PCB Development/Soldering Workshop – Oct 22

Have you ever wanted to take the knowledge you have learned from your curriculum a step further?  Such as professionally designing motherboards, single board computers (SBCs), or any other professionally made printed circuit board (PCB) that can greatly improve the efficiency and appearance of your potential senior design?  If so, the UWF IEEE Pensacola will be hosting a PCB development/soldering workshop.  The workshop will be held at the SSE on October 22th, 10:00am.  There will be a presentation on designing a PCB and matching schematic.  In addition, students will take the next step by actively learning to solder, and solder a selected circuit design.

These skills are essential for engineering Senior Design, Unmanned Systems, and not to mention for your career! Even if you are a Physicist or Computer Scientist, you will be surprised how helpful these skills can be on the job. Pizza and refreshments will be served after the workshop.

If interested, please RSVP David White (dmw18@students.uwf.edu) by October 6th.

Stop Loss Pay Available to Military

Clark Howard: Stop Loss Pay Available to Military on clarkhoward.com.

Troops who were called on to serve their country in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001 are eligible for back pay of $500 for each month of involuntary service. The federal government is now actively contacting 145,000 troops to reward them for their bravery in the months and years following the worst terror attack ever of U.S. soil.

The back pay — known as Retroactive Stop Loss Special Pay (RSLSP) — was approved by Congressional act in October 2009. Some 90,000 of the 145,000 who are eligible for RSLSP are believed to be Army veterans. The Washington Post reports that the remainder of those who are eligible are active-duty members split among the branches of the military. If the service member is no longer alive, the money will go their beneficiaries.

The typical recipient of RSLSP receives $3,700, according to the government. Some eligibility exceptions do apply. For instance, soldiers who accepted re-enlistment bonuses are ineligible for RSLSP.

In order to claim the money, you must file an application at Defense.gov/StopLoss by Oct. 21, 2010. You can also visit the site for service-specific contact info for Air Force, Army, Marine Corps and Navy members. If the money goes unclaimed after Oct. 21, it’s gone forever and can’t later be claimed by the brave men and women of our military.