CompoundSemi Online - The Original Compound Semiconductor Industry Newspaper

October 17, 2007...Those who travel extensively know all about the multitude of mixed signals that scream at you in airports and other public gathering places. But those of us who play hermit in labs or other quiet dwelling places sometimes experience a significant culture shock when we actually see all the end products our compound semi and solid state lighting industry marvels have made possible. To the sheltered few, seeing them at work can result in an absolute state of sensory overload!

As one among the semi-retired, I purposely don't get out much anymore. In my case, I spend the vast majority of my time at my ranch in Central Texas tending to our longhorn steers, native wildlife, and other ranch critters, logging onto my laptop only when I need to check email or write this weekly McDonald Report column. In 2003, like so many others, I vowed never to fly anywhere again, but broke that promise this summer with a trip to Minneapolis for a family reunion and again last week for a flight to the San Francisco airport, via DFW, to attend my 50th high school reunion in Burlingame, California (class of 1957). With all the downtime they require in the airports these days, I had plenty of time to catch up with what's been going on in the "outside world." Even though I routine track the world's most leading edge advanced technologies (i.e. compound semi-based), in my opinion, the experience was truly mind-boggling.

I got to see iPods and iPhones at work, flat screens I never dreamed were so large, clear and vivid (and loud plus unnecessarily cluttered), cellphones glued to a variety of ears, earpieces that made people look like the old White House secret service guys and everyone in a hurry... but reasonably cheerful. Behind the scenes at the airport was probably the most impressive. The technologies that do the security scanning are fast and efficient, I found the security people competent and friendly, and the Skyrail at DFW truly fast, though I got kinda tired of the same droid voice over and over again. Not that I want to repeat it, but all in all, it was a surprisingly uplifting experience.

What were pervasive were the handheld devices our tech world has helped make possible. They are, of course, marvelous and varied. But in my opinion, they've created somewhat of a backlash. Although most people have become absolute pros at multitasking, they're a bit overly dependent on them and certainly not concentrating on what should, perhaps, be foremost in the concentration realm. Like driving. I saw a number of unbelievably stupid blunders being committed by people behind the driver's wheel that could have been avoided if they'd had both hands on the wheel and eyes on the road instead of talking on their phones or text-messaging or making entries in their digital diaries. We used to think the woman putting on makeup while driving was the biggest hazard. That's nothing compared to what's now going on.

The flat screens our tech world has helped create are marvelous. If you're scouting for the latest best product, you don't have to look any further than your nearest airport. I was really impressed by the overall quality, but totally unimpressed by the content. How can anyone possibly track all the clutter CNN puts out in the constant scrolls, and how can anyone take real news seriously when FOX news is screaming constant hysteria? "Panic Central 5" should be the name of the local news source. When I was in Minneapolis in June, I arrived the day after the big bridge collapse. One of my cousins lived 3 doors down from the bridge and we toured the scene with me pointing out the insanity of the television media. Sure enough, Bambi was putting on makeup, giggling and carousing with the crew, and then when the lights and action came on, she changed to her "totally sincere look" interviewing families of the victims. In another clutch, the current governor of Minnesota was being interviewed, talking in a most distraught manner, but another cousin, who was the COO for ex-governer Jesse Ventura, shared with us that the current governor was the one who vetoed spending for bridge improvements and upgrades. Hypocrisy reigns supreme out there, and we're all smarter if we remember that.

I got an absolute kick out of the plethora of shops and restaurants that are now in some airports. Minneapolis and Dallas-Ft. Worth are the most impressive; San Francisco the dregs (where you're lucky to find a hamburger). In Minneapolis, there's an Ike's restaurant (the best!), a Harley-Davidson Shop and a Cashmere Shop (I stopped to pet the cashmere, a pair of cashmere socks costing only $65). Much fun. In DFW, there's a sign that said it all: "The Malls Are Getting Jealous". But don't plan on shopping at SFO unless it's for the most expensive water ever, and a bit of SF sourdough bread, or See's and Ghiradelli chocolates.

In Northern California, due largely to the tech downturn that evidently continues for many, I discovered some interesting facts from fellow travelers and those I met up with at the reunion. In contrast to though who are still un- or under-employed, Google employees are doing great, so the Silicon Valley dream of becoming an overnight millionaire still exists. According the mother of a new Google employee, there are a number of millionaires at that spectacular company who are under 30, and her daughter, who lives in downtown San Francisco, has a Google-owned bus that comes to drive the SF employees the half hour plus to work. Very cool. So keep on dreaming and working hard. Maybe your company too will hit it big one of these days.

In my old hometown of Burlingame, I was pleasantly surprised to see that that particular SF bedroom community hasn't changed a bit, except for the better. It's the most lively, vibrant, upscale village anyone has ever had the pleasure of visiting, let lone living in. And despite the local government trying to get rid of the hazardous eucalyptus trees that are unique to Burlingame (nonnative with shallow roots that can easily topple in high winds--fortunately there aren't many high winds there), they still reign supreme, majestically setting that town apart from all others that string up and down The Peninsula. While many may fly into SFO, which is actually on the border of Burlingame and Millbrae, and stay in one of the many hotels near the airport, few travelers actually venture west across the highway, (toward the ocean) to downtown Burlingame. If you ever get time, do so. It's well worth the effort. There's literally... Nowhere Else But Burlingame.

As for the reunion itself, for those of us still alive (we're all about 68 now), collectively we looked great! It was such a pleasure to hear the stories of successful careers as lawyers, engineers and other professionals, and even more pleasurable to see pictures of everyone's grandchildren. It's those grandchildren I think about now that I'm safely back to my hermit lifestyle. Will there be so many humans on earth that they'll have a tough time repeating our success track? Will the environment be able to sustain the increased population?

I was greatly encouraged to hear that, while I was gone, on October 12 this year's Nobel Peace Prize is to be shared, in two equal parts, between the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and former USA Vice President Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr. "For their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change." What this means to me and to the compound semi and solid state lighting industries we champion in these pages, is that the technologies we create, especially advanced solar cells and LEDs, now have a real chance of catching on. And if they enjoy as extensive an installed base as our handheld devices and flat screen TVs, well... our grandkids just might have a chance of thriving the way we've thrived these last 50 years. So keep up the great work!

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Sensory Overload
Jo Ann McDonald, founding editor

IBM and MediaTek to Collaborate on Wireless 100x as Fast as Wi-FiCompoundSemi News Staff

Heliovolt Gets $24 Million Increase in Series B FundingCompoundSemi News Staff

Hittite and Northrop Grumman Enter Distribution and Licensing AgreementCompoundSemi News Staff

Cree Posts Slight Revenue Increase as LED Business GrowsLIGHTimes Staff

JDSU and Mintera Form Partnership to Offer Complete 40G Solution for the Telecom IndustryCompoundSemi News Staff

US Air Force Increases Funding for Tandem CIGS Photovoltaics at Ascent SolarCompoundSemi News Staff