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Nolan's Notes: Sometimes, You Have to Shout ‘Stop the Presses!’
May 8, 2020 | Nolan Johnson, PCB007Estimated reading time: 1 minute
I-Connect007 was working diligently to research and report on “Going Green” for the April issue. Although it was a good topic, sometimes, the world has other plans.
As the COVID-19 outbreak went global, all plans changed for the electronics industry. As I write this column, orders for medical devices— ventilators, respirators, and viral detection equipment, especially—are the manufacturing priority, all while a large portion of the world’s population shelters in place (as the U.S. tends to call it) to slow and eventually stop the viral spread. All the while, Wuhan—and China as a whole—start to reemerge. Seemingly overnight, we pivoted to respond to a health crisis.
We’re inundated by pandemic news on the mainstream media. We know what’s happening in the U.S., China, Taiwan, Spain, Italy, the U.K., and elsewhere around the globe. There is hardly a conversation to be had on any topic that doesn’t include mention of the pandemic. While going green was our original topic, current events demanded that we pivot, devoting this issue to the breaking news and changing dynamics COVID-19 has brought us.
Around the world, we shelter in place and wait. We work from home and take over the frontline duties of educating our children. In some ways, with some people, we are coming closer together. In other ways, we are enacting strict social distancing to keep each other safe.
And yet, we still find new ways to reach out. I live in a building with about 90 loft-style apartments in a mostly-urban neighborhood on the west coast of the U.S. Before the outbreak, my neighbors were consistently aloof. Now, though, it’s different. We keep our physical distance, sure, but we stop when we encounter a neighbor and check on one another. Are they in need of something? A walk down the hallway will now regularly include bags of groceries or household items left on a neighbors’ doorstep by someone else in the building. Human connection means so much during this time, and we’re helping each other by sharing our resources.
To read this entire column, which appeared in the April 2020 issue of PCB007 Magazine, click here.
Suggested Items
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
03/15/2024 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007 MagazineIt was a busy week in PCB design and manufacturing. This has been a pretty “dense” week, and this week’s Top Five features an article on density equations by Happy Holden, and a news item about the SMTA UHDI symposium in Phoenix. We also have news about our latest podcast, and a Chris Mitchell column about economic security here and abroad. And Todd Kolmodin discusses the ins and out of 4-wire Kelvin testing, and he tells us a little about Lord Kelvin himself.
The Shaughnessy Report: The Myriad Opportunities—and Challenges
03/12/2024 | Andy Shaughnessy -- Column: The Shaughnessy ReportIf you look at the current state of PCB design, there are a lot of positive indicators. We have almost full employment in this great career that appeals to the techie side of the brain as well as the artistic side. You can make good money as a designer without ever seeing the inside of a college. This segment is in constant flux. It’s challenging, and that’s part of what makes it fun. But there’s one big problem: There aren’t enough designers, and the problem is likely to get worse before it gets better.
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
09/15/2023 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007 MagazineWe’ve had a hot week in this industry. In my picks for this week, we introduce a new SMT007 columnist, and we have a look at the CHIPS Act one year later. We have a great article about sourcing diversification, and a look at the latest electronics news coming out of India. And columnist Vern Solberg explains DFM best practices for flexible circuits.
TopLine to Present at IMAPS Symposium 2023
08/11/2023 | TopLineMartin Hart, CEO of TopLine Corporation, will deliver a presentation titled “Reliable Solder Columns to Replace Solder Balls in Large 2.5D Heterogeneous Packages” at IMAPS 2023 in San Diego, California, October 4, 2023.
TopLine to Present at NASA ETW June 13
06/05/2023 | TopLineMartin Hart, CEO of TopLine Corporation, will deliver a presentation titled “Next Generation Solder Columns Extend Life for Large Packages for Space Applications and Data Centers” at the upcoming 14th Annual NASA Electronic Parts and Packaging (NEPP) Electronics Technology Workshop (ETW) June 13.