“But I have a good router already! My ISP gave me it, it must be the best!”

Man if I had a couple of bucks every time I’ve heard that, I’d be so rich by now. Fact of the matter is it’s unfortunately far from the truth.

I work with VoIP, and running a Voice call over the internet may be easy with Skype, and you may be OK with choppy calls, but when you’re running an enterprise telephony system, you don’t have the same tolerance for bad quality.

What does that have to do with you? Most probably everything! If you’re here it’s likely because you’re having issues with your internet, and either you think it’s related to your router, or I’ve referred you here from PressF1.

So let’s clear the air about a few routers:

The D-Link DSL-302G is quite possibly the worst router of all time. They should be all be burned in one great big bonfire and D-Link publicly mocked for them.

Dynalink have their overheating RTA1320 that gets so hot the plastic melts and changes from light cream to a rusty looking orange or brown. It’s unfortunately a bad choice in router too.

Telecom have been giving away a 2Wire 2070-series Router and Thomson TG585v7 modems. They’ve got some of the worst web interfaces I’ve ever used, but at least they’re semi-reliable. Again though, they must be cheap routers if they mass-produce them and Telecom gives them away. $199 value? Whatever! Nobody in their right mind would spend $199 on them!

Orcon with their HomeHub / BizHub router which is a Siemens SX-763. Best mentioned so far, but again far from the quality that a router should be. It’s locked-down so you can’t change the USB port or VoIP settings, it doesn’t overheat, but for a VoIP router it doesn’t handle VoIP well at all.

The Belkin N1 is overpriced and fails to deliver in so many ways. I’m not sure why, but around 60% of all the N1’s I’ve dealt with just seem to have packed up and died. Their ADSL performance / reliability was mediocre anyway. suffering from irregular reboots.

The Netgear DG834G has firmware issues, wireless isn’t reliable, average broadband performance and reliability, but to be honest it’s probably the most reliable router I’m recommending people avoid

Linksys, yes I love Linksys stuff but man did they mess up badly with the WAG160N. That thing falls over almost as much as the Dynalinks. Sure, plug I’ve seen ADSL Sync speeds go up when compared with the likes of a Telecom Thomson TG585 by around 3m/bit, but that means nothing to me if it’s not going to function day in and day out reliably.

What’s the solution then? So many bad routers out there, most free, what can you do about it?

Well don’t take the free stuff that your ISP gives away. There’s a reason why it’s free, and that’s not because it’s a good, quality router!

If you’re a home user or small-business and want an all-in-one solution that “just works”: NetComm NB6Plus4Wn

If you’re a geek or a corporate, or perhaps you want a little more control over your router, maybe you give your internet connection a hammering, or if you want QoS (Quality of Service) to prioritize VoIP / Gaming above other traffic, then you want: A Linksys AM300 in Halfbridge to a Linksys WRT54GL running Tomato Firmware

Please drop me a comment and say Hi, let me know if this has helped you or got you thinking in any way, or perhaps if you’ve got one of the routers then just say so. Always happy to hear from readers.

Cheers

Chill.

            While the politicians are bashing each other in Washington, D.C. over healthcare reform, a little known incident occurred at UC San Diego’s School of Medicine that underscores the inequities of our healthcare system. I know this because I found online a controversial newly-posted photo. No, not the one of my actor son Andy appearing naked in his UCLA play. This was the colored photo of a gold-masked Egyptian mummy being rolled into a six-slice CT scanner.

            A team of cardiologists and Egyptologists had carefully scanned 22 mummies from the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. Each mummy was at least 3200 years old. The doctors and researchers found that more than half of the mummies had cardiovascular disease. The co-investigator of the study, cardiologist Dr. Michael Miyamoto said, “Our findings remind us of the value of preventative medicine.”

            The mummy study demonstrated that healthcare is already available to every American man and woman if they only wait long enough.

            I can hear your protests now: why should Egyptian mummies have better healthcare than the American public? Our Congressional leaders have discussed that issue as I discovered in my recent review of the news.

            John Boehner, the current Republican house minority leader, interviewed in Mother Jones Magazine: “The Republican healthcare plan, when we have time to knock one out, focuses on innovative wellness programs to help avoid serious and costly illnesses. All that’s required for those Egyptian mummies is end-of-life care. That’s it. Just a little hand-holding and some Tylenol. Under our planned plan, this means great savings for the typical American taxpayer who, by contrast, has a shitload of pre-existing conditions.”

            He added “Imagine how long those mummies would’ve waited for their CT scans if there’d been a public option. They would’ve been dead by now. Those mummies show what we mean by death panels.”

            Harry Reid, interviewed on FOX news, angrily stated “Look who funded the mummies’ CT Scans. Siemens Healthcare and the National Bank of Egypt. Once again an international mega-corporation and financial institution control who gets good healthcare: Mummies– the wealthiest old patients. Do you know how much those mummies are worth, individually? Of course they could afford the best American healthcare. Talk about rationing of care!”

            Boehner, quoted in Ms. Magazine: “Harry, there you go again. The mummies’ CT scans were actually done in Egypt. By outsourcing our healthcare in this way, costs are substantially lowered. What difference does it make if your prostate exam is performed in Pakistan rather than Peoria?”

            “What you’re saying is nonsense, Mr. Minority Leader,” Harry Reid stated, speaking before the World Clown Association. “You claim there shouldn’t be unnecessary medical tests. So why did those mummies undergo prostate exams?”

            “I’d like to interject something here,” said Senator Joe Lieberman, addressing the International UFO Congress. “I was in favor of the mummies receiving the CT Scans. Then I was opposed to the mummies receiving the CT Scans. Now I’m inclined to favor a motion to proceed to oppose a motion to favor a filibuster to oppose a motion to favor or proceed to permit the mummies continuing to be part of our healthcare system, but I expect to vote against my vote.”

            “Joe, it’s time to take your pills,” Hadassah Lieberman said to her husband, during an interview with Vanity Fair’s reporter Leslie Bennetts in the November issue.

            “Harry Reid can’t get beyond the liberal pressures from his party,” House Minority Leader John Boehner stated to attendees at the National Association of Cat Therapists. “While it’s true we’re against paying for healthcare for foreign people, these Egyptian mummies will not be emigrating to the United States. No sir. For humanitarian and research purposes, America examined and treated them in Egypt. We’ll give them palliative, end-of-life care. And if they ever die again, we’ll make sure they’re given another proper burial in some cave.”

            “As Senate Minority Leader, I want to thank John, the House Minority Leader, for his wise words,” said Mitch McConnell, as reported by Brian Ross of ABC news, covering the annual convention of the Goldfish Society of America. “Because I’m Senate Minority Leader, it’s my job to see that healthcare reform is possible by not passing healthcare reform. I know John’s been saying the same thing. And I know he’ll keep speaking out about this in the other House, where he belongs. As the Senate Minority Leader, I urge you to remember the most important thing about healthcare reform: I’m the Senate Minority Leader.

            Harry Reid, in a recent article in Glamour Magazine: “I’d like to see how John Boehner would like it if he didn’t have our Congressional health insurance plan, and finally developed skin cancer from all his tanning booth sessions.”

            Interviewed by Beauty Editor Alyssa K. Hertzig of Allure Magazine, John Boehner stated “Harry Reid just doesn’t get it, when it comes to healthcare. Just like he doesn’t get that my skin tone is my natural color. When I was born November 17, 1949, that day there was a high level of geomagnetic storms and solar activity—you can look it up—so my skin tone is a result of that exposure. I am permanently bronzed. What right does Harry Reid have to bring my skin color into this discussion on healthcare? He looks like he posed for Grant Woods’ American Gothic. All he needs is a pitchfork.”

            “Whatever.” (Harry Reid, quoted in Playboy Magazine, November 2009.)

Flaschenform, gefräst auf DMG HSC 55 linear mit SINUMERIK 840D sl. Die CAM-Software hyperMILL^® bietet ein umfassendes Spektrum an Bearbeitungsstrategien – angefangen beim 2D- bis hin zum 5Achs-Fräsen. Alle Strategien einschließlich der Spezialapplikationen sind unter einer Oberfläche verfügbar. Dadurch können Fräsaufgaben sehr flexibel programmiert werden. So wurde für die Bearbeitung dieser Flaschenform neben der ISO-Bearbeitung, der 5Achs-Restmaterialbearbeitung und dem Konturfräsen auch eine Strategie aus dem Formkanalpaket eingesetzt.

Bodenbearbeitung: Fräsbahnen können getrennt von der Werkzeuganstellung berechnet werden, wodurch für jede Geometrie sehr einfach ein Programm erstellbar ist. Mit dem 5Achs-Rework werden die Werkzeuganstellungen berücksichtigt.

5Achs-Konturbearbeitung: Für die Bearbeitung ist nur eine Referenzkontur zu definieren. Gravuren, Konturen oder Nuten müssen nicht auskonstruiert werden. Das heißt, eine zeitaufwendige Detailkonstruktion im CAD ist nicht erforderlich.

5Achs-Halfpipebearbeitung: Mit dieser Strategie aus dem Formkanal-Paket können Nuten mit beliebigem Verlauf und Querschnitt sehr einfach durch die Definition einer Referenzkurve programmiert und gefräst werden.

Moderne Siemens-Steuerungstechnik für optimale Fräsergebnisse: SINUMERIK MDynamics bündelt die starke CNC-Hardware SINUMERIK, intelligente CNC-Funktionen und eine einzigartige CAD/CAM/CNC-Prozesskette in Technologiepaketen für das 3Achs- und 5Achs-Fräsen – zum wirtschaftlichen Paketpreis. SINUMERIK Operate – die neue neue SINUMERIK-Bedienoberfläche ist jetzt noch übersichtlicher und intuitiver.

Bodenbearbeitung	5Achs-Konturbearbeitung
5Achs-Halfpipebearbeitung	Auf DMG HSC 55 linear
Zum Datenblatt.
	SINUMERIK von Siemens

A consortium of 12 companies which includes financial and power juggernauts Deutsche Bank AG, Siemens AG, RWE AG, ABB Ltd. and E.On AG,  Abengoa Solar (Spanish) and Cevital (Algerian) are heading to the Sahara desert with power generation on their minds.

This has nothing to do with Hydo-, Bio- or wind-power! It’s the desert after all. This obviously well-thought out generation plan has to do with what the desert never runs short of and is synonymous with- solar power, and lots of it in particular.

In fact, an industrial consortium – Desertec Industrial Initiative – has already been created and a CEO – Paul von Son – appointed. Desertec (pun intended?) would oversee the project that would erect solar thermal power stations on approximately 16,900 sq.km of desert. This, according to the plan, would be used to generate as much as 15% of electricity for Europe and some North African and Middle East countries.

Sounds good! But the finer points are in the financial details. The global think tank, Club of Rome, believes Desertec needs about $594bn for the project. In addition, $520bn would be used for the solar power plants while the high-voltage direct current transmission lines to push the electricity to Europe will gulp about $74bn. (Refer: http://solarstocks.blogspot.com/2009/11/sahara-desert-solar-power.html)

Big bucks? Nay, megabucks. For financial giants like those involved and for the necessity of the project, the cost may not be too extravagant. Many questions arise however and not too many answers are available. One of them is that, in as much as the energy needs of these global multinationals are spiraling and necessitating the funding of research into alternative sources, and the oblivious fact that solar energy is fundamentally unlimited, what is being done to consider the energy requirements of third world countries most of which are on the fringes of the Sahara desert?

Imagine the costs involved in the transportation of the product of this project (in the region of $74bn!!!) One cannot force these companies, in business for profit, to consider charity. But the fact remains, if the means are not available and resources are scarce for the man on the streets in regions of the world where they export their products, the profit margin of these companies will remain in the red.

The world is today shrinking at an alarming pace that belies the epithet “global village”. Many who have studied the disastrous climate for business brought on recently by the recent economic crisis have come to a more enlightened conclusion about the dynamics of interconnection that exists today.

We live in a more organismic society and a fracture here can bring the entire system everywhere to a standstill, nay a coma. As the mega bucks go the way of the desert, it is worth thinking about those who have been deserted in countries that have remained in the back waters due to a large extent by an acute lack of electrical power.

Interview with Raj Batra President, Industry Automation Division

By Bill Lydon – Contributing Editor at “automation.com”

I recently had the opportunity to interview Raj Batra who was appointed President of the Industry Automation Division for Siemens U.S. in October 2009. Batra was formerly vice president, Automation & Motion, for Siemens Energy & Automation. The Industry Automation division, based in Alpharetta, Ga., encompasses automation products including programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and controls for discrete and process automation.

Since 2007, Siemens has been globally aligning its businesses into three sectors: Healthcare, Energy and Industry. The reorganization of the U.S. operation is a continuation of this global re-alignment. The newly formed Siemens Industry, Inc. in the U.S. is under the leadership of CEO Daryl D. Dulaney. Siemens Industry will provide its U.S. customers with solutions for industry and infrastructure, with integrated automation technologies as well as industry-specific solutions.

In this new role, Batra is responsible for overall planning and direction of all Industry Automation division activities in the United States.

Batra explained that the global realignment of the company started in Germany about two years ago. “The reorganization really has a lot to do with how the world is changing and what we call our megatrends.” The megatrends are urbanization (worldwide trend but not in the U.S.), healthcare, green movement (CO2 emissions, etc.), and the new age of electricity (wind, solar, etc.). “The reasons to shift and align our portfolio are to better serve customers impacted by these trends.” Batra emphasized that Siemens has core technologies to solve the problems in all these areas.

Batra highlighted a number of factors that he feels puts Siemens in a good position in the United States.

U.S. Market Attitude Shift
Batra views the installed base in North America as a major opportunity, “particularly from one of our major competitors,” says Batra. “A very important trend to capitalize on in the United States is the aging infrastructure in plants. If you want flexible manufacturing systems in plants with aging legacy systems (25-30 or more years old), you need to take the next step.” One of Batra’s key points for U.S. manufacturers to be globally competitive is the use of the latest technologies to improve operations and flexibility. “One thing that I have never seen before in my Siemens career is customers’ willingness to entertain technology discussion as the basis for their (purchase) decisions,” says Batra. He further commented that customers are becoming smarter buyers of automation and controls. Batra elaborated, “Based on cost, efficiency, trying to compete, and being better than your neighbor, companies now want the best technology solution in their manufacturing facility.” “For the first time ever, I am seeing customers that have never opened up specifications, opening up today – in essence, letting us engage in a head to head technology battle. That is exactly the position we want to be in the United States.”

Regarding this change, Batra observed that in the past, management cut off technology discussions. “In the past you could have the best technology available and you would hit that frozen middle (management) in the plant.” I asked for his thoughts on what is creating this shift? Batra indicated that the old way of doing business has given way to a better analysis by manufacturers of what will drive productivity for the business. Manufacturing management people also have a better understanding of technology today.

Process Industries
Batra noted that Siemens has been gaining process industry market share in 2009 and instrumentation has been the least impacted business during the recession. Batra also pointed out that Siemens has a scalable architecture for the process industries, from lab applications to large DCS.

System Integrators
Siemens has a certified system integrator program and Batra sees tremendous value in professional system integrators. “When we have integrators that put the technology to the test, they see the ability to improve quality, productivity, and efficiency,” says Batra. “We see a number of integrators clamoring to be Siemens system integrators, which is a good indicator that our market positioning and visibility are improving for both discrete and process manufacturing.” Siemens is an active member in the Control Systems Integrators Association.

