To celebrate the achievement of several important milestones at work, I organized a team outing at F1 Boston, an indoor high-performance kart racing venue. After the finals, we gathered for a group photo. I raced a total of 40 laps, half of them in the final, and was totally spent by the time we finished. We retired to the billiards room where we enjoyed a light dinner, darts, and pool.
Monthly Archives: July 2015
Thermal Imaging
I received a complimentary copy of a thermal camera from a new company called Seek Thermal. It plugs into an iPhone and offers some extremely interesting photographic possibilities. I plan to put it through its paces over the coming weeks and share my feedback and images with the company.
Case Study
I enjoyed a break from my normal responsibilities at work to do a photo shoot on location with one of our customers today. The images will be used for an online case study being prepared by our marketing folks. With no prior notice, I had to make do without any lighting equipment which I would have normally used for such an assignment. Because our customer was working in an open office, I had no opportunity to stage the environment which further limited my shooting options. I made the best of the situation and am pleased with this hero shot of our printer in which I used a slow shutter speed to get good exposure on the computer screen where our Eiger software is running and to create motion blur on the user for a sense of motion and activity. In the future I may have to carry my lighting gear with me at all times so that I am not constrained by available light should I get another last-minute request for photos.
Taking a Leak
I hesitated to publish this photo of Will earlier but have decided it is too cute to stay hidden on my computer, possibly never to be seen again. Subject to an objection from his mother, it will remain here for eternity.
Perfect Gift
What better gift to give a newlywed couple than a bicycle built for two? Such was the choice of the best man at Sarah’s wedding last weekend. My board presentation, held at the offices of Matrix Partners, one of our A-round investors, went well but the meeting consumed much of the day and once again I found myself without time for new photos.
Making Waves
With my first MarkForged board of directors presentation tomorrow, I had no time for photography today. This picture was taken during my weekend flight to Indianapolis in the vicinity of Newark Airport where I had a connection.
Erica’s Crew
Sara & John
Jeanine and I flew to Indianapolis where she was born and we lived together for almost 20 years to attend the wedding of Sara Parker and John Thoe. Sara’s mother, Becky, was my administrative assistant and office manager at Truevision, the company I co-founded. I have known Sara since she was 7 years old, watching her grow from an effervescent little girl to a radiant woman.
In total there were four Truevision alumni at the wedding including Becky, Brian Thome, and Valerie.
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While in town we stayed with Jeanine’s sister and brother-in-law, Lauren and Bob, and had a chance to visit with her nephews Luke and Gabriel (pictured below with his son Bradley on his back).
Future Meal
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CNC Milling
Day three for Maya at MarkForged saw her operating our huge Haas CNC milling machine. Programming was done by our engineers and her job was to load material, start the machining process and unload the completed parts. The smile on her face the first time she started the mill (which hums like a jet engine when running) was priceless. I had an equally satisfying day as I met with a vendor who has a component that will work nicely for a design I have in mind, got promising results on a new carbon fiber line I am experimenting with, interviewed a couple of potentially interesting ME candidates, and visited one of two sites which are in the running for our new office.
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Retention Clip
On her second day of interning, Maya graduated from soldering and crimping to 3D CAD design and printing. The CEO gave her a photo of a retention clip used by one of our customers to keep the fiber from jumping off our dispensing spools. Maya took it from there. She made measurements of the spool, used OnShape (a program she had begun teaching herself only yesterday) to complete the design, and Eiger (our software) to prepare the part for printing. By the end of the day she had designed and manufactured her first part and it worked perfectly.
New Intern
Maya started an engineering technician internship at MarkForged today. She was immediately productive, spending most of the day making cable assemblies (crimping connector pins to wires and soldering connections). She worked for 12 hours on her first day, demonstrating that she could keep up with anyone in the shop. I could not be more happy. Even though she worked ten feet from my desk, I was also very busy and barely had five minutