interest, my dad actively discouraged me with talk of amateur radio being a passing fad for me. He had visions of mounds of equipment gathering dust in a closet. My mother encouraged me and was able to convince my father that some of the meager family income should be spent on a transmitter for me if I earned the money for the receiver from my paper route. My dad had and has no technical abilities whatever. My mother was deathly afraid of electricity and wouldn't even clean my ham shack. She just knew that lightning was going to enter the house via my antennas. Both parents saw value in amateur radio as a wholesome activity, one which would nurture an interest in science and possibly lead to a career in electronics. I know Janie. Her father was Jesse Bieberman W3KT who is still a legend. Honer Roll top-ender for decades, phone and cw dx contester, 25wpm with a straight key for 48 straight. Vice Director of the Atlantic Division for decades and one of the most powerful voices in Newington in those days. Ran the W3 buro single-handed also for decades. ....and ran the W3KT outgoing QSL forwarding service for a number of years. Dave K8MN |
Len Over 21 wrote:
In article , (William) writes: Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? Mental or physical age? :-) At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Please continue your civil debate on morse code elimination. Dave K8MN |
Thanks for the info, Jim. Yes, I suspect the youngest would be girls since
males tend to mature at a later age. Check the posts in the newsgroup for proof of that ;) 73 from Rochester, NY Jim AA2QA "N2EY" wrote in message ... Interesting story and obviously a very bright kid! Homeschooled, too. The story documents other young hams, including the Philly area's W3OVV, who earned her Class B at the Philly FCC office soon after her 10th birthday - in 1948. This was back in the days when *all* US ham licenses required 13 wpm code, sending and receiving, and when the writtens were not only "secret" but also consisted in large part of essay and draw-a-diagram questions. One interesting side note is that these young hams are almost all girls! 73 de Jim, N2EY "Age requirements? We doan' need no steenkeen age requirements!" --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.577 / Virus Database: 366 - Release Date: 2/3/04 |
In article ,
(Brian Kelly) writes: (N2EY) wrote in message .com... ospam (Larry Roll K3LT) wrote in message ... achievement only points accusingly to the fact that present amateur radio licensing requirements are "dumbed-down" to such an unreasonably low level that even a 7-year old can attain an Amateur Extra-class license. That's one way to look at it. The way I prefer to look at it is that a bright and motivated young child set herself a goal and achieved it. I don't see much of a connect between your particular preferences and the highly-probable reality in these cases. I just gave the opposite spin to Larry's. Parents and other relatives impose expectations on kids all the time. That's part of the job. I sure did. I "motivated" mine any number of times into "achieving" and in some of those cases they met my expectations just to get me off their backs. That's a bit different from Larry's claim that the only reason was because the mother pushed her. And while the novelty of a 7-year old Extra is certainly "news" in the Amateur Radio community, it does not point to a secure future for our hobby/service. Why not? I don't see anything wrong with young people, or females, getting licenses. In fact, I think that sort of thing is just what ham radio needs *more* of! That's not what Larry meant. Sure sounded like it to me. Over the 100 year history of ham radio maybe we've had what, pick a number, twenty kids under ten licensed? I dunno. Maybe a couple hundred. Look up a book called "Radio Rescue" by Lynne Barasch. Ten year old ham in 1923. True story. Versus around 1.5 million total U.S. hams? Where'd you get a number that big? Prolly more like a million. Those kids have all been statistical anomalies pure and simple and have not had, nor will they have any influence at all on the course of the service in the future. Not my point at all. Point is that two of things working against ham radio today are lack of youngsters and the tendency of some people to avoid hobbies the whole family can't enjoy. Family of hams beats both those trends. Any of Mattie's young peers, without the support of a licensed parent, and the material support of a functional station in their home, would not likely achieve the same results. Absolutely. How many of these kids *didn't* have a ham in the immediate family? Few if any. So what? The music teacher's kid is probably going to have more access to instruments than the plumber's. So what? Part of what healthy families *DO* is support each other's needs and interests. In that family, it's clear that ham radio is a family thing, not something one family member does in seclusion from the rest. That's a good thing. It brings families together, crosses generational barriers, helps build a level of education, maturity and understanding that are greatly needed. I think you're over-preaching to the choir again here James. I don't. And there is no better way to help a child learn than to get them interested in the subject. Geography? Time zones? Math, science, technology? An interest in ham radio helps with all of those. Her folks shepherded her into ham radio beacause ham radio is a great way for kids to learn geography?? Heck no - that's just a side benefit. (About the best we can hope for is that other ham parents will take similar steps to induce their children to become licensed, but that's about as far as it can go until they become adults, with their own financial resources and the adult prerogatives that go with it. I never got any help in the ham radio area from my folks. So I was delayed a few years in getting started. Nothing unusual about that. 'zactly. Which is why it took me a little longer. If I'd had real support, I'd a been really dangerous. bwaahaahaaa A huge percentage of all of us kid hams didn't have any particular "parental support" when we became hams. All my folks cared about was that whatever it was that I was doing with a soldering iron in the cellar didn't result in the Henny Carr the town cop dragging me home by the scruff of my neck *again* for commiting some bush-league juvenile atrocity or another. Worked for them and it worked for me. 'zactly. One of the biggest parental jobs is to get 'em interested in something - anything - that's relatively harmless compared to what's out there. Which they may get involved in anyway, but it beats taking the hands off approach. With some kids, a lot of support is needed. With others, the best way to kill the kid's interest is to get involved too much. About the best face I can put on this is that young Mattie now has the rest of her life to "grow" into the hobby. Hopefully, over the years, she will acquire technical knowledge and operating skills which will become equivalent to her Amateur Extra status. She got 4 wrong on Element 4. How many did you get wrong on yours? No-counter: We all know that there is *no* relationship between passing the tests and the level of useful knowledge reqired to put together an HF ham station. Of course. Point is she didn't just pass. Then again, she got 4 more wrong than our buddy in Allentown.... This NG has glaring examples of same. Oh yes - including one or two who couldn't even get any ham license, despite years-old predictions... As of now, however, she is more of a stunt than the real thing. How do you know? He doesn't and neither do you. And that's the point. Larry made all kinds of statements about someone he doesn't know at all. Fact is that it's not hard to find instances of their folks pressuring kids into outstanding accomplishments in order to have bragging rights about the kid. Which I suspect is where Larry is coming from. Whether it's true in Mattie's case is 100% conjecture. Bingo. I have no doubt that when asked to engage in even a fairly low-level discussion of technical and operating subjects, she will not be able to give any reasonable accounting of herself, beyond perhaps the simple recitation of answers to the exam questions. You might be surprised. She's probably somewhere between the opposite poles you two guys live in. And that's the point. Tell ya what, Larry, I'll fill a box with parts and you can come over and build afunctioning ham rig out of them. No instructions, no elmers, just parts and a book or two. I did it when I was 13. I doubt you could do it, Larry. Virtually all yer kid ham predecessors could cobble rigs together "Back in my day". I could, too. Many of my counterparts could. A few couldn't. It was almost the norm then. A lot higher percentage of us designed and rolled our own than was the case "in your day" a decade and a half later. By the time Larry got into ham radio hombrewing no longer made any sense except in oddball cases so I doubt he had any reason to even consider building his own rig. Coax can be had with the connectors already on, too. And premade G5RVs often make more sense than rolling one's own... Entry level rigs have been products of the era in which we came into the service. YMMV and it obviously has. The irony is that the box of parts I'd give Larry would include many parts that were only recently given to me by an anonymous benefactor.... Again, none of Mattie's inadequacies are her fault, she is just the product of her parent's dreams. Nonsense, Larry. She's an individual. Kids are not robots. C'mon, you know better than that. Yes I do. Kids are harder to train than robots. Seven year olds are about as compliant as they come. HAW!! They're "individuals" only to the extent that their parents and teachers allow them to act independently. I know some you oughta meet... There are folks who walk into a test session with no ham license and walk out with an Extra. That was going on before the VE system, too. The barely-10-year-old I mentioned above had to do 13 wpm sending and receiving plus the old Class B/General written. I know Janie. Her father was Jesse Bieberman W3KT who is still a legend. Honer Roll top-ender for decades, phone and cw dx contester, 25wpm with a straight key for 48 straight. Vice Director of the Atlantic Division for decades and one of the most powerful voices in Newington in those days. Ran the W3 buro single-handed also for decades. Was also a private-school high school math instructor. I knew him too. See above about the music teacher's kid. Only in this case it's more like Ormandy's kid. You think maybe Jane just got up one morning when she was ten and outta nowhere declared that she was gonna pursue a ham ticket?? Naw, she was copying code when she was six. And still active with the same call. At least nobody has yet accused the VEs of "fraud" (with absolutely no evidence) as has happened here before. 73 de Jim, N2EY |
In article , Dave Heil
writes: Len Over 21 wrote: In article , (William) writes: Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? Mental or physical age? :-) At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. Now Larrah, the self-professed paragon of determination and moral virtue, once bragged and carried on that his "summa cum laude" standings in post-service college would get him any top spot job in human resources after graduation. He now drives a bus. Quod Erat Demonstrandum. Please continue your civil debate on morse code elimination. As soon as you show the way, snarly dave. So far you haven't exhibited much civility in that regard. But, I am always optimistic and hope for the best... Keep the morse faith. Beep. LHA / WMD |
And there is no better way to help a child learn than to get them interested in the subject. Geography? Time zones? Math, science, technology? An interest in ham radio helps with all of those. They'd need HF privs for some of that. HF propagation is needed to get your signal to Pottsylvania... Her folks shepherded her into ham radio beacause ham radio is a great way for kids to learn geography?? I don't know what they do in K-12 grades now, but way back when I was a kid, geography was taught in grades 4 thru 7. "What's the capital of South Dakota?" "Where is Red China?" "What voltage do they apply to the electrified barbed wire surrounding the Communist Bloc?" ;-) We learned about evil Godless communism in geography class.... Nothing unusual about that. A huge percentage of all of us kid hams didn't have any particular "parental support" when we became hams. All my folks cared about was that whatever it was that I was doing with a soldering iron in the cellar didn't result in the Henny Carr the town cop dragging me home by the scruff of my neck *again* for commiting some bush-league juvenile atrocity or another. Worked for them and it worked for me. They didn't get paranoid about your messing with dangerous electricity? :-) My parents knew about electricity and had no real fear of it, but my grandmother had no clue at all about electricity. She grew up somewhere near Scranton PA before they had electricity there.... She got 4 wrong on Element 4. How many did you get wrong on yours? 3. Well, 2 on 4A and 1 on 4B. Tell ya what, Larry, I'll fill a box with parts and you can come over and build afunctioning ham rig out of them. No instructions, no elmers, just parts and a book or two. I did it when I was 13. I doubt you could do it, Larry. Virtually all yer kid ham predecessors could cobble rigs together "Back in my day". It was almost the norm then. A lot higher percentage of us designed and rolled our own than was the case "in your day" a decade and a half later. By the time Larry got into ham radio hombrewing no longer made any sense except in oddball cases so I doubt he had any reason to even consider building his own rig. Entry level rigs have been products of the era in which we came into the service. YMMV and it obviously has. Many novice setups were built out of junked tube TV parts and modified AM radio receivers. QST published many articles about such. The designs were such that you could have something that worked without causing a lot of TVI. Designs that were not fussy about adjustments and component selection. Which is what you want in manufacturing, something that can be thrown together and always work. |
Not necessarily, Brian, but studying for an amateur ticket gets kids fired up about learning. I can certainly see Jim's point about kids becoming interested in geography, the sciences and math. It didn't work toward interesting me in geometry though. I was caught reading QST hidden within my open geometry book. Should have been a copy of Playboy..... ;-) For the first few weeks of my interest, my dad actively discouraged me with talk of amateur radio being a passing fad for me. He had visions of mounds of equipment gathering dust in a closet. My mother encouraged me and was able to convince my father that some of the meager family income should be spent on a transmitter for me if I earned the money for the receiver from my paper route. My dad had and has no technical abilities whatever. My mother was deathly afraid of electricity and wouldn't even clean my ham shack. She just knew that lightning was going to enter the house via my antennas. Reminds me of the story about some little old lady sueing the trolley company because they caused a lightning bolt to run thru her bedroom late at night. What probably happened was the trolley pole comming off the wire causing an arc to flash. She must have went nuts during a real thunderstorm.... We once had lightning take out a tall tree in the back yard late one night. Wooden shrapnel all over the back yard; good thing nobody was outside when that happened. SOme of the light bulbs that were on blew out. This was back in the early 60's, before line operated solid state equipment was at all common. The tube stuff (all of which was off) didn't mind. |
At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. Then learning the 5 wpm and getting the extra should be a walk in the park then. It took me about a month to learn 5 wpm and I'm no good at such motor skills. |
Len Over 21 wrote:
In article , Dave Heil writes: Len Over 21 wrote: In article , (William) writes: Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? Mental or physical age? :-) At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. Well, there you have it. I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. I don't care about your commercial ticket. I asked about your amateur radio license. Maybe you should look back. Now Larrah, the self-professed paragon of determination and moral virtue, once bragged and carried on that his "summa cum laude" standings in post-service college would get him any top spot job in human resources after graduation. He now drives a bus. What has that to do with his amateur radio license and why is it of concern to you? Quod Erat Demonstrandum. You bragged *four* years ago that you'd get "an Extra right out of the box". You still have not even the most basic amateur radio license. Q.E.D. Please continue your civil debate on morse code elimination. As soon as you show the way, snarly dave. So far you haven't exhibited much civility in that regard. I didn't state that as my "only purpose" here, Leonard. You did. Dave K8MN |
In article , "Jim Hampton"
writes: Thanks for the info, Jim. Check out the book "Radio Rescue", though. True story. Yes, I suspect the youngest would be girls since males tend to mature at a later age. If at all. Check the posts in the newsgroup for proof of that ;) The oldest regular poster here is the least mature, for a start. 73 de Jim, N2EY |
In article , Dave Heil
writes: Brian Kelly wrote: (N2EY) wrote in message .com... I think you're over-preaching to the choir again here James. And there is no better way to help a child learn than to get them interested in the subject. Geography? Time zones? Math, science, technology? An interest in ham radio helps with all of those. Her folks shepherded her into ham radio beacause ham radio is a great way for kids to learn geography?? Not necessarily, Brian, but studying for an amateur ticket gets kids fired up about learning. I can certainly see Jim's point about kids becoming interested in geography, the sciences and math. It didn't work toward interesting me in geometry though. I was caught reading QST hidden within my open geometry book. I got caught reading a text on electricity. Book was open to the page about polyphase induction motors, and I had to explain the meaning of a rotating magnetic field and a squirrel cage rotor to the teacher. In 5th grade. I never got any help in the ham radio area from my folks. So I was delayed a few years in getting started. Nothing