The automotive industry has been undergoing dramatic changes even before COVID hit. Now, the industry has lost billions in the first half of 2020 and will be hard pressed to sustain the investments in R&D needed to survive and thrive.
Social Distancing Helmet 2.0
Like all of you, I’ve been working form home for the past two months, enjoying plenty of mandatory family time … and I’ve been going a little stir crazy too. Soooo, inspired by a Crazy Hat Day at work at Kinaxis, I’ve decided to make a Social Distancing Helmet!
Social Distancing Helmet 2.0, to be precise, because it is totally high-tech, minus the generous amount of wires and rubber bands, Hey, I was going for a crazy geek look. It’s an actual construction helmet with an Arduino controller, an ultrasonic distance sensor, a micro servo to make it look around, and a speaker to make it yell at you if you come too close to someone else.
I’ve decided to auction the helmet off an donate the proceeds to The Ottawa Food Bank. I will match the first $100 raised by the auction.
Longer, 3 minute version of the video showing more info of the idea for the helmet and how it was put together.
Launching Paul’s Cave website!
Courtesy of Covid-19, if’ve finally found the time to put together my website. It’s a mix of my professional interests and hobbies. I invite you to explore it!
15th Century Chinese Armada vs. 21st Century Auto Industry
What does the 15th century Chinese armada have to do with the 21st century automotive industry?
A lot more than you might think. Both are about a form of transportation, both involve China, and both demonstrate the impact of imperial or autocratic government on the economy.