A motley collection of ideas
The salad is an undeservedly neglected part of holiday lunch. Hungarians just eat something pickled with the meat and call it a day, while food bloggers throw together something from the leftovers. Yet there’s real science in salad, let me tell you! The word “salad” comes from the Latin expression herba salata (meaning “salted herb”). … Read more
“It was still called broadcasting, and it cost a lot of money,When the first speaker excitedly sat down at the microphone.His ringing voice soared and flew far away,And in one listener, something responded:— The test was successful!”(LGT: The Radio) Today, digital technology is making its way into every area of communication and broadcasting. The crystal … Read more
This article revives a classic from Janusz Wojciechowski’s cult book Building Electronic Toys: a simple Hartley oscillator that does nothing—except beep endlessly. I once drove my father crazy with it and today it’s still a perfect tool for learning electronics. We explain how it works, show how to rebuild it, and explore Wojciechowski’s quirky ideas … Read more
Every September, Vienna opens its doors to the curious. During the Open House Wien festival, visitors can explore extraordinary buildings that are normally off-limits. On September 15-16, 2018 more than a hundred sites welcomed guests: from sleek office towers and renovated palaces to pioneering co-housing projects. The Department of Urban Planning at the Budapest University … Read more
The MCM sport pistol (in Russian: Пистолет Марголина Целевой Малокалиберный) may be familiar to those who learned to shoot in MHSZ (Hungarian Defence Association) clubs. Some people still use this weapon today, although it is increasingly being pushed out of competitive shooting by models from Walther, Pardini, and Smith & Wesson. Entire generations of sport … Read more
The Grid Dip Oscillator (GDO) is one of the most important instruments for amateur radio constructors. It was primarily used for tuning resonant circuits, but with a bit of ingenuity, it has a wide range of applications. The following text introduces this instrument and some of its potential uses, without aiming to be exhaustive. I … Read more
Anyone even slightly familiar with electronics knows the NE555 IC. This almost iconic timer circuit was designed in the summer of 1971 by Hans R. Camenzind, a Swiss-born electrical engineer who taught at Northeastern University in Boston. Yes, we’re the same age! It’s not the “greatest” IC because it’s the largest in size or the … Read more
Secret military facilities have always been the subject of rumors, yet even the local residents rarely knew anything for sure. Today, in the age of the internet and Google Earth satellite imagery, it’s harder to keep secrets—though truly important sites remain shrouded in mystery. The worn-out installations of the Cold War era, however, can now … Read more
A friend of mine recently asked me about a gadget called the Power Factor Saver. It’s a small plug, barely larger than a typical power adapter or an old mobile phone charger. According to the article I linked earlier, the price is now, just for you, 9800 HUF (around €25), and “the Power Factor Saver … Read more