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First image of black hole: epitome of scientific collaboration

Written by John Crabtree
First image of black hole: epitome of scientific collaboration

black-hole-different-observatories Accomplishements in microfluidics and analytical chemistry are normally front and centre in this blog, but this is a nod to some great work in physics.  It turns out physics is more complicated than F = ma. 😉

There was a big splash in the media around April 10th about the first images of a black hole ever obtained, and they are indeed pretty fascinating.  What is at least as fascinating is the coordinated, collaborative effort between the astrophysics teams in several countries to generate these images.  A few editorial pieces summarise the tremendous scope of the work nicely on webpages at MIT, the Event Horizon Telescope (or EHT), and publisher IOP.  There are six open-access publications listed at the bottom of the EHT page that describe the work and its results.

The teams all belong to the EHT which is an array of radiofrequency telescopes that work in harmony to image a given target at the same time.  The resolution afforded by teaming the individual telescopes together is vastly better than that of any individual telescope.  A few images from papers that were published simultaneously on April 10 show some of the results.  The first shows several pictures of the M87 black hole taken from different observatories early in the project, before many of the efforts at noise reduction were implemented (image from Figure 4 of this paper).  array-of-different-observatoriesThe second shows the location of the different observatories in Europe, North and South America, Hawaii and Antarctica that were teamed together for the effort (image from Figure 1 of this paper).

To be able to work synchronously, all the observatories had to use precise timestamping of their images with atomic clocks.  Each observatory generated so much data, about 1 PB (PB = petabyte = 1 million GB), that it was faster to simply fly the hard drives to the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (Germany) and MIT’s Haystack Observatory (Boston, US) for the data processing.  Interestingly, the images black-hole-different-dayschange appreciably from day to day, as shown below (image from figure 15 of this paper).

Any collaborative scientific effort of this size is remarkable, all the more so given the size of the groups in different countries, funding sources from yet many more countries, etc.

 

4. Miscellany

HJC Consulting Product Profile Award

Written by John Crabtree
HJC Consulting Product Profile Award

HJC Consulting is pleased to launch a newd90_dsc_0575-cu monthly Product Profile Award series to help give microfluidic product developers a leg up in creating awareness about current or upcoming products. The award will provide that month’s successful applicant a chance to get the word out through a product on HJC Consulting’s website and social media channels regarding their microfluidic or lab-on-a-chip product’s milestones such as a launch, revision with enhanced performance, new product research or patent publication, etc.

The profile will be awarded, free of charge, to one submission per month.  To be eligible, a profile submission must:

  • speak to the technical method of operation and capabilities of the product;
  • include imagery (photos, data, logo, etc.) for which copyright is owned;
  • be free of copyrighted, confidential or proprietary information;
  • highlight preferred applications and/or targeted market segments;
  • include details concerning:
    • (co-) developer & (co-) author email addresses, and social media addresses if desired;
    • company physical address, contact & phone number, website & media release URLs, social media addresses for Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn; and
  • be 300 words or less.

See examples of current blog posts for guidance.

The profile will be hosted on the HJC Consulting blog, and will be posted simultaneously through HJC Consulting’s social media accounts.  Suggestions for social media post content is also welcomed.

Please send queries or submissions via email to John Crabtree.  Successful submissions may be edited for content and length by HJC Consulting.  Unsuccessful submissions may be considered for subsequent months, if desired.

We hope to see your application soon!

2. Microfluidics Business News, 3. HJC Consulting News, 4. Miscellany

Great Customer Service from Christie-Phoenix & CFC Underwriting

Written by John Crabtree
Great Customer Service from Christie-Phoenix & CFC Underwriting

I don’t hesitate to bring poor customer service into sharp focus with a service provider, and with the wider world, if necessary … so it seems that I should also equally underscore excellent service!  I had just such an experience recently with my former commercial insurance broker, Christie-Phoenix, part of Arthur J. Gallagher Canada, and former underwriter, CFC Underwriting.

It started with me leaving them because I’d been able to secure a better deal through a professional affiliation.  My broker with Christie-Phoenix, Ted Stelck, was very helpful all the way through the process, first getting me competitive quotes, and then once I’d decided to leave, ensuring I was properly covered during the transition.  I wound up changing firms only 20 days into my new annual policy, and eventually an invoice trickled in for coverage during this period.  To my surprise, it included a minimum charge of 1/3 of the annual premium, instead of a pro-rated charge based on time covered, as is the case with e.g. home or auto insurance.

I raised my objections regarding this heavy minimum ‘administrative’ levy with Ted, who passed it along to his CFC policy counterparts, who confirmed that this was how the charges had to be.  I got him to ask again to see if they would make an exception, but to no avail.  The CFC policy people pointed out that the fine print on page thirty-something allowed for this.  Annoyed, I finally woke up and contacted the CFC customer relations people through Facebook, where I described my situation and displeasure.  I had an email and phone call within 24h from a Gillian Harvey requesting that I kindly provide her with a full description of the situation.  Gillian listened attentively, and made it clear that, while the policy allowed for the ~1/3 premium fee, she totally understood my annoyance as a customer, and pledged to do something about it.  A day later, I had a letter wiping the whole fee, and also covering the broker’s fee, as a gesture of goodwill.

Nicely done, Christie-Phoenix and CFC Underwriting – way to make it right!!  I’ll now consider this situation as an example of a good outcome when the rubber hit the road.  I’m also publicising this so that my circle of contacts can appreciate that you provided good customer service even when you’d lost the business.  In my books, this is a great example of putting the customer first, and like most people, I strive to give my business, and kudos, to companies that can demonstrate their understanding of this concept.

3. HJC Consulting News, 4. Miscellany

Notice to web log (blog) reader

Written by John Crabtree
Notice to web log (blog) reader

Welcome!  I hope you find some of the business and technology posts here to be of interest.

After April, 2017, blog posts reflect the time at which the information was originally posted, often simultaneously on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.  A major revision to the HJC Consulting website was pushed through in April, 2017, and reflects the creation of the blog; at that time, I ‘reposted’ several of HJC Consulting’s LinkedIn and Twitter posts with approximate dates from the last couple years here just for reference purposes.

Also, I’m happy to entertain requests to post articles on your microfluidic research or products; please send me an email if you’re interested.

Enjoy!

3. HJC Consulting News, 4. Miscellany