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PUBLISHER’S LETTER www.siliconchip.com.au Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Leo Simpson, B.Bus., FAICD Production Manager Greg Swain, B.Sc.(Hons.) Technical Staff John Clarke, B.E.(Elec.) Peter Smith Ross Tester Jim Rowe, B.A., B.Sc, VK2ZLO Rick Walters Reader Services Ann Jenkinson Advertising Enquiries Leo Simpson Phone (02) 9979 5644 Fax (02) 9979 6503 Regular Contributors Brendan Akhurst Rodney Champness, VK3UG Julian Edgar, Dip.T.(Sec.), B.Ed Mike Sheriff, B.Sc, VK2YFK Philip Watson, MIREE, VK2ZPW Bob Young SILICON CHIP is published 12 times a year by Silicon Chip Publications Pty Ltd. ACN 003 205 490. ABN 49 003 205 490 All material copyright ©. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Printing: Hannanprint, Noble Park, Victoria. Distribution: Network Distribution Company. Subscription rates: $69.50 per year in Australia. For overseas rates, see the subscription page in this issue. Editorial & advertising offices: Unit 8, 101 Darley St, Mona Vale, NSW 2103. Postal address: PO Box 139, Collaroy Beach, NSW 2097. Phone (02) 9979 5644. Fax (02) 9979 6503. E-mail: silchip<at>siliconchip.com.au ISSN 1030-2662 * Recommended and maximum price only. 2  Silicon Chip It’s good news week, every week... Do you get sick of all the doom and gloom constantly bombarding us? Are you sick of all the dumping on Australia by greenies and environmentalists concerning energy use, pollution, the Kyoto protocol, salinity, cutting of old-growth forests and a thousand and one other issues. This is not to mention the usual force-feed diet of crime, economic troubles, terrorism and whatever. You could let all the media news get you down but a better approach is to think how much better off most people are than they were five, ten and 20 years ago. Or go back further. How much better off are you now than you were 30, 40 or 50 years ago? OK, you were younger (and possibly in better health) but by and large, life is better now than even in the recent past. In general, with the possible exception of housing and petrol, most things you can buy now are much cheaper than years ago. In particular, virtually all consumer goods and mass-produced items are a great deal cheaper and better than they were in the past. Not only do we have access to vastly better technology in virtually every aspect of life, we are better fed, better clothed and have better health services than we ever had in the past. Our prospects for longer and healthier lives are also far better than in the past, in spite of concerns about pollution, growing ineffectiveness of antibiotics, mad cow disease and a host of other factors. Why are we so much better off? Mainly it is due to the overwhelming advances in science and technology in every field of human endeavour. And we are especially lucky in Australia to be living in a rich country with access to virtually any product or technology we desire. Australia’s economy has grown by leaps and bounds over the last ten years or so and the vast majority of Australians are reaping the benefits. I like to think of the Australian economy as akin to a huge amplifier system with multiple inputs and outputs. The inputs come from all of us, government, business and a host of organisations. The outputs go to all of us as well but the outputs are unnecessarily “loaded down” by government taxes and excises, tariffs, surcharges and subsidies. There are filters in the system too, stopping both good and bad ideas from being implemented and there are “propagation delays” as well, causing desired government actions to be delayed, sometimes for years. There are multiple feedback loops as well, constantly correcting and modifying the “amplifier” behaviour and generally responding to the wishes of the majority. There is nothing new in this thinking – economists have been using similar terminology in their computer models of the economy for many years. So next time you are confronted by media doom and gloom, think about how well the Australian economic “amplifier” is running. Focus on the good. Comet chasing has its ups and downs It is was pretty frustrating, really. Our September issue featured a major story on NASA’s comet-chasing satellites. But even before the issue went on sale, NASA was forced to make an announcement that they had lost the CONTOUR satellite which had just been launched. A replacement satellite is under way and the general theme of the story is unchanged but it was still frustrating for us. You win some, you lose some. Leo Simpson www.siliconchip.com.au