Rickety – Page 54 – Mostly about Utah

Build an Arc Welder from Microwave Ovens: Part 2

June 26, 2009 by rickety 2 Comments

220 volts source for the arc welder

220 Volt Source

After acquiring more than the necessary microwave ovens Paul turned his attention to a source of 220 volts. My electric range is plugged into the wall that separates the kitchen from the garage. Paul simply placed a 125 amp main lug load center in the garage side of the wall and tapped into the 220 volt source. He then ran a line to a 220 volt wall socket he installed in the garage.

Transformers

To power the arc welder Paul needs six transformers. At a cost of $5 for 33 microwaves, one transformer sets him back 15 cents. He dismantled his first microwave oven and extracted the transformer. Anyone need a used microwave oven? With school and work pressing in on him the rest of the transformers will have to wait.

The transformer on the right is all that is required

The 15 cent transformer

Build a Microwave Transformer Homemade Stick/Arc Welder Learn from the experts
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Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities

June 24, 2009 by rickety 1 Comment

The top ten foreign holders of treasury securities.

China Buying Fewer Securities?

I have read in the news several times this year that China [is] Losing [its] Taste for Debt From [the] U.S. If that was true last year it appears that China has changed its mind. Chinese holdings of U.S. debt have risen in 12 of the last 14 months for an increase of 52% (see table below). Of the ten nations in the chart above, eight have also increased their share of the U.S. debt since April 2008. Of the 32 nations and “all others” tallied in the table below, their purchases of U.S. debt has risen a collective 26% in a year.

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Missionary Dan Email #20 from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

June 22, 2009 by rickety 2 Comments

Presented here are portions of Elder Daniel Willoughby’s twentieth email from the Mongolia Ulaanbaatar Mission. If anyone wishes to send Daniel a message, write it in the comments and I will make sure he receives it.

All the missionaries in Daniel’s zone (Daniel second row, far right).

Insanity

That is insane! That is a lot of microwaves. With those I could cook 33 corn dogs in 1 minute. I heard Olive Garden cooks their food with microwaves. That is probably a rumor. Was it really 5 dollars? Sounds like a good project. It sounds like the summer is going great for everyone. Thanks for the continued support and love.

Mongolian sunset.

Missionary Work

We keep on working here. Yesterday some people in the ward were called to stake callings. I was able to talk to a member about patriarchal blessings. They all seem to be really excited to be able to get them. Right now we are still waiting for the stake presidency to submit a name for the calling.

The summer seems to be a slow time for missionary work. People are busy and are working. My companion and I have plenty of investigators that are progressing though. This Friday we have a baptism of a 17 year old. She is good friends with the people in the church and they contributed a lot in helping her attend church and have the desire to join. She was an excellent investigator and kept most of her commitments and is now regularly attending church.

Weather

The picture is of all the missionaries in my zone and one of the sunset we saw one day while returning to our apartment. It was a beautiful sunset that spread throughout the whole sky. We’ve had quite a few that have looked similar to this one. The weather has been off and on of being cold and hot. On Friday there was snow in the mountains, but it was warm throughout the day.

To Mom

Thanks for writing about what you’re up to. Its great to hear about what going on. It is exciting that all the family is visiting and things. And right now we teach English in the churches, since most of the schools are closed down for the summer.

To Dad

Hey! It’s probably still Fathers Day. It is strange to think that I’m one day ahead of where you are. Anyway Happy Fathers Day! I love you Dad.

Love, Elder Willoughby

List of Daniel’s missionary posts.
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Defense Spending by Country

June 20, 2009 by rickety 16 Comments

The fifteen countries with the largest annual military budgets. See table below for actual dollar amounts.

This information is outdated. See this post for the latest in military spending.

Defense Spending In The Billions

The chart above shows the fifteen nations with the greatest annual military spending. The United States, with a budget of $535.9 billion annually, spends more on defense than the next fourteen nations combined. One wonders if all that spending by the United States is really necessary, considering that the U.S. military budget is more than four times that of the next largest spender, China, at $121.9 billion. If America’s NATO allies are included just from the chart above (which is not all of NATO), that adds another $207.2 billion in defense spending. Those countries are the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, and Spain.

Defense Spending By GDP

When spending is considered by percent of gross domestic product (GDP), the United States at 4.1% falls to eighth place. Saudi Arabia (10.0%), Russia (9.9%), and Israel (7.3%) take over first, second, and third place respectively.

Table Of Annual Defense Spending By Country

Click ONCE on column headers to sort.

