Author: Serkadis

BMP21™ Label Printer

Simple to operate and quick to print, The BMP21 hand-held label printer is the must-have labelling tool for voice/datacom., electrical and general industrial crews.

One-handed operation to enhance work efficiencies
Large display with backlight for easy reading
Dual cutter buttons cuts and holds printed labels until you need them
Automated serialization, barcoding and 80 symbols for multiple applications
Terminal block and patch panel functions for accurate label formatting
Self-laminating labels and PermaSleeve heat shrink sleeves added to material options

AN5812-Interface Pitot Probe Used on CEi Unmanned Aerial Targets

Pitot Probe Power, Size, and Mass Match Subscale Target System Requirements.

PALMDALE, CALIFORNIA USA — SpaceAge Control, Inc. has been selected by Composite Engineering (CEi), Inc. to provide miniature pitot probes for CEi subscale target systems. These air data probes provide the primary total pressure information required by the aerial target. The 4392-series air data probe gives leading-edge power-efficiency, low mass, and small size for very light jets, aerial targets, and UAVs.

The 4392-series product was designed specifically for CEi’s requirements. The patented design specifically addresses the unique requirements of long-duration, smaller-sized aircraft such as unmanned aerial vehicles and very light jets.

“After extensive evaluation in the field, we appreciate CEi choosing the 4392-01 pitot probe for their aerial targets,” said Pat Birmingham, Operations, SpaceAge Control. “This product takes a load off of aerospace engineers — for size, mass, and electrical current draw.”

“The probes’ small size, custom interface, and low power provide our solution with a lot more design flexibility,” said Dallas Shelby, Procurement, CEi.

CEi has been producing components for the MQM-107 for a number of years. Through this introduction to the aerial target world, CEi is now a major player in the subscale market and embraces customers who have needs for both legacy products and spares, as well as the state-of-the-art target systems.

Established in 1968, SpaceAge Control is an ISO9001:2000/AS9100B-compliant company leading the air data and displacement sensing industries with stock and engineered-to-order products. Typical air data products provided include pitot probes, pitot-static probes, air temperature sensors, angle-of-attack sensors, static pressure ports, and flight test air data booms. Located in Palmdale, California USA near NASA Dryden, Edwards AFB, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, and Scaled Composites, SpaceAge Control’s high-precision and durable products are used by over 200 companies spanning the globe including aircraft manufacturers, racing teams, vehicle manufacturers, and motion control OEMs.

Parker Hannifin, the global leader in motion and control technologies, has announced its MS300 in-line moisture sensor for hydraulic and lubricating systems has had its ATEX approval re-confirmed. Parker’s manufacturing processes have been found once again to comply with with BS EN 13980, allowing the MS300 to maintain its certification as Intrinsically Safe Electrical Apparatus. As a result, the device can continue to be used to provide fast, reliable and accurate moisture detection in hazardous applications for effective preventative maintenance.

The MS300 moisture sensor features the capabilities of Parker’s successful MS100 and MS200 models, with the ability to monitor and report Relative Humidity (RH) moisture content in oils, and making it easy for maintenance engineers to check if water contamination remains safely within the oil’s absorption range. The unit offers the additional option of programmable outputs to suit the needs of specific applications.

The ATEX approved MS300 model is designed for use with category 1G equipment and can be used with galvanic isolators within specified electrical parameters. The MS300 can also be used in Zone 0 hazardous areas and potentially explosive atmospheres, where moisture sensors are typically not allowed without permits.

The MS300’s renewed ATEX approval follows a successful annual visit by the auditor appointed by SIRA, confirming that Parker is authorised to continue to make and certify the MS300 4-20mA Current Loop Moisture Sensor to SIRA 07ATEX2255 and IECEx SIR 07.0089. SIRA is a world leader in the conformity assessment solutions field, specialising in explosion safety of equipment used in potentially explosive atmospheres (ATEX & IECEx). SIRA is accredited for these activities by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) and is appointed as a ‘notified body’ by the UK Government under European Directives.

The MS300 is part of Parker’s increasing range of products for hazardous areas, which also includes the ACM20 Z2 ATEX approved particle analyser, a proven solution for testing for contamination particles in fuel in explosive and hazardous areas, and the IcountPD Z2 particle detector for use in similar environments and applications, which will be launched globally later this year.

Nerf Herder frontman Parry Gripp is the king of fake jingles and weirdo music shorts on YouTube. His latest video turns its sights on the iPad, and it’s…interesting. [YouTube via The Daily What]

The REV machines are manufactured in three sizes with table diameters of 1250, 1600 and 2000 mm and are available as 2-axis or 3-axis vertical lathes and vertical turning centers. The REV machines are designed and built to perform efficient machining of one-off work pieces or in repeated production of small and medium-sized series. The first prototype of the REV machines was developed in 2005. The high quality design of this machine is result of long term experience in the manufacture of vertical lathes and vertical turning centers which takes into account customers‘ requirements for accurate, reliable and cost effective machines available on a short delivery time.

The rigidity and strength of the machine comes from the heavy duty cast base and column. The cross rail moves along the right and the left sliding surface on the column; its drive is by electric motor and worm gearbox onto the trapezoidal screw and sliding nut. Clamping and unclamping of the cross rail is performed automatically. The cross-rail travel is 800 mm. The rail head is equipped with the ram having a section of 200 x 240 mm and ram travel of 1060 mm. The chain tool magazine with 45 links (total number of tools in the magazine depends on the tooling structure) is located on the right hand side of the machine. The tool magazine is separated from the machine working area by hydraulically operated protective guards. The working area of the machine including the tool magazine is protected from swarf and coolant. The access to the machine working area is enabled by means of manually operated protective guards, which provide safety during working operation. The REV machines can be equipped with the optional 3rd controlled C-axis and with the live spindle.

The multifunction counter board for the PCI Express bus APCIe-1711 with FPGA modules has been given two additional functionalities. The first one is the “parallel interface”. This enables up to 28 digital inputs or 16 RS422 and 12 digital inputs to be acquired in parallel. Several types of trigger are possible: software, digital input (on digital inputs, rising and/or falling edge, maskable) and periodically via timer (maximum resolution 1 µs = 1 MHz). The data is transferred directly by DMA to the PC’s RAM. The second functionality is the BiSS Master, which has been given an additional C-mode. Using the bidirectional sensor interface, the APCIe-1711 can now exchange data with up to 6 sensors/actuators on 2 channels via the A/B or C-mode.
The APCIe-1711 is equipped with four programmable FPGA modules which enable almost all counting applications to be realised on the same hardware basis. The board can be configured quickly and conveniently with the tool supplied (SET1711), and adapted to changing needs as desired. The protective circuits of the digital inputs and outputs make the APCIe-1711 particularly suitable for applications in harsh industrial environments.
For each of the modules, the user can choose between the following functionalities and combine them as desired: incremental counter, SSI, PWM, counter/timer, pulse acquisition, Chronos, ETM, TOR, BiSS Master (Bidirectional Serial Interface), TTL I/O, digital I/O, etc. Additional functionalities such as Sin/Cos or EnDat can in future be integrated in piggyback modules and added to the circuit board. Customer-specific functionalities can be implemented without a change of hardware. In order to acquire data in real time, the user can resort to a DMA data exchange for the new functionalities.
All inputs and outputs are optically isolated up to 1000 V and protect the system against dangerous interference from the environment. Up to 28 inputs and 12 outputs take on different control and regulating tasks.

The high-productivity features on the Haas EC-400 horizontal machining center include 20″ x 20″ x 20″ (508 x 508 x 508 mm) work cube, dual 400 mm pallets, 1-degree indexing, a 95-gallon (360 liter) coolant system and triple-auger chip removal. The standard 8000-rpm, 40-taper spindle is powered by the Haas 20 hp (14.9 kW) vector drive system; an optional 30-hp (22.4 kW) , 12 K spindle is also available.

Both spindles feature an inline, direct-drive system that couples the motor directly to the spindle, for less vibration, heat and noise – which means superior surface finishes, excellent thermal stability and quieter operation. A 24+1 side-mount tool changer and 500 ipm (12.7 m/min) cutting feeds are also standard.

The Haas control features advanced tool management, single-button features, 15″ color LCD monitor and USB port.

The servo-driven pallet changer on the EC-400 swaps pallets in just 8 seconds, and each 400 mm pallet has a load capacity of 1000 lb (454 kg). A separate load station allows the operator to safely load/unload parts or change fixtures on one pallet while parts are being machined on the other, keeping spindle run time at a maximum.

For extremely accurate positioning of multi-faceted parts, a high-precision face-gear indexer — providing 1-degree indexing — is standard. A full 4th-axis rotary table is also available for shops requiring simultaneous 4-axis motion, and a 5th axis can be added for complex work.

Today’s economic climate necessitates an ever-increasing emphasis on accountability and profitability. Miyachi Unitek’s Advanced Data Analysis Monitor (ADAM) represents the very latest technology in resistance weld monitoring, offering more of the information you need to support your ISO, GMP and TQM requirements. Not only will it monitor what happens during the weld, but also before it is triggered, giving you a true 360-degree view of your process!

Sophisticated SPC capabilities – integrated database and Minitab 15® statistical software – enable you to not only collect data, but also analyze it! Other key features include: current, voltage, power, resistance, force and cover gas flow monitoring; high resolution sensors; pre-and post-trigger viewing; envelope limits; and Ethernet communications capability.

ADAM is a desktop unit which comes complete with computer and wide-screen LCD monitor.

See ADAM at MD&M West, February 9-11, 2010 in Anaheim, CA.

General Monitors is proud to announce the debut of its new IR4000 Combustible Gas Detection Calibration Demo. This new five-minute demo provides step-by-step instructions on how to perform gas checks, zero, and calibrate the system’s IR400 point infrared gas detectors. Users will appreciate the ease with which the simple magnet interface tool can be pulled across the IR4000M Monitor to activate an LED status screen and check the status of the end devices.

A single IR4000M Monitor connects as many as eight remote IR400 detectors into a system configuration. The IR4000M is designed with a unique data concentrator that allows it to read the status of each IR detector with a single command. The IR400s in turn provide early warning when a specified concentration of combustible gas is exceeded. Both IR400 and IR4000M are certified to CSA, FM, ATEX, and IECEx and have the CE Marking.

Cambridge Sensotec is delighted to announce that it has been appointed distributor for the BW Technologies. BW Technologies aims to be the leading supplier of gas detection equipment for the protection of personnel and facilities around the world and its products include the GasAlert series of gas detectors.
Cambridge Sensotec distributes a wide range of portable and fixed gas analysers and detection equipment from Industrial Scientific, Dilo, Witt Gas, HiTech, Viamed, Orbitec and Vandagraph. Products include toxic, oxygen and explosive gas detectors, ATEX approved monitors, welding gas analysers, modified atmosphere (MAP) testing equipment and instruments to monitor medical and diving breathing gases.
Cambridge Sensotec was founded in 1996 near Cambridge, England and is fully ISO9001 certified. It sells worldwide through an established distributor network.

The Mantis is stereo microscope designed to provide ultra violet light for the inspection of conformal coatings for PCBs and metal coatings for minimising corrosion. The Mantis microscope has an innovatively designed viewer, which shows a stereo image of the PCB or metal coating with significant clarity and contrast.

With a high resolution image and the facility to switch between UV and ambient light, the Mantis is a versatile microscope enabling detailed inspection to be conducted quickly and extremely accurately.

Inbuilt into the Mantis is a camera which provides the additional facility to document inspection of the PCBs or metal components, with imperfections which may become apparent during the inspection process.

Leading electronics companies and in-house foundries of world leaders in avionics utilise the system for inspection, where the large viewers allow colleagues to share their inspection findings, and the digital image capture enables customers to receive detailed reports of prototyping with specifications and images.

With up to x20 magnification and switchable UV and white light, the Mantis stereo microscope is an ideal solution for detailed, bench top inspection. Visit www.visioneng.com/mantis to see a full range of options and accessories including detailed specifications.