unusual about that. A huge percentage of all of us kid hams didn't have any particular "parental support" when we became hams. All my folks cared about was that whatever it was that I was doing with a soldering iron in the cellar didn't result in the Henny Carr the town cop dragging me home by the scruff of my neck *again* for commiting some bush-league juvenile atrocity or another. Worked for them and it worked for me. For the first few weeks of my interest, my dad actively discouraged me with talk of amateur radio being a passing fad for me. He had visions of mounds of equipment gathering dust in a closet. My mother encouraged me and was able to convince my father that some of the meager family income should be spent on a transmitter for me if I earned the money for the receiver from my paper route. My dad had and has no technical abilities whatever. My mother was deathly afraid of electricity and wouldn't even clean my ham shack. She just knew that lightning was going to enter the house via my antennas. Both parents saw value in amateur radio as a wholesome activity, one which would nurture an interest in science and possibly lead to a career in electronics. 'zactly. Frankly, it was kinda surreal reading Larry's diatribe about that family. We've been subject to years of Dr.-Laura-points-of-light-republican-cloth-coat-family- values lectures, and then a family actually does ham radio together and the kid gets no credit. Bleah. I know Janie. Her father was Jesse Bieberman W3KT who is still a legend. Honer Roll top-ender for decades, phone and cw dx contester, 25wpm with a straight key for 48 straight. Vice Director of the Atlantic Division for decades and one of the most powerful voices in Newington in those days. Ran the W3 buro single-handed also for decades. ...and ran the W3KT outgoing QSL forwarding service for a number of years. Yup, great guy, original 1x2 holder, the works. 73 de Jim, N2EY |
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In article , ospam
(Larrah TyRoll the Wonder Ham) writes: In article , (Len Over 21) writes: who were amateur radio operators, and almost no exposure to other hams as a result. Young Mattie has an Extra-class ticket, and the same privileges as I do, but that's where our "equality" ends. She has to melt quite a few pounds of 60/40 rosin-core, and make several thousand CW and digital QSO's, to get close to me! Larrah, NOBODY is as good as you...by your own definition. Lennie: Yup -- there are many who are a lot better. Sorry, but when we're talking about amateur radio operators, you're not one of them! Literally. No kidding? You got soma come loud ratings in college for all that reasoning? Did you get a brain cell graft or something. Here's a Clue, bus driver: The FCC doesn't require a single commissioner or staff to hold amateur radio licenses in order to MAKE the amateur radio regulations or enforce them. Are you electronically connected here and formerly on FIDONET BECAUSE no one could "come close to you?" Uh, no -- mainly because I have a computer with a modem! I'm sort of surprised that you didn't know how that worked! I'm surprised you know how to dial into an ISP without using morse code. Modems don't have morse keys. Try regular bathing. It might help. Bathing my computers? Now that you mention it, they are a bit dusty... but I doubt that tossing them into the bathtub would do them any good. Using them the way you do doesn't do anyone much good. (Oooops, guess I just left you an opening you can drive a Kenworth with a 53' trailer through! Oh, well -- you need all the help you can get!) Not really needing your "help," sweatbreath. You just keep tawking tuff to the group on how you got all those great grades in college and could get any personnel job you wanted...all through the dedication and resolve that made you Wonder Ham with morse code. You never used any 63/37 solder? Tsk, tsk, tsk. Have you learned to solder yet? LHA / WMD |
In article , Robert Casey
writes: At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. Then learning the 5 wpm and getting the extra should be a walk in the park then. It took me about a month to learn 5 wpm and I'm no good at such motor skills. Gosh, olde-tymer, I've walked in many fine parks in my time but not a single one of them required any morse code proficiency to walk. Never saw any "Keep Off The Code Keys" signs either. Birdies in the trees chirped "tweet, tweet," not "beep, beep." You must have lived in different cities than I. "Motor skills" I learned as a teenager, got my first drivers license without having to test for morse code. In Illinois...obviously a regressive state, right? :-) Psycho-motor skill I learned in middle school (we called it "junior high school" back then before educational PC) was typing at tested maximum of 60 WPM. On typewriters that had no key markings. :-) None in the typing class had to copy any morse code. More's the pity, right? I later cruised on 60 WPM Teletypes just dandy. Now, let's concentrate on WHY there's still a morse code test for an AMATEUR radio license...and WHY it must remain law forever and ever. Or, at least until the last PCTA has their code key forcibly removed from their cold, dead fingers. Is morse code not so wonderful that the feds have to keep the morse test in law so that cute little seven-year-olds can have radio playmates? Or forty-seven-year-olds and older? Ever wonder why morse code is the SECOND most used mode on HF, a distant second behind voice? All the HF hams had to test for code but so few continued to use it. I guess it must not be so wonderful, so popular after all. Morse code gets through when everything else will... LHA / WMD |
In article , Dave Heil snarly
aka "Mr. Warmth" writes: Len Over 21 wrote: In article , Dave Heil writes: Len Over 21 wrote: In article , (William) writes: Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? Mental or physical age? :-) At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. Well, there you have it. Have what? I don't have any amateur license. Got several others. I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. I don't care about your commercial ticket. I asked about your amateur radio license. Maybe you should look back. Snarly dave, I don't care about your amateur wonderfulness and vindictiveness and bigotry to non-amateurs. I'm a pro, like it or no. You do NOT get to choose anything about what anyone is "supposed" to say, to reply to, or anydamnthingelse. You keep thinking you do every time you put on the SS uniform with the monocle. Try keeping the armband off, it's so 40-ish. Shave the head and learn to smile. That will make you more like Colonel Klink. Lose several pounds too. Now Larrah, the self-professed paragon of determination and moral virtue, once bragged and carried on that his "summa cum laude" standings in post-service college would get him any top spot job in human resources after graduation. He now drives a bus. What has that to do with his amateur radio license and why is it of concern to you? What have you to do with anything? :-) Tsk, tsk, tsk, snarly dave, all you seem to do is try to fight with others who don't bow down and kiss your asterisk. Quod Erat Demonstrandum. You bragged *four* years ago that you'd get "an Extra right out of the box". You still have not even the most basic amateur radio license. Q.E.D. Ah, so in "correct" amateurism, any statement anyone says in the past MUST be kept forever and ever? Even casual throwaway mentions? :-) I changed my mind, sweetums. Stuff it. :-) I saw the way you acted in here and didn't want to become a snarly dave clone. Or a gunnery nurse. Please continue your civil debate on morse code elimination. As soon as you show the way, snarly dave. So far you haven't exhibited much civility in that regard. I didn't state that as my "only purpose" here, Leonard. You did. So, snarly dave, your purpose in here is to make nasty to everyone that doesn't agree with you and kiss your asterisk? I'm very glad the State Department never had you on any official negotiating team. We would all be nuclear toast, clicking counters for a very long half-after life. Snarly dave, I'm just trying to discuss the morse code test issue. You keep trying to turn all of this into some personal vendetta by making all that nasty. Is that what all the extra ham lifers do? LHA / WMD |
Len Over 21 wrote:
In article , ospam (Larrah TyRoll the Wonder Ham) writes: Lennie: Yup -- there are many who are a lot better. Sorry, but when we're talking about amateur radio operators, you're not one of them! Literally. No kidding? You got soma come loud ratings in college for all that reasoning? Did you get a brain cell graft or something. Here's a Clue, bus driver: The FCC doesn't require a single commissioner or staff to hold amateur radio licenses in order to MAKE the amateur radio regulations or enforce them. N2EY: "Besides, here's a simple, plain fact: No matter what job, educational level, employer, or government/military service that a radio amateur has, if said radio amateur opposes Mr. Anderson's views, he/she will be the target of Mr. Anderson's insults, ridicule, name-calling, factual errors, ethnic slurs, excessive emoticons and general infantile behavior." Not really needing your "help," sweatbreath. You just keep tawking tuff to the group on how you got all those great grades in college and could get any personnel job you wanted...all through the dedication and resolve that made you Wonder Ham with morse code. Entertain us with your credentials once again, won't you, Len. Then tell us about that "Extra right out of the box". After more than seven years of posting your diatribes in an amateur radio newsgroup, you're no closer to obtaining even the most basic no-code amateur radio license. Dave K8MN |
Len Over 21 wrote:
In article , Robert Casey writes: At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. Then learning the 5 wpm and getting the extra should be a walk in the park then. It took me about a month to learn 5 wpm and I'm no good at such motor skills. Gosh, olde-tymer, I've walked in many fine parks in my time but not a single one of them required any morse code proficiency to walk. That "Extra right out of the box" park requires it at the breakneck pace of f i v e w o r d s p e r m i n u t e. Psycho-motor skill I learned in middle school (we called it "junior high school" back then before educational PC) was typing at tested maximum of 60 WPM. On typewriters that had no key markings. :-) There's no typing test involved in the Amateur Extra. Just a morse test of f i v e w o r d s p e r m i n u t e. Now, let's concentrate on WHY there's still a morse code test for an AMATEUR radio license...and WHY it must remain law forever and ever. Or, at least until the last PCTA has their code key forcibly removed from their cold, dead fingers. At the rate you're progressing toward that Extra Class ticket, there won't be any amateur radio license at all to pry from your cold, dead fingers. Is morse code not so wonderful that the feds have to keep the morse test in law so that cute little seven-year-olds can have radio playmates? Or forty-seven-year-olds and older? It still gets you that mere children can obtain that which you covet, doesn't it? Ever wonder why morse code is the SECOND most used mode on HF, a distant second behind voice? All the HF hams had to test for code but so few continued to use it. Let's see.....hmmm....It is probably because the overwhelming majority can already talk? Operating on SSB would seem to be as easy as...talking. I guess it must not be so wonderful, so popular after all. ....but you'll have to continue to rely upon second-hand information. Dave K8MN |
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Len Five Decades Over 21 but not acting a day over eleven wrote:
In article , Dave Heil snarly aka "Mr. Warmth" writes: Len Over 21 wrote: In article , Dave Heil writes: Len Over 21 wrote: In article , (William) writes: Larrah, at what age did you pass the Extra exam elements? Mental or physical age? :-) At which age did you pass an amateur radio license exam, Leonard? Never tried, snarly dave. Well, there you have it. Have what? I don't have any amateur license. Got several others. In the context of this newsgroup, that means just what? I passed my First Phone exam on the first try in Chicago at an FCC field office in March 1956. Never looked back. I don't care about your commercial ticket. I asked about your amateur radio license. Maybe you should look back. Snarly dave, I don't care about your amateur wonderfulness and vindictiveness and bigotry to non-amateurs. I'm a pro, like it or no. If you don't care, why are you still haunting a newsgroup dealing with amateur radio? It is clear that you are not a radio amateur and that you are not, after all these years, "getting into amateur radio". Haunt some radio professionals, using the endearing manner you've displayed here and see how long they put up with your condesent. I worked professionally in radio and electronics. A number of us here have done so or do so. What sets you apart is that you are a non-amateur who seems to get his jollies taking potshots at radio amateurs. You do NOT get to choose anything about what anyone is "supposed" to say, to reply to, or anydamnthingelse. You keep thinking you do every time you put on the SS uniform with the monocle. Try keeping the armband off, it's so 40-ish. Get it straight, Len. This is an open newsgroup dealing with amateur radio. You are in no way involved with amateur radio. I am free to choose to respond to anything posted here and shall do so as the spirit moves me. Shave the head and learn to smile. That will make you more like Colonel Klink. Lose several pounds too. As a last resort, you can always go to your strength and bring in the Nazi images. Now Larrah, the self-professed paragon of determination and moral virtue, once bragged and carried on that his "summa cum laude" standings in post-service college would get him any top spot job in human resources after graduation. He now drives a bus. What has that to do with his amateur radio license and why is it of concern to you? What have you to do with anything? :-) Let's see. Amateur radio newsgroup. I'm a radio amateur. Now, back to the question: What does your comment have to do with Larry's amateur radio license and of concern is his job to you? It seems to be karma that forces you to live up to the N2EY profile of your likely actions. Tsk, tsk, tsk, snarly dave, all you seem to do is try to fight with others who don't bow down and kiss your asterisk. Actually, old boy, you have quite the attitude toward radio amateurs. You're insulting, rude and immature. If you're waiting for radio amateurs to be impressed by your professional credentials, you're likely going to be disappointed. Quod Erat Demonstrandum. You bragged *four* years ago that you'd get "an Extra right out of the box". You still have not even the most basic amateur radio license. Q.E.D. Ah, so in "correct" amateurism, any statement anyone says in the past MUST be kept forever and ever? Even casual throwaway mentions? :-) It wasn't a casual, throwaway mention and your newsgroup statements of the past are here for a long, long time. If you wish to now retract your statement, I have no problem with that. I changed my mind, sweetums. Stuff it. :-) I haven't changed my mind about you, Len. You're a victim of your own inertia and braggadocio. To twist a phrase: If you haven't done it, it is most certainly bragging. You haven't obtained a license and aren't likely to do so. Consider yourself stuffed. I saw the way you acted in here and didn't want to become a snarly dave clone. Or a gunnery nurse. That "fox and grapes" routine of your is a classic. Please continue your civil debate on morse code elimination. As soon as you show the way, snarly dave. So far you haven't exhibited much civility in that regard. I didn't state that as my "only purpose" here, Leonard. You did. So, snarly dave, your purpose in here is to make nasty to everyone that doesn't agree with you and kiss your asterisk? I haven't stated a purpose here, Leonid. I'm very glad the State Department never had you on any official negotiating team. We would all be nuclear toast, clicking counters for a very long half-after life. Snarly dave, I'm just trying to discuss the morse code test issue. As Steve so often tells you, you're a liar, Leonora. Dave K8MN |
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N2EY wrote:
In article , ospam (Larry Roll K3LT) writes: I was born Oct 31, 1952. I got my Novice ticket July 21, 1981. I passed Extra Feb, 7, 1983. I reckon that made me 30 years, 4 months, 7 days old at the time. What a great new game! I'll play: I was born April 24, 1954. I got my Novice ticket October 14, 1967. I got my Extra September 26, 1970. (Dates are when the actual license arrived - passed the tests about six weeks earlier). I reckon that made me 16 years, 5 months, 2 days old when the Extra came in the mail. That 2 year experience requirement held me up at least a year). Anybody else? Born June 9, 1954 Technician license October 21, 1999 - tested Williamsport PA General license June 25, 2001 - E-2 Butler, E-1 State College PA Extra License February 26, 2002- Tested Lock Haven PA So I was 45 when I got my Tech, 47 for my General, and 47 for my Extra. Just a baby! - Mike KB3EIA - |
On Fri, 06 Feb 2004 05:34:03 GMT, Dave Heil
wrote: Len Five Decades Over 21 but not acting a day over eleven wrote: If you're waiting for radio amateurs to be impressed by your professional credentials, you're likely going to be disappointed. I must admit, I've taken a shot or three at Len over exactly the same issue - no Amateur callsign = no valid opinion on Amateur issues. However, a little research reveals that this distinction would be irrelevant in Canada, as we grant full Amateur license privileges upon request to persons with appropriate Professional license qualifications. An excerpt from Industry Canada's Radio Information Circular follows: ================================================== ===== Persons holding any of the following Canadian certificates may be issued an authorization to operate in the amateur radio service with the same operating privileges as the holder of an Amateur Radio Operator Certificate with Basic, Morse Code and Advanced Qualifications: (** NOTE: equivalent to US Amateur Extra license) - Radiocommunication Operator’s General Certificate (Maritime) - Radio Operator's First Class Certificate - Radio Operator's Second Class Certificate Persons holding any of the following Canadian certificates may be issued an authorization to operate in the amateur radio service with the same operating privileges as the holder of an Amateur Radio Operator Certificate with Basic