The 3 Ss
I remember a getting some advice from a lecturer when at university and thought I should save it here.
There are three Ss in life you should never pay for:
- Sex
- Stationery &
- Software
Posts – Page 13
We Have (More) Grass!
The stones a0t the bottom of our garden have now been replaced by grass.
So now we have more room for the kids to play on. And of course more to cut.
Fun with the Sewing Machine
For a number of years now my preferred cycling bag has been a messenger bag but with clips built into it so it can be attached to a bicycle rack. I prefer this style over the traditional pannier bag style because it is more convenient to carry when you get …
Two Parties, Similar Outcome
Last weekend we hosted a BBQ picnic and had lots of friends over. It was a great day but I felt like I spent the whole time rushing about checking on folk and checking on the kids. I never really felt like I had a proper catch up with folk …
Out of context
I have just had the uncomfortable experience of running into someone who I didn't recognize out of context. They clearly knew who I was (greeted me by name) but my brain just completely failed to make the connection.
I am used to not remembering people's names and having to work …
Typeup of Proof Testing Webinar
Yesterday I viewed a webinar on proof testing1 organised by IChemE.
The presentation was a good overview and went at a decent pace for following along but was too fast for me to take any decent notes.
Below is a quick writeup of what I took from the session …
Waistcoats are Cool
I have had a few more comments made in the last few weeks about my waistcoat than usual. I believe it is because of someone has been wearing one in Russia. Perhaps it will reduce again now that England are out of the world cup.
I thought I would take …
Using Stereo in Podcasts
I have finished listening to a podcast that consisted of an interview between two people.
The creator of the podcast decided to make full use of the stereo streams. The interviewer was asking the question in the left audio channel and the interviewee was in the right channel. This may …
Vanessa Sutherland - Trevor Kletz Memorial Lecture
Vanessa Sutherland was1 the Chair of the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) and delivered the fourth Trevor Kletz Memorial Lecture2 at the IChemE hazards conference.
I did not attend the lecture in person however the IChemE have put a video of the presentation online3.
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What is Drama?
That is when people worry about each other instead of what they are doing.
That was a quote from Sunday Stoic episode 71 (2018-07-08).
I had never thought of it that way before.
Thanks to Mary Miller and the Sunday Stoic.
BBQs and Cycling
This weekend has been pretty busy in our house. We had our 4th of July picnic (on the 7th) where we invite lots of friends over.
Normally we invite far more people than actually attend. This year we ended up with a record turnout and brilliant weather.
It was a …
Steam Heating on Ceres
Yesterday I watched the latest video from the Isaac Arthur Science and Futurism youtube channel on Colonizing Ceres.
I have been enjoying these videos recently which offer hard sci-fi without any (or very minimal) plot. They look at what would be possible in the future assuming known science and only …
Appologies for the delay
I have not been particularly good recently at updating this site. I note that the last post was made nearly a year ago.
It is not as if nothing has happened in the meantime (my second son was born last October), but I have not managed to get any thoughts …
When Helping Hurts
I have just finished listening to the Frekonomics episode when helping hurts and am staggered.
The episode talks about a large study, the Cambridge-Somerville study, into social interventions and attempts to reduce gang viollence.
This was as close to perfect study in terms of it being a long term, randomised …
What Happens when you Kick a Radiator Pipe
It Hurts!
I would advise everyone avoid doing this.
Howto: Fix Car Doors Not Staying Locked
So today I had a bit of a puzzling problem with my car which ultimately had a very mundane solution. It took me longer than it probably should have to find the answer and I didn't find an answer online with my brief search so I have decided to document …
Thoughts on Today's Fire
I decided not to post this on the day of the incident but wait till more was known. There have been too many occasions where comments made in the immediate aftermath of an incident are ultimately unhelpful. A week has passed now and I feel that my comments are still …
Clockwork at Work
From the first of May, all smart watches and fitness trackers have been banned at work to help comply with DSEAR1. The ban covers everywhere within the refinery gates, including offices, not just plants where explosive atmospheres may occur.
As a result, I can no longer use my everyday …
APC vs Toddlers
Over the last few weeks, I have been commissioning a couple of new Advance Process Control (APC) schemes within the refinery and it occurs to me that this is very similar to looking after a toddler in the house.
Watching a Toddler
When looking after the little one, you can …
Habitica
A year ago today, I started to use Habitica, an online role playing game aimed at improving productivity.
What is Habitica?
Similar to lots of other online games, you have a character and work to collect experience (which allows you to level up), coins (which allow you to purchase items …
Five Years Ago Today
Alot has changed in 5 years. It is nice that some things don't.
Denise,
I Loved you then,
I Love you now,
And forever more ∞
Dictionary Fail
Today when reading an ebook, I came across a word I was not sure about, expostulating. One of the nice features of reading on an ebook reader, is that you can easily select the word and look it up. In this case however it was not that useful:
pH Problems
During a cat reformer regen we are required to monitor the pH and alkalinity of a wash water solution in the process.
This year we had issues with controlling the alkalinity and we used so much of our neutralising solution, we ran out.
This post will explain the background and …
Viso: How to Split Lines
At work, I occasionally have to modify visio drawings created by others.
When I am making a drawing, I always ensure each segment of a line is a seperate line, which makes modifying later much easier. Unfortunatly few others do it this way and just use polly lines.
The following …
Review - Stitch Master
Who
Stitch Master are a Tailors in Falkirk and I used them to take-in a couple of my old shirts that I do not use any more.
Why
I have trouble finding shirts that fit me well, even the slim fit shirts often feel loose around the waist.
I have …
Eilidh Doyle Talk
Today I attended a reliability away day organised by work. Part of the day's events included a talk by 400m Hurdles athlete Eilidh Doyle. The talk was a relaxed sit down conversation between Eilidh and Niall Browne, the refinery HR manager.
This post includes some of the main things I …
The Keil Centre - Presentation
Yesterday I attended a presentation at the Keil Centre delivered by Janette Edmonds on 'Predictive Assessment of Human Reliability'.
Focus of the presentation was on prediction and looking forward to what could happen, rather than the traditional view of retrospectively looking into times something has gone wrong.
Human Reliability
While …
Dynamic Alarms
Earlier today I commissioned a project I have been working on for the last year, ESD Dynamic Alarm Suppression.
When the Emergency Shutdown (ESD) System is activated, shutdown valves will close and pumps will stop. This normally causes a significant flood of extra alarms as the normal control system warns …
At Least the House hasn't Burnt Down
For Christmas 2014, I got a weather station from my parents. I have set it up to put the data online with weather underground and I can view my weather at any time by going to my personal weather station dashboard.
If for some reason, the system stops sending data …
Times When Tracks Does Not Work
I previously wrote about how Getting Things Done (GTD) and Tracks have been useful in keeping organised at work. When GTD is working, things generally feel good. Even when there is a high workload, there is also a sense of control.
There are a couple of areas when I tend …
My Day* in Court
* Well just over one hour.
Earlier this week, I attended Falkirk Sheriff Court after receiving a Jury Citation letter a couple of months ago. I thought I would write a quick note about my experience here.
This is the first time I have received a Jury Citation. I have previously …
Sweaty on a Train
Once again I am sweaty on the train having sprinted for it.
I am headed into Edinburgh for an Inaugural Lecture on Energy, Exergy and How We Can Achieve a Low Carbon Economy.
Unfortunately until this morning, after I was already at work, I had forgotten about it (must review …
JWF: Clamp on Flow Metering Technology
I have just attended a Lunch and Learn session delivered by JWF Process Solutions Ltd and hosted by the Institute of Measurement and Control East of Scotland Section.
This presentation focused on clamp on ultrasonic flow meters and their recent developments.