Control & Automation Platforms
Siemens has a broad line of controls including Nano PLCs, high end PLCs, process DCSs, and CNCs – that are all applied in a wide range of applications. He emphasized that the Siemens’ portfolio of products is vast and can serve a wide range of applications. “We have the flexibility to not reinvent products for a specific industry,” Batra explained. “We are not creating one offs or black boxes to serve industries. Instead, these industry-specific solutions are adaptations with programming and how we set the systems up.”

Communications
“We feel the infrastructure growth will be much greater than the PLC business,” says Batra. He indicated that users are becoming more educated and selective about communications, including the growth of wireless for control and safety applications as people become more comfortable with the technology.

Batra says, “Real-time industrial Ethernet as a common and flat topology for plants has a lot of inherent benefits. Customers are looking for flat topologies that address everything they have to do. What we leverage is really PROFINET/PROFIBUS – around an entire portfolio of automation and high speed machine control technology. Because the topology is not just built for a PLC, but for the spectrum of the Siemens portfolio, we offer customers flexibility.” Batra emphasized that this strategy solves all customer applications so they do not have to own and support multiple network technologies.

Based on “consultative” discussions Siemens has with manufacturers, communications is becoming a major reliability issue. “50 plus percent of downtime issues in factories are caused by network and interoperability issues,” says Batra. Batra stated that network reliability and the diagnostics built into Siemens products are an important consideration for increasing system up time.

Software
Siemens’ software direction is to provide a common HMI and control configuration software with the new Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) portal offering. This integrated approach simplifies engineering and startup and was first introduced in the SIMATIC S7-1200.

My closing thought
Batra is clearly enthusiastic about Siemens and the technology the company brings to the U.S. market. It will be interesting to watch this new organization.

Bestechung oder wenn Onkel Doc Money kommt.

In keinem anderen Land der Welt, außer den Problemstaaten Irak, Somilia und Afghanistan ufert die Korruption so aus, wie in Deutschland. Wir haben Platz 14 inne, in der Liste der korruptesten Länder der Welt und viele träumen schon längst von Platz EINS.

München scheint in diesem Machtspiel die heimliche Hauptstadt von Deutschland zu werden. “Es geht um Milliarden und um Mini-Summen, es reicht von Siemens bis ins Wohnungsamt der Stadt München: Korruption und Vorteilsnahme im Amt sind trotz der aller enttarnten Fälle immer noch überall anzutreffen”. (1)

“Bayern war da nach Erkenntnissen des Bundeskriminalamtes voriges Jahr bundesweit sogar Spitzenreiter. Die Zahl der Korruptionsfälle ist hier sogar von 258 im Jahre 2007 auf 520 im Jahre 2008 sprunghaft gestiegen. Niedersachsen kam mit Platz 2 nur auf 419 Fälle”.(1)

“Einige Fälle aus München: Städtische Mitarbeiter nahmen Bakschisch für Sozialwohnungen, ein Beamter soll überteuerte Aufträge der Stadt seiner Frau zugeschanzt haben, es floss Schmiergeld beim Bau der Allianz-Arena, es gab Korruption in der Kfz-Zulassung oder verkaufte Aufenthaltsgenehmigungen. 1990 wurde gar der Chef der Lokalbaukommission verhaftet”.(1)

Was will man mehr, in Bayern war man immer schon für die “Großköpftete”, man wählt ja auch seit einem halben Jahrhundert CSU, weil Gott das angeblich so will.

1)http://www.webnews.de/http://www.abendzeitung.de/politik/146776

Adentrarse en los secretos de la materia y conocer el momento previo a la creación del universo constituye el principal objetivo del CERN, el Consejo Europeo para la Investigación Nuclear. Para llevar a cabo su trabajo, el CERN se nutre de la participación y colaboración de los fabricantes del sector de las TIC como Intel, HP, Oracle o Siemens.

IDGSpain

John F. Nebel geht

jede Wette ein, dass wir in spätestens 10 Jahren den elektronischen Personalausweis und das Einloggen mit dem Bürger-Clienten als Standard fürs Surfen in Deutschland haben.

Ich traue mich nicht, dagegenzuhalten, stimme aber zu:

Wir sollten was dagegen tun!

via Elektronischer Personalausweis und Bürger-Client bei Metronaut.de – Big Berlin Bullshit Blog.

Fujitsu-Siemens Scenic xB, Desktop-PC (45 x 14 x 47 cm B x H x T), PIII/933, Board D1184, 256 MB Ram, 20 GB Festplatte, 48x CDROM, i815-Grafik onboard (4 MB), Sound onboard, Intel 10/100 NIC onboard, 3,5″-Floppy, Tastatur, Maus, 2xCOM, 2xPS/2, 2xUSB, 1xLPT; Zubehör: Netzkabel; gebraucht
…………………………………………………………………….
Fujitsu-Siemens Minitower-PC Scenic P300 (21 x 38 x 37 cm B x H x T), Board D1561-C, Celeron 2,6 GHz, 256 MB Ram, 40 GB Festplatte, DVD, 1 GBit-Lan onboard, Sound onboard, Grafik onboard, Floppy; Zubehör: Tastatur, Maus, Stromkabel, Treiber-CD; gebraucht

einfach HIER anklicken

(some items were changed for privacy reasons and non-disclosure policies)

Organizational Designs: Intro

• A leader needs foresight, and must be able to see how all things are ordered according to the “Grand Design” or in a bigger picture.

I remember Clientlogic. They had the right set of values from the start: Vision, Passion, Purpose. Have that and you’ll have the making of  phenomenal leaders — movers and shakers of their generations.

Strategic Leadership = knows how an action/interaction takes a toll on events, situations, people and organizations

• Organizational structure provides the formal framework for communication and authority within the organization.

for communication = how entities, people groups or individuals interact with each other.

for authority = how decisions are formulated and implemented across the organization.

• Good Organization Design

              = helps in distributing total workload

Designs and work distribution are a good start, assuming workflows and processes are clearly delineated.

I then thought of my work here at the helpdesk. I wish there was a one-stop sourcebook for all the policies and escalation paths instead of having to maintain a sharp memory and expert navigation through my grossly limited email inbox and the not-so process-friendly knowledge base.

             = coordinating diverse organizational tasks

that involves a great deal of Politics. In the Philippines, pakikisama, saving face, and long-term relationships either make or break deals and businesses.

Design elements

Centralization = unravels the derivation, divergence and dynamics of decision-making

If management has confidence in its employees or teams, it may provide them with the autonomy to handle issues themselves.

The Dell Pasay Experience = So much decentralization happened, that supervisors failed to meet the business need – to generate income.

Complexity = the degree and extent of bureaucracy in an organization

Formalization = the physics and dynamics of processes and interactions among systems, people groups and/or individuals within the organization

The Canadian Experience = Before, employees in a certain corporation holding office 2 steps away from the IT Department’s office would simply walk into the IT Personnel’s room and “take” the IT guy to his desk to have his problem fixed. Now, they have to call the IT Helpdesk.

Formalization follows suit every time organizations stabilize = meaning, processes become organized and incur complex details.

Security becomes the main concern as an organization branches out and increases its scope and responsibilities, paving way for formalization and formulation of stronger and more consistent workflows and processes.

Horizontal Dimension = Applies best to Organizations with departments of diverse nature and functions. Manufacturing industries benefit best from this structure. Grouping people by their function/purpose maximizes their productivity, which of course translates to a better income and more profits.

Vertical Dimension = applies to mega-organizations with sub-organizations of similar nature and functions within. Dell Pasay is a good example. Over 40 teams does the same job –– Dell Consumer Technical Support.

Resolution Expert > Technical Support Manager > Area Manager > Process Director.

Siemens however has a mix of both the vertical and horizontal dimension in its organizational hierarchy, which is mainly due to the diverse business groups/units, often cross-sectoral, within its conglomerate.

Citar el nombre de Siemens es recordar el inicio de la tracción eléctrica en el ferrocarril, que ahora celebra sus 130 años de existencia y que tiene la ciudad de Berlín como el escenario donde se dieron los pasos de lo que se reconoce como la primera máquina eléctrica de la historia. En aquellos años del último cuarto de siglo, el mapa ferroviario estaba casi completo, pero seguía dominado por la tracción de vapor, aunque con locomotoras cada vez mayores. Hoy el vapor casi ha desaparecido, salvo para demostraciones nostálgicas, y las máquinas diesel y eléctricas compiten y comparten el mercado mundial, sin que por el momento se determine cuál de las dos va a ganar esta batalla.

Hasta finales del siglo XIX la energía eléctrica en los ferrocarriles pasaba casi desapercibida. La pila del italiano Volta tiene por esa época más de un siglo, y los experimentos del americano G. Henry y el francés Ampere en el campo del electromagnetismo habían sido coronados por el éxito. Pasado el primer tercio, Faraday había comprobado la existencia de corrientes inducidas por el movimiento de un imán en una bobina. La ciencia estaba prepara, por tanto, para aplicar la electricidad en lugar del vapor en la tracción ferroviaria. E intentos para llevarlo a la práctica también los hubo.

Un inglés (como siempre) realizó los primeros ensayos, al construir una locomotora en la que los pistones eran maniobrados por cuatro electroimanes con atracción intermitente y sincronizada. Pero hubo que esperar hasta 1879 para que el ingeniero alemán Werner von Siemens concibiera el primer tren eléctrico que estuvo funcionando durante cuatro meses en la Exposición Universal de Berlín. La sociedad Siemens y Halske construyó una pequeña locomotora eléctrica que arrastraba un tren de viajeros dentro del recinto de la exposición, que hacía un trayecto circular de 300 metros. y recogía la corriente de un carril especial situado en el eje de la vía.

El tren traslada en cada viaje a treinta viajeros a una velocidad de 6,5 kilómetros por hora. La máquina dispone de un motor eléctrico colocado sobre cuatro ruedas que tomaba la corriente del carril especial. Con esta máquina se inicia la tracción eléctrica en el ferrocarril. Nace la primera máquina eléctrica del mundo. Es de Siemens y se experimenta en Berlín.