Qualification: (** NOTE - approximately equivalent to US Technician license) - Radiotelephone Operator’s General Certificate (Aeronautical) - Radiotelephone Operator’s General Certificate (Maritime) - Radiotelephone Operator’s General Certificate (Land) - First-class Radioelectronic Certificate The full text of IC RIC-3 is available at: http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/internet/insmt-gst.nsf/vwapj/ric3.pdf/$FILE/ric3.pdf ================================================== ====== It would seem to me that this makes perfect sense - radio operation is radio operation, and the Pros have made a career of it - and invested considerably more education, time, effort and ongoing training than would be possible for most hobbyists. After all, it would be pretty silly for the folks at the local photo club to argue that Yosuf Karsh's pictures were pretty good, but not up to "Amateur" standards! After all, the testing done for Amateur licences today is pretty easy to pass, even without a formal education in electronics. Too easy, I'd say, but that is another issue......(when 7 year olds can pass exams with questions requiring calculation of squares, logs and complex numbers - which sure as heck weren't part of my kids Grade 2 syllabus - I start thinking rote memorization of question pools....) A question - was a similar arrangement for the recognition of professional credentials in the Amateur service ever in place in the US? With the reciprocity agreement between Canada and the US, someone who has obtained their Amateur licence based on their Professional qualifications automatically gains full Amateur operating privileges when travelling in the US. One would think it logical for this arrangement to be bidirectional, n'est pas? I'm not sure if Len's First Class license is equal to any of the Canadian ones listed in RIC-3 above - but if they are, the Canadian equivalent to his license would be sufficient to acquire a VEx callsign absolutely free upon request. Well, for a 49-cent stamp, anyway :) Dave K8MN 73, Leo |
In article , Leo
writes: in Canada, as we grant full Amateur license privileges upon request to persons with appropriate Professional license qualifications. In the USA, there are almost no professional radio operator licenses left. There's the GROL and some radiotelegraph licenses, the latter because Morse operation on ships is still permitted (but no longer required). An excerpt from Industry Canada's Radio Information Circular follows: It would seem to me that this makes perfect sense - radio operation is radio operation, Is it? Then why all the various endorsements? Is "operating" a TV broadcast transmitter the same thing as 160 meter RTTY operation? I don't think so. and the Pros have made a career of it All that means is that they get paid. There are some ladies and gentlemen on the streets of most major cities who make a "profession" out of something most people do as amateurs. (Some say it's the oldest profession). Those people must be qualified to give advice on the subject of their profession, don't you think? ;-) We should revere what they say and do, and not question their knowledge and opinions on the subject, right? ;-) ;-) They must be better at it than us unpaid amateurs because they get paid to do it, right? ;-) ;-) ;-) - and invested considerably more education, time, effort and ongoing training than would be possible for most hobbyists. Maybe - remember that most of them got the license *before* the job. Back when the USA granted such things, the old Extra written was considered by most to be at least the equivalent of the First 'Phone. But now here's the big one: do the professional licenses include testing of the amateur rules, regulations, and operating practices? USA ones don't. And are professional licensees allowed to build their own transmitters and put them on the air without any certification? After all, it would be pretty silly for the folks at the local photo club to argue that Yosuf Karsh's pictures were pretty good, but not up to "Amateur" standards! After all, the testing done for Amateur licences today is pretty easy to pass, even without a formal education in electronics. Agreed! But at least it still exists. Too easy, I'd say, The FCC disagrees. but that is another issue......(when 7 year olds can pass exams with questions requiring calculation of squares, logs and complex numbers - which sure as heck weren't part of my kids Grade 2 syllabus - I start thinking rote memorization of question pools....) And that's not going to change any time soon. The GROL pool is public info, too. Do you know the 7 year old in question? If not, how can you say whether or not she's qualified or knows how to do the required math? A question - was a similar arrangement for the recognition of professional credentials in the Amateur service ever in place in the US? No, except that some radiotelegraphy test elements were credited because they were essentially the same in both services. The problem has always been that the commercial (not professional - in the USA that means something very specific) licenses did not test for knowledge of amateur regs or operating practices. So a commercial licensee was not qualified to operate an amateur station based on the commercial license test alone. And that's still the case. With the reciprocity agreement between Canada and the US, someone who has obtained their Amateur licence based on their Professional qualifications automatically gains full Amateur operating privileges when travelling in the US. One would think it logical for this arrangement to be bidirectional, n'est pas? No. It's a bad arrangement. Unless the Canadian professional tests include the amateur rules and operating practices, your government is derelict in its duty to the ARS. That's a plain and simple fact. For the USA to make the same mistake would be a very bad thing, unless the GROL tests were changed. Even then it would be questionable, because it would probably be possible for someone to pass the Commercial exam but get all the amateur-radio-related questions wrong. Such a person is simply not qualified to operate an amateur radio station. 73 de Jim, N2EY |
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Dave Heil wrote in message ...