Rank	Country	$Billion	%GDP
1	United States	535.9	4.1
2	China	121.9	4.3
3	Russia	70.0	9.9
4	United Kingdom	55.4	2.4
5	France	54.0	2.6
6	Japan	41.1	0.8
7	Germany	37.8	1.5
8	Italy	30.6	1.8
9	Saudi Arabia	29.5	10.0
10	South Korea	24.6	2.7
11	India	22.4	2.5
12	Australia	17.2	2.4
13	Brazil	16.2	2.6
14	Canada	15.0	1.1
15	Spain	14.4	1.2
16	Turkey	11.6	5.3
17	Israel	11.0	7.3
18	Netherlands	9.9	1.6
19	United Arab Emirates	9.5	3.1
20	Indonesia	8.4	3.0
21	Taiwan	7.7	2.2
22	Greece	7.3	4.3
23	Iran	7.2	2.5
24	Myanmar (Burma)	6.9	2.1
25	Singapore	6.3	4.9
26	Poland	6.2	1.7
27	Ukraine	6.0	1.4
28	Sweden	5.8	1.5
29	Colombia	5.4	3.4
30	Norway	5.0	1.9

Sources

The Economist, “…and Wars”. Pocket World in Figures 2009 Edition. Profile Books. Dollar amounts are for 2006, except Indonesia which is for 2005.
The CIA World Factbook, listing spending on defense programs for the most recent year available as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP); the GDP is calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP).

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Green Jell-O Filled Orange Wedges

June 19, 2009 by rickety 3 Comments

Green Jell-O filled orange wedges

When Paul is not making arc-welders from microwaves he can be seen preparing treats for the Young Single Adult Ward Barbecue. His treat of choice is Jello-O jigglers. At the last YSA party Paul put bacon in his Jell-O jigglers. Fortunately for about everyone concerned Paul is out of bacon and so instead he is making Jell-O filled orange wedges. He got the idea from instructables. The blog Traditionally Modern Designs also likes Orange Jello Slices. They are easy to make:

Cut the oranges in half and clean out the guts.
Place the empty orange halves in 12oz. paper cups.
Fill orange halves with Jell-O and refrigerate (use green Jell-O if you live in Utah).
Place oranges face down and cut in half. Serve on a pretty tray.

Jell-O is the official state snack food of Utah and apparently Utahns have the highest per capita consumption of Jell-O in the world.

Using a gutted orange as a green Jell-O mold

Using gutted oranges as green Jell-O molds

Turn the orange on its face to cut in two

Turn the orange on its “Jell-O face” to cut in two

Closeup of the green Jell-O filled orange wedges

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Build an Arc Welder from Microwave Ovens

June 17, 2009 by rickety 17 Comments

Paul with his 33 microwave ovens to turn into one or more arc welders

Microwave Ovens

I came home from work to be greeted by Paul, “Hey dad, do you want to see my latest project?” He showed me his purchase of 33 microwave ovens that he will turn into an arc welder. He said that he only needs two microwave oven transformers for the arc welder. Some designs use eight, and besides, “I can always make more than one.” Great, Paul with an arc welder in each hand!

$5 A Pallet

Paul said that he got the microwaves from Tech Cycle that advertised the microwave ovens on Craigslist for $5 a pallet. Here is what the ad said:

Tech Cycle
801-886-6050
1499 So 700 W
Salt Lake City, UT 84104
.
Here is a deal of a lifetime. If you need a microwave, now is the time to buy. We are a business trying to make some room in are [sic] warehouse. We have a pallet of microwaves for 5.00 but here is the catch. YOU MUST TAKE THE WHOLE PALLET. If interested call me or come by.

It appears that Tech Cycle may be connected with Executive Recycling who don’t seem too particular where their electronic waste ends up. The Salt Lake address (1499 S. 700 W.) on their former website is the same as Tech Cycle’s. Some of the microwaves came from Deseret Industries. Anyway, Paul is going to recycle these microwaves into welders. He’s really cookin’ now so standby for updates.

External Articles

Build a Microwave Transformer Homemade Stick/Arc Welder Learn from the experts.

Missionary Dan Email #19 from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

June 15, 2009 by rickety 1 Comment

Mongolian countryside

Presented here are portions of Elder Daniel Willoughby’s nineteenth email from the Mongolia Ulaanbaatar Mission. If anyone wishes to send Daniel a message, write it in the comments and I will make sure he receives it.

The boating trip looked fun. Thanks for the pictures. They are always fun to look at.