La demostración de Siemens dio lugar a otras exposiciones en Bruselas, Dusseldorf y Frankfurt. Siemens y Halske pronto construyen una línea entre Berlín y Lichterfelde, de una milla y media de largo. Esta línea, que fue abierta al tráfico con un coche eléctrico en 1881, fue el primer tranvía eléctricodel mundo. El motor se colocó debajo de la carrocería del coche entre los ejes. El coche lleva veintiséis pasajeros, y recorrió la distancia entre ambas localidades a treinta kilómetros por hora con un suministro de corriente de 100 voltios.

El mismo año, Siemens también construyó la primera central pública de energía en el mundo, en Godalming, unos 60 kilómetros al suroeste de Londres. Esta instalación hidroeléctrica propulsada por el río Wey, que no producía emisión de carbono alguna, generó la energía utilizada para alumbrar las calles y varios edificios. Tres años más tarde, Siemens también iluminó el bulevar “Unter den Linden” de Berlín. El nombre de Siemens se hizo sinónimo de la ingeniería eléctrica.

Los primeros desarrollos de ferrocarriles eléctricos se centran en los transportes urbanos, donde se hacía perentorio un nuevo sistema de tracción que evitara los molestos humos de las máquinas de vapor. De esta forma, a finales de siglo circulan en Europa y Estados Unidos los primeros tranvías y en 1890 se inaugura en Londres el primer suburbano del mundo que funciona ya con energía eléctrica. Sólo seis años después, entra en servicio en España el primer tranvía eléctrico, que cubre la línea Bilbao- Santurce. Las máquinas eléctricas vivieron un largo periodo de pruebas, como antes había ocurrido con las de vapor.

Aún hay que esperar hasta 1905 para la puesta en funcionamiento de una locomotora eléctrica en una red ferroviaria. El honor le corresponde a la línea Baltimore-Ohio, en Estados Unidos, donde una máquina con una potencia de 1.440 caballos de vapor deja atrás ya a las más potentes locomotoras de vapor que funcionan por aquel entonces.

El avance en estos primeros años de siglo se hace imparable, aunque no es hasta la década de los veinte cuando se producen las electrificaciones importantes en el ferrocarril mundial. Se deja a un lado la corriente continua y se adopta la corriente alterna trifásica, que resolvía el transporte de la energía a distancia, gracias a la facilidad de elevar o rebajar la tensión mediante simples transformadores. Europa se sumó rápidamente a esta expriencia.

Serán las compañías de ferrocarriles quienes llevarán a cabo en un comienzo la electrificación en España, de acuerdo a sus necesidades de explotación y en aquellos tramos donde las características topográficas y climatológicas hacían difícil la tracción a vapor. El primer tramo de línea de vía ancha electrificada en España fue el tramo Gérgal-Santa Fe, del ferrocarril Linares-Almería, en 1911. Para su electrificación se eligió el sistema de corriente trifásica de 500 v. y 25 Hz.

En 1925 se inaugura la electrificación del Puerto de Pajares en respuesta a la gran dificultad de la explotación de la línea con tracción a vapor, debido al difícil y abrupto trazado que presentaba la línea durante su recorrido. A partir de este punto se seguirán electrificando más líneas a lo largo de todo el territorio español.

Paralelamente a las electrificaciones en vías de ancho normal se realizaba este proceso en las líneas de vía estrecha. La primera de todas fue la del tramo Sarriá-Barcelona en 1905, para seguir con los años venideros electrificando nuevas líneas, hasta llegar a tener un total de 300 Kilómetros de vía estrecha totalmente electrificados antes del estallido de la Guerra Civil. Y acaba la contienda, creada Renfe se electrifica casi toda la red nacional. En 1975 se pone fin a la era del vapor en España.

(Fuente ‘Historia de los trenes’ y ‘El libro del tren’). (Ilustración Exposición de Berlín de 1879)

Die Welt, von Elisalex Henckel — Erst wurde der frühere Wiener Verfassungsschützer Sicherheitschef des Siemens-Konzerns. Dann soll Gert-René Polli ein streng geheimes Dossier des Bundesnachrichtendienstes (BND) an iranische Behörden weitergegeben haben. Die Wiener Staatsanwaltschaft ermittelt wegen Geheimnisverrats.

Als oberster Verfassungsschützer Österreichs hat Gert-René Polli schon vor fast zwei Jahren abgedankt, aber die Welt der Geheimdienste hat er offenbar nie richtig hinter sich gelassen. Seine Vergangenheit dürfte nicht nur dazu geführt haben, dass er 2008 Sicherheitschef des Siemens-Konzerns in München wurde – sondern auch, dass er diesen Posten ein knappes Jahr später wieder los war. Die Frage ist bloß: Sind ihm zu gute Beziehung zum Iran zum Verhängnis geworden oder, wie er selbst jetzt behauptet, zu schlechte zur CIA?  […]

Mehr lesen Sie hier …

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Published in “Die Welt” on November 13, 2009
http://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article5190158/Spionierte-Siemens-Mann-fuer-Ahmadinedschad.html#reqRSS

Gert Polli (right) on March 25, 2008 congratulates Peter Gridling (left), his successor at the Austrian Federal Agency for State Protection and Counter-Terrorism

First, the former associate of the Austrian Federal Agency for State Protection and Counter-Terrorism (BVT) in Vienna was appointed the head of the Siemens security department. Next, there were allegations that Gert-René Polli leaked a strictly confidential dossier of the German Federal Intelligence Service (BND) to Iranian authorities. The Prosecutor’s Office in Vienna is conducting investiations over charges of betrayal of secrets.