Brian Kelly wrote: (N2EY) wrote in message . com... Her folks shepherded her into ham radio beacause ham radio is a great way for kids to learn geography?? Not necessarily, Brian, but studying for an amateur ticket gets kids fired up about learning. I can certainly see Jim's point about kids becoming interested in geography, the sciences and math. I dunno, I guess but experiences, perceptions and observations vary all over the lot when it comes to educating kids. Never mind opinions on the subject. I'll cite my own case. As were all four of my parent's kids I was a pretty early and prolific reader. Implanting the joy of reading was the big gift our parents bestowed on us and they both worked at it. Hard. Once that bug was firmly installed we were pretty much left alone to find our own paths without much if any "hands-on participation" in our interests on their parts. To wit: Geography was one of my hot buttons going way back long before I had the first clue about ham radio. Usta love to cruise the maps which came with National Geo. Any maps. Still do. When I finally bumped into ham radio and disovered that hams could actually communicate with people in those far off places I'd read about my course was set: I absolutely was gonna become a ham so I could go dxing. I did and I still do. It was my interest in geography which led me to ham radio. I don't give ham radio any credit at all for my interest in science. If I hadn't already had an interest in science I wouldn't have developed an interest in ham radio to start with. I was into building electric motors before I got interested in ham radio for instance. And in geology, bugs and weather science. I didn't have any interest at all in math as such until I was halfway thru engineering school with a General and it finally dawned on me that I was actually sort of enjoying the stuff. It didn't work toward interesting me in geometry though. I was caught reading QST hidden within my open geometry book. Geometry was no sweat here but I got tossed outta 10th grade English class twice for laying out equipment panels at the back of the class. Then the flaming fairy teach caught Sally Leinhauser and I playing footsie. Such "activities" apparently really annoy fairies. No problem, life coulda been a *helluva* lot worse than sitting out in the hallway with Sally. During the same year I built an AM BC rcvr which used five of the tiny AG-1 flashbulb envelope subminiature tubes and stuffed the whole thing into a small Band-Aid can which I carried in my shirt pocket. Walkman Numero Uno. I went into biology class one day and strung the wire antenna to an overhead lamp fixture, put on the earplug "speaker" and started tuning around. The teacher, good 'ole Floyd Neff finally noticed the antenna and stormed to the back of the room, "What are you doing, what is that thing?" I cupped my ear, "Uh, it's my hearing aid, could you speak up a bit please?" Tossed outta class again. You brought back a lot of hilarious memories of "electronerd educations" gone awry David. Gawd we had fun . . ! For the first few weeks of my interest, my dad actively discouraged me with talk of amateur radio being a passing fad for me. He had visions of mounds of equipment gathering dust in a closet. He was right, I've seen it happen . . ! My mother encouraged me and was able to convince my father that some of the meager family income should be spent on a transmitter for me if I earned the money for the receiver from my paper route. You got lucky, I got NOTTING in the way of economic support for diddling with radios despite the volume of coin my parents had. Their policy was that if some pursuit or another was important enough to their kids we could bloody well work out how to pay for it on our own or drop it. With the notable exception of cheerfully paying the expenses related to Boy Scouting. I *really* needed radio gear so I had a couple paper routes, peddled magazine subsciptions, painted house numbers on curbs in December, etc. Got the equipment and some early lessons on how much work hot buttons can actually cost. My dad had and has no technical abilities whatever. My mother was deathly afraid of electricity and wouldn't even clean my ham shack. She just knew that lightning was going to enter the house via my antennas. Both parents saw value in amateur radio as a wholesome activity, one which would nurture an interest in science and possibly lead to a career in electronics. Once more we all obviously came from very different directions to a sort of convergence here. My Dad excused himself from an orphanage at age 14 and became an apprentice tool and die maker. Eventually he moved on into the U of P med school research labs as a creative guru in the electrical instrumentation, glass-blowing and mechanical shops. Mom became a secretary-turned-lab-assistant in the same research facility where they met in 1933 or so and here I is. Mom had a much older civil engineering student brother who "fiddled with radios all night" and who might have been an early ham. He passed away before he graduated so I'll never know if he was a ham or not. Bottom line here being that when I got into ham radio and hung wires all over the yard none of it particularly attracted much parental attention. At dinner one night I puffily announced that I'd worked Africa for the first time the night before, a ZS6 on 80 CW. "That's nice dear. Did you clean your bedroom yet?" Career guidance via ham radio? Ha! As if. Just after WW2 they put together the family tool and die works in which all four of their offspring were raised. So of course we all became gearheads, even the girl knows wrenches. Two mechanical engineers, another tool and die maker (turned statistician and programmer), the girl got into computer programming about the time the first punch card decks showed up. What I have gotten out of ham radio as it relates to my career is a *much* better grip on EE sorts of things than the average ME has. Has proven to be a very big asset on many occasions. I raised my three daughters pretty much the way I was raised and none of 'em are slouches in their various professional technical fields. I know Janie. Her father was Jesse Bieberman W3KT who is still a legend. Honer Roll top-ender for decades, phone and cw dx contester, 25wpm with a straight key for 48 straight. Vice Director of the Atlantic Division for decades and one of the most powerful voices in Newington in those days. Ran the W3 buro single-handed also for decades. ...and ran the W3KT outgoing QSL forwarding service for a number of years. I forgot all about that, tnx. Speaking of QSL card handling Joe Arcure W3HNK is in this neighborhood, I gotta look him up. Dave K8MN Brian w3rv |
Born Aug 1 53. Got my old style Tech (took tests at the old FCC field
office in NYC) October 76. Upgraded to Extra on Restructuring Day (April 15, 2000) and got the paperwork the next week. So that works out as 0, 23, and 46 years. Aug 1, 1953 was my zeroth birthday. - |
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