I have had a small amount of experience with …
An Extra Benefit of Self Driving Cars
I have recently been thinking on the improvements to safety when self driving cars become popular and well used. People generally accept that (given time) these cars are going to be safer than human driven cars because they won't get distracted. The worry is that you won't see road safety …
A Sneaky Way to Update Terms and Conditions
I have just checked through my email spam folder and found a couple of emails from Microsoft updating their terms of use and privacy statement.
The way the email has been sent, it has triggered gmail's spam filters because the sender has failed to authenticate properly. When viewing the email …
The problem with the EMF Camp Schedule
This time next week, me and by family will be at EMF Camp in Guildford.
I have been having a quick look ahead at schedule. There are lots of interesting talks and workshops that I want to see and I am really looking forward to the event.
My only problem …
National Women in Engineering Day 2016 Webinar
I have just finished watching the "National Women in Engineering Day 2016 Webinar" hosted by IChemE. This was a pre-recorded webinar and contained interviews with three female engineers about their experiences within industry.
While I was able to watch without having to go anywhere else during the presentation, my internet …
Implementing Safety
My work place held a safety stand-down in response to the higher number of injuries (mostly slips, trips & falls) seen this year.
The manager who delivered the presentation put it to us that it was down to behavioural safety and that people are not taking as much care as they …
The Problem With the EU Referendum
The thing that drew me to the Yes campaign during the Scottish Independence Referendum was the positive hope for the future. They were saying 'these are the problems with the way the country is ran today and this is how we intend to improve things in the future'.
The No …
10 Ways Control Systems Lie
An Introduction to Instrumentation and Control
This Presentation was delivered on behalf of the IChemE Scottish Members Group on Thursday 2nd June 2016 at Ineos Grangemouth. I have attached a copy of the slides however they are not very descriptive on their own. This post is a summary of what …
Review - Athleteshop
I recently bought a Basil Urban Fold Messenger bag from athleteshop.co.uk. Shortly after receiving the bag, they sent an email requesting a review of their site however the place to review it is their facebook page (and I am not currently using facebook).
As such, I have decided …
Quick Thoughts on the IChemE 2016 AGM
I am just back in the door from this year's Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) AGM which was held in Edinburgh. This post is to document a couple of quick thoughts that I had as I left the conference centre.
Diversity
A significant proportion of the incoming president's speech was …
Keeping a Personal Log with Rednotebook
One of the most important aspects of 'being organised' in the workplace is to keep some form of logbook. This is somewhere that you can record what you are doing on a day to day basis so you can reference it in future to remember exactly what happened (because our …
I'm Giving a Talk
I had an odd experience last night when I received an email from IChemE inviting me to a presentation that is to be delivered by myself.
No getting out of it now then. My intent is to provide a general introduction to instrumentation and cover things that I have learnt …
Cheating at Work
Generally it seems that many people at work are always struggling with workload. When you ask them if they have completed a task, they respond that they haven't had a chance to look at it. It is almost seems like a badge of honor. I used to worry that perhaps …
Cycling in to Waverley Station
I have been on holiday for the last week and have made a number of trips into Edinburgh during the week and have taken a bike with me to help get around the city.
In the distant past, to get a bike in or out of Waverly, you would simply …
Dyslexia Simulator
Last month, I came across (via twitter) a dyslexia-simulator. Before I go any further, I would like to make clear that I am talking from a personal perspective. I am aware that there are many different flavours of dyslexia and other people will have different experiences.
I …
Mangled Brain
So I have just completed the course on advanced process control. It was interesting on Sunday night when I met the other course attendees.
There were eight attendees in total, I was the only Brit, all others were from continental Europe (Dutch, Belgian and German). There was a definite feeling …
Training for the Training Course
So after yesterdays post concerning being slightly worried about switching back into control engineer mode, this morning I am even more worried.
I arrived at the hotel just in time for dinner and met five of the other attendees (there are eight of us in total on the course). All …
Switching Brains
The Cat Reformer is mostly back together. Hopefully later today, hydrogen can be introduced. If everything goes well, feed should be put back in on Tuesday.
For myself though the TAR is over. I am currently on a train on my way to Cardiff for a training course next week …