Almost two years ago, Gert-René Polli had resigned from his post as the chief of Austria’s BVT, however, apparently he never quite left behind the world of the intelligence. His past is most likely not only the reason why he in 2008 became the head of security with Siemens in Munich, but also the reason why, after only about one year, he got rid of this very job. The question is, however: Was his downfall the result of overly good connections with Iran, or, as he himself is putting it, of overly bad connections with the CIA?

At any rate, the German Judiciary has been keeping track of him since spring. Reports of “Focus” and “Spiegel” that were published last weekend, stated that Polli is said to have leaked a strictly confidential dossier of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) to Iranian authorities. This is why the Office of the Federal Prosecutor in Karlsruhe is investigating the Austrian citizen Polli over suspected intelligence activities. Siemens did not comment on which role these accusations played in Polli’s layoff a couple of weeks ago, but merely stated that it had been by mutal agreement.

Since (the Federal Prosecution Office in) Karlsruhe requested administrative assistance, the public prosecution in Vienna has started investigations as well. They suspect the former head of the BVT of abuse of position and betrayal of secrets. Polli himself, in a conversation with the pictorial “News”, called this “absurd”. He said he would be able comment on specific accusations only after being exonerated from official discretion, however, he is convinced that “American security agencies” are at the bottom of the attacks. In his view, the issue is a mere tit-for-tat response to his administration in Austria, since he “on the grounds of the legal situation in Austria rejected many American operations.”
“News” claims to have a document in which Polli complains to BND-chief Ernst Urlau, saying that after 11th September 2001 the “wishes” of the US intelligences at times had “exceeded the sphere of constitutional legality”.

Khi tập đoàn Pháp Areva và tập đoàn Siemens của Đức cùng nhau chào mời công ty điện lực Phần Lan TVO một nhà máy điện nguyên tử thế hệ thứ ba theo hình thức chìa khóa trao tay với giá 3 tỷ euro, hầu như chẳng hề một ai nghĩ đến chuyện thất bại.

Lò phản ứng được xây trên đảo Olkiluoto của Phần Lan là lò phản ứng đầu tiên của thế hệ thứ ba: lò phản ứng nước áp lực châu Âu (European Pressurized Water Reactor – EPR). Lò phản ứng có công suất lớn nhất thế giới này có thể đáp ứng toàn bộ nhu cầu điện năng cho một thành phố triệu dân.

Thế nhưng, hiện TVO và các công ty Areva/Siemens đang tranh cãi kịch liệt trước tòa án. Chi phí tăng cao, thời điểm hoàn thành phải lùi lại nhiều năm. Nhưng đặc biệt là những người chỉ trích hiện đang cáo buộc hai tập đoàn đang xây dựng một cách rất cẩu thả. Bê tông rỗ, thép có vết nứt, nhiều cấu trúc táo bạo đến mức các chuyên gia của cơ quan giám sát nguyên tử Phần Lan phải rùng mình.

Theo dự tính ban đầu, nhà máy điện lẽ ra đã bắt đầu hoạt động vào mùa xuân vừa rồi. Bây giờ phải chờ mãi đến năm 2012. Và ngoài ra phải tiêu tốn thêm ít nhất là 2,3 tỷ euro so với tính toán ban đầu.

Xây dựng nhà máy điện hạt nhân EPR tại Olkiluoto, Phần Lan. Ảnh: AFP.

Vào đầu năm nay, Areva đã đưa đơn kiện TVO ra tòa và yêu cầu đền bù thiệt hại 1 tỷ euro với lý do cho rằng TVO đã cần quá nhiều thời gian cho các văn kiện cần thiết. Về phần mình, TVO cũng phản pháo bằng cách kiện ngược lại và yêu cầu chi trả 2,4 tỷ euro đền bù cho thiệt hại do thời hạn hoàn thành chậm trễ gây ra.

Lò EPR này là lò phản ứng đầu tiên của thế hệ thứ ba, cỗ máy nguyên tử hiện đại nhất của thế giới, một sản phẩm lai tạo từ các phát triển lò hạt nhân Pháp và Đức. Nhưng thường sản phẩm lai thì lại phức tạp: Từ lúc bắt đầu cho đến hiện giờ đã có trên 3000 lỗi trong xây dựng. Và câu hỏi quan trọng nhất vẫn còn chưa được trả lời là câu hỏi về hệ thống điều khiển tự động của lò phản ứng.

Trong tháng 12 vừa qua, tổng giám đốc của cơ quan giám sát đã gửi một bức thư phản đối đến nữ giám đốc của Areva. Ông không nhận thấy có “tiến bộ thật sự” trong “thiết kế các hệ thống kiểm soát” và cho rằng “các lỗi thiết kế đã không được sửa chữa”. Hồi giữa năm nay cơ quan giám sát hạt nhân Anh cũng đã phàn nàn về thiết kế hệ thống điều khiển của Avera. Vì thế nên nhiều chuyên gia cho rằng trong vòng 8 năm tới đây Avera sẽ không xây dựng được một lò phản ứng EPR nào trong Liên hiệp Anh.

Khoảng 4300 công nhân từ 60 nước và 700 doanh nghiệp phụ trợ hiện đang có mặt trên công trình xây dựng. Rất ít doanh nghiệp trong số đó đã có kinh nghiệm trong kỹ thuật lò phản ứng hạt nhân. Nhiều công nhân đang làm việc như thể họ đang xây một nhà để xe cho tư nhân. Nhiều bảng với dòng chữ “Xin đừng tiểu tiện vào đồ vật” bằng 4 thứ tiếng được treo trên công trường xây dựng.

Trong thế giới Phương Tây, ngoài Phần Lan hiện chỉ có một lò phần ứng đang được xây dựng: tại Flamanville trong vùng Normandie – và ở đấy người Pháp cũng đang phải đối đầu với những vấn đề tương tự như ở Phần Lan.

Bản đồ các lò phản ứng trên thế giới. Màu đen: Số lò đang hoạt động, màu đỏ: đang xây và màu xanh: đang còn trong giai đoạn lên kế hoạch. Phía dưới là biểu đồ số lượng lò phản ứng theo tuổi. Ảnh: Der Spiegel.

Trong năm vừa qua, lần đầu tiên kể từ khi kỷ nguyên nguyên tử bắt đầu, không có đến một lò phản ứng mới đi vào hoạt động. Theo báo cáo tình trạng trên thế giới của ngành công nghiệp nguyên tử (World Nuclear Industry Status Report), tuy hiện đang có 52 lò phản ứng “đang được xây dựng” – nhưng 13 lò trong số đó đã được xây dựng từ hơn 20 năm nay. Và ở 24 lò phản ứng khác còn chưa rõ ngay trên lý thuyết là bao giờ chúng có thể khởi động được.

Thêm vào đó, có 36 lò phản ứng mới đang được xây dựng tại Trung Quốc, Ấn Độ, Nga và Hàn Quốc. “Tôi tối cả mắt khi nghĩ rằng hiện đang có 16 lò phản ứng đang được xây dựng cùng lúc ở Trung Quốc và người ta chỉ nghe rằng không có vấn đề gì cả” – Mycle Schneider, nhà phê bình, chuyên gia về nguyên tử từ Paris – cho biết.

Tại Mỹ, chính phủ Bush trước đây đã hạ thấp rào cản cho việc xây dựng lò phản ứng hạt nhân mới. Thêm vào đó, năm 2007 chính phủ cũng đứng ra bảo đảm khoản tiền cho vay trên 20 tỷ USD. Thế nhưng phía công nghiệp đã từ chối. Từ hơn 30 năm nay họ đã không xây một lò phản ứng mới nào cả.

Hiện nay, điện nguyên tử chỉ rẻ tiền khi các lò phản ứng cũ được phép kéo dài thời hạn hoạt động và chính phủ phải đích thân giải quyết vấn đề phế liệu phóng xạ. Hiện vẫn còn chưa có lời giải đáp cho câu hỏi này. “Hoàn toàn chưa có kinh nghiệm với những lò phản ứng hoạt động lâu hơn 40 năm” – chuyên gia Schnneider nói.

“Thật ra thì ngoại trừ lò phản ứng người ta đều có thể thay thế và làm mới tất cả” – phát ngôn viên của Arave, Christian Wilson, cho biết. “Về mặt kỹ thuật, 60 năm là có thể.”

Nhưng thật ra, liệu người ta có thể tin ngành năng lượng có khả năng hiện đại hóa hay không khi có nhiều lỗi xuất hiện ngay trong lúc xây một lò phản ứng mới? Các cơ quan giám sát nguyên tử cho rằng thiếu kinh nghiệm là một trong những nguyên nhân cho loạt sự cố này. Và vấn đề này sẽ càng trầm trọng hơn trong tương lai. Trong thời gian sắp tới, 40% nhân viên trong các nhà máy điện hạt nhân ở Mỹ sẽ về hưu. Trong vòng 10 năm tới đây, ngành điện nguyên tử ở Mỹ sẽ cần đến 26.000 nhân viên mới – ngay cả khi họ không xây thêm lò phản ứng. Nhưng trong năm 2008 chỉ có 841 kỹ sư nguyên tử đã tốt nghiệp đại học tại Mỹ.

Tình trạng tại Đức còn tồi tệ hơn. Từ 1998 đến 2002 chỉ có 2 sinh viên tốt nghiệp chuyên ngành kỹ thuật nguyên tử. Vì thế mà tập đoàn Arave vừa thành lập một khóa đào tạo bổ sung về kỹ thuật nguyên tử tại thành phố Karlsruhe thuộc Đức. Các sinh viên này được Areva tài trợ và bảo đảm sẽ có việc làm ngay sau khi tốt nghiệp.

Tuy vậy, kỹ sư Jean-Pierre Mouroux của Areva vẫn tin tưởng vào sự trở lại của những lò phản ứng hạt nhân: “Chúng tôi sẽ xây lò phản ứng ở khắp nơi trên thế giới”. Nếu máy móc đắt tiền hơn và công cuộc xây dựng kéo dài hơn thì lò EPR cần phải được phép hoạt động đến 60 năm.

Tác giả: Dinah Deckstein , Frank Dohmen và Cordula Meyer

Phan Ba (dịch từ Der Spiegel)

Bài đã đăng trên Tuần Việt Nam.