The LDP150 Large Device Press is especially designed for large radiation detectors using compression bonding.

The device is pressed at room temperature, preserving the initial high accuracy alignment and parallelism

Click here to view the embedded video.

Jennifer Jones Austin is a Brooklyn mother of two, an advocate for disenfranchised children and their families, and a Senior Vice President at United Way of New York City. A lawyer and lifelong ambassador for families in her community, Jennifer’s efforts have benefited thousands of people across New York State and beyond.

Jennifer has always been an advocate for those in need, especially children. And recently, the BMCC community came together to do something special for Jennifer.

Jennifer has been diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and is in immediate need of a bone marrow transplant.

In conjunction with New York Blood Center (NYBC), The City University of New York is hosting blood and bone marrow drives at CUNY campuses throughout the five boroughs to help save the lives of patients like Jennifer, who are in need of a bone marrow or cord blood transplant.

BMCC was the first CUNY college to host the blood and bone marrow drive at the Richard Harris Terrace. A press conference was also held at the event, which attracted  nearly 100 blood donors and bone marrow registrants, including BMCC students, staff and faculty.

Members of the BMCC Community Register to ‘Be The Match’
Inside the Richard Harris Terrace, technicians from the New York Blood Center drew blood from the arms of donors, while NYBC representatives from the “Be The Match” National Marrow Donor Program recruited people to take the first step in becoming a bone marrow donor.

At the drive, donors could either donate blood, place their name on the bone marrow registry, or both.

Jennifer Jones Austin does not have a matching donor in her family and is depending on the “Be The Match” Registry—the largest listing of volunteer marrow donors in the world—to find a match. Patients are more likely to find a match from donors who share the same race or ethnicity. Yet, out of the registry of millions, fewer than 10 percent are African Americans. The “Be The Match” Registry drive to help Jennifer is aimed at addressing that situation.

Bone marrow registration only involves completing a health history form, including questions about ethnicity, and providing a swab of cheek cells.

By encouraging members of the CUNY community to donate, not only can a possible match be found for Jennifer, but donating blood or signing up for the “Be The Match” Registry can help save someone else’s life.

Donating blood is “a civic responsibility”
BMCC President Antonio Pérez was the emcee at the CUNY/New York Blood Center press conference, held in the lobby just outside Richard Harris Terrace.

Pérez told the crowd that he donated blood in college with his fraternity, and one of their goals was to raise 800 pints of blood.

“Our students should be aware of what happens around the city,” he said. “That includes being involved in the process of helping other human beings. Donate blood and be involved—be part of this community and part of the city.”

Pérez said donating blood or adding your name to the “Be The Match” Registry is “a civic responsibility.” “Donating blood is easy, safe and painless—it’s also tremendously rewarding,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to save someone’s life.”

Pérez reminded the audience, and the many students standing off to the side of the press conference area, that Jennifer Jones Austin’s own close friends were, unfortunately, not a blood or bone marrow match.  “You can become part of a new circle of friends that can help her,” he said.

Student Ida Djiguimde, a business major, felt compelled to donate blood because she once saw a sick child in a hospital who was in desperate need of blood to survive. “I saw a sign for the blood drive in the BMCC lobby and thought, ‘I should do this,’” she said. “I should help somebody.”

BMCC serves ‘a critical role’ in helping others
During the press conference, donors continued to donate their time—and their blood—to the drive, throughout the day, encouraging their friends and co-workers to donate as well.

Dr. Peter Grant Jordan, Interim Vice Chancellor, Division of Student Affairs for CUNY, also spoke at the press conference, stating that the CUNY community, including BMCC, serve a “critical role” in servicing New York City.“

Blood is the most precious gift anyone can give,” he said, reminding the audience that donating is “neighbor helping neighbor.” According to Dr. Jordan, CUNY is recognized as one of the top five organizations working with the New York Blood Center.

After Dr. Jordan, Dr. Christopher Hillyer, President and Chief Executive Officer, New York Blood Center, spoke at the podium. “We’re trying to help one person, and that one person becomes many people,” he said.

According to Dr. Hillyer, blood and bone marrow donations are extremely important for patients undergoing intensive chemotherapy.

“We look for blood every day,” he said. “The New York Blood Center needs 1,500 units of blood every day to serve the community. When it comes to blood and bone marrow donation, in this case, we’re all one.”

Maria del Carmen Arroyo, Chair of the City Council Health Committee, spoke after Dr. Hillyer, thanking Jennifer Jones Austin for “making this [mission] personal for us,” and for putting a face to a name when it came to donation.

“We must step up,” Arroyo said. “And we hope Jennifer has many more birthdays to come.”

Shawn Austin speaks on behalf of his wife
A match has yet to be found for Jennifer Jones Austin, who wasn’t able to attend the drive, but her husband, Shawn Austin, was grateful to see such a large crowd of supporters for his wife at BMCC.

Shawn came and spoke at BMCC on behalf of Jennifer. The two met while attending Rutgers University and have two children.

Shawn spoke about how busy Jennifer was, attending a special event for her late father and running errands with, and for, their young daughter and son. That is, until Jennifer’s whole life changed in an instant. “She was tired. She thought she just had a virus,” said Shawn. “Turns out, she had leukemia and was in the ICU for ten days.”

Shawn thanked the BMCC family on behalf of his own family. “Thank you for talking about what happened to Jennifer,” he said. “If she were here, you’d see tears from her because of all this wonderful community response.”

He went on to say that unfortunately, when Jennifer learned that neither her brother nor her two sisters would be a possible match for her, the family turned to the “Be The Match” database, and fellow New Yorkers, for help in finding a possible match.

“Since December 5th, we’ve had about 50 blood and bone marrow drives,” said Shawn Austin. “With the help of BMCC, we can sign more people up for the registry, and help Jennifer—who donated blood herself on a regular basis before her diagnosis—and so many others.”

——–

To donate blood, please call:
Toll Free:  1-800-933-2566
Visit:  www.nybloodcenter.org
For more information about Blood and Bone Marrow Drives on CUNY campuses go to: http://www.cuny.edu/news/newsreleases_p=6140.html

In a blog post on Friday, The Omni Group, a major developer of productivity applications for the Mac, announced that it will be bringing five of its most popular applications to the iPad platform, namely: OmniGraffle, OmniOutliner, OmniPlan, OmniFocus and OmniGraphSketcher. According to its announcement, The Omni Group is making a major shift in its development cycles because it sees the iPad as “the best computing device for most of the things people use computers for.”

This news certainly makes one think about the placement of the iPad in the computing world. In the few days since the announcement, many have panned the device, focusing on things like the lack of multi-tasking and a built-in keyboard when arguing that it could not replace a computer for most people. The refrain “It’s just a big iPhone or iPod touch,” has been heard over and over again when dismissing the iPad as a computing platform. After all, the iPod touch is certainly an impressive device, but no one expects it to replace even a netbook, no matter how big the screen is. Even Leo Laporte, usually known as an Apple evangelist, declared himself somewhat confused by Apple’s demonstration of iWork, indicating that perhaps it oversold the device’s capabilities.

The Omni Group’s excitement about bringing its applications to the platform, however, is just the latest indication that some disagree with this characterization. For example Joe Hewitt, the former developer of Facebook for the iPhone, wrote a long blog piece discussing how much more capable the iPhone OS is than people think, and that it only lacked a larger display to really come into its own. Apple has also made itself clear about the capabilities of the iPad with its demonstrations of iWork applications that are not stripped down versions but fully capable desktop-class programs in their own right.

One problem may be in how many pundits view iPad applications right now. Despite Apple showing us just what was capable with iWork, most pundits are still focused on the fact that the iPad can run iPhone applications. They are thus distracted by the idea of scaling phone applications up to a larger device. Developers like The Omni Group and Joe Hewitt, however, make it clear that they are thinking about things from the opposite direction, scaling desktop-class applications and websites down to the iPad. It’s also clear that, like Apple, they see this transition not as a step down to a more limited platform, but as a lateral step to a platform that offers opportunities you can’t get on a desktop or phone device.

It may be that our perspective of the iPhone OS is simply off. Many consider it to be nothing more than a cell phone operating system, so they look at the iPad and wonder how capable a larger device running a phone’s operating system can be. The reality, however, may be that Apple sees the iPhone or the iPod touch as a small iPad, and that what we know of as the “iPhone OS” was actually meant to provide the foundation for a much more capable computing device from the very beginning.

Related GigaOM Pro Research:

• Web Tablet Survey: Apple’s iPad Hits Right Notes
• 5 Tips for Developers Targeting the iPad
• How AT&T Will Deal with iPad Data Traffic

Skoda acaba de confirmar una nueva edición limitada del Fabia. Esta versión es denominada como Skoda Fabia Spirit y sólo se fabricarán 1.500 unidades que estarán disponibles tanto en color Rojo Fuego como Blanco Candy.

Todas ellas harán uso de un motor gasolina 1.2 de 60 CV. Con este motor, su velocidad máxima será de 155 km/h y podrá acelerar de 0 a 100 km/h en 16.5 segundos. Su consumo homologado es de 6 litros/100 km.

Su equipamiento de serie esta compuesto por ,airbags frontales y laterales, ABS, faros antiniebla, dirección asistida electromecánica y los tres reposacabezas traseros. También dispone de ordenador de a bordo, aire acondicionado, radio CD MP3 Dance y volante ajustable en altura y profundidad. Su precio apróximado será de 8.450€.

Related posts:

1. Skoda Fabia Sportline en el Salón de Barcelona
2. Skoda Fabia vRS en el Salón de Ginebra
3. Fotos espía del Skoda Fabia 2010

Wade Roush wrote:

Despite official data showing that the U.S. economy is out of recession, leading economics bloggers remain cautious about the nation’s economic prospects, with almost half saying that conditions are worse than the official numbers indicate. But government policies boosting entrepreneurship and allowing more high-skilled immigrants into the country could bolster recovery, bloggers say. That’s all according to a survey of online observers of the U.S. economy (including this reporter), released this morning by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, MO.

The overall condition of the economy is “mixed,” according to 59 percent of the bloggers surveyed, while 23 percent see the possibility of a double-dip recession and 10 percent believe a second recession is already underway. About half of the survey respondents said conditions for lending to individuals and small and large businesses are bad or very bad, and the group’s overall feeling is that government budget deficits, interest rates, inflation, and poverty rates will all rise substantially over the next three years. But all of that may actually mean more opportunities for innovators: nearly 60 percent of bloggers said conditions for entrepreneurship are either good or fair right now. (You can download the full survey report here.)

Surveys of leading economists are plentiful, but this may be the first time anyone has tried to quantify the views of economics bloggers, whose work appears in dozens of online publications (or on their own personal blogs) and ranges across the ideological spectrum. Tim Kane, a senior fellow at the Kauffman Foundation and the author of the survey report, says the foundation plans to repeat the survey each quarter.

“A survey of economic bloggers might seem like an exercise in herding cats, but it honestly struck us as a puzzle why nobody else was conducting one already,” Kane told me. “Here we have a crowd of the most knowledgeable and outspoken analysts of the economic scene, and nobody had bothered to take their pulse.”

Kane developed the survey questions with help from Donald Marron, former acting director of the Congressional Budget Office and a former member of the Council of Economic Advisers. He sent survey invitations to the top 200 economics bloggers as ranked by the Palgrave Econolog, a directory maintained by New York, NY-based academic publisher Palgrave Macmillan. In the end 83 bloggers participated in the survey. I was one of the bloggers surveyed, and I was also on the board of advisors that helped Kane to design the questions. (For full disclosure: The Kauffman Foundation is one of the underwriters of Xconomy’s Startups Channel.)

To me, one of the most striking findings was that most respondents—71 percent, in fact—felt that the federal government is too involved in the U.S. economy. That seems unexpected, given that economists on the left and the right seem to agree that the bank bailouts and aggressive federal stimulus spending, while perhaps unpalatable, saved the economy from disaster. More than half of respondents gave the U.S. Congress a failing grade when it comes to their performance steering the economy; Wall Street firms also got dismal grades. The Congressional Budget Office and other watchdog groups fared much better.

Asked to name the federal policies that would best stimulate economic growth, the bloggers named increasing high-skill immigration (63 percent), increasing legal immigration at all skill levels (57 percent), promoting new firm formation (48 percent), increasing financial regulation (41 percent), and increasing education spending (33 percent).

Kane says the finding that surprised him most was that bloggers have such bleak views about the economy’s near-term future. “Despite the individualistic nature of bloggers, I was shocked to see how pessimistic the group was in general about the 3-year outlook for the U.S. economy, but I attribute that to their ability to see beyond both the headlines and the official statistics,” he says. “I was also heartened by the consensus for cutting payroll taxes and shifting the tax burden to consumption generally and gasoline specifically.”

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Texas, US | Fascinating Fauna

Just ten miles southeast of Fredericksburg is a deserted railroad tunnel, home to up to three million bats. The tunnel, decommissioned in 1941, is home to mostly Mexican free-tailed bats, as well as around 3,000 Cave myotis. Each night, from May to October, just before and during sunset, the bats pour out of the tunnel in massive droves, spiraling to upwards of 10,000 feet. The bats will travel up to 60 miles in search of insect prey, and can reach speeds of up to 60 mph.

The bat emergence at Old Tunnel Wildlife Management Area (WMA) can be seen from either an upper viewing area, which is free, or from a lower viewing area, which has an admission fee but includes a tour guide. The upper viewing area is best utilized during August and September, when the bats emerge earlier and can be better observed. Red-tailed hawks can be seen diving into the plume of bats, snatching them out of the air in mid-flight.

The tunnel itself was bored out of “Big Hill”, as the locals call it, about 920 feet through rock. The work was started in April 1913, and by August the first train had passed through the tunnel. Old Tunnel was carved in order to bring the railroad to Fredericksburg, which had unsuccessfully attempted to bring the rail to town many times.

Unfortunately for the old German settlement, the railroad was not destined for their town, and the automobile would soon make their recently finished line obsolete. In 1941 the owners of the line sold off much of the rails, ties, and timbers, which ended up in a variety of places including the Alcan Highway to Alaska.

A man and woman were found shot to death inside an El Monte home in what appears to be a murder-suicide, authorities said.

The shootings were reported about 11:30 p.m. Monday in the 3100 block of Vane Avenue, about a block south of the Rio Hondo flood control channel, said Deputy Jeff Cannon of the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department, which is assisting El Monte police in the investigation.

The relationship between the victims, who were Latino, was unclear, he said. No further details were available.

A woman who identified herself as the daughter of the female victim told KTLA she believed the gunman was a tenant of her mother’s. She said her 42-year-old mother had lost her job and was renting rooms to make money.

— Esmeralda Bermudez

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

Family allowed to sue CHP over release of grisly crash photos

Souvenir photo could identify alleged Tower of Terror groper

Roman Polanski extradition could take up to a year, Swiss officials say

Man sought who molested 17-year-old boy while posing as a police officer

Well, this is some news to get on the same day you land an Oscar nomination: George Clooney’s ill-fated 1997 comic book adventure Batman & Robin has been voted the worst movie of all time.

Ouch. I’m not suggesting that Batman & Robin was epic cinema or anything, but is it really the worst movie ever made? For me, nothing beats Jason X or Mac & Me — the 1988 E.T. rip-off that featured the big screen debut of Ronald McDonald. What are some of your most cringeworthy movies?

Empire Magazine released the results of its poll for the world’s biggest box office stinkers just hours before Tuesday’s Oscar nominations, during which Clooney earned a Best Actor nod for his role in recession-era drama Up in the Air.

Batman & Robin, which featured Chris O’Donnell and Alicia Silverstone, cost $140 billion to make and was blamed for nearly killing off the Batman film franchise.

Here’s how the rest of the Top 10 rounded out:

1. Batman & Robin

10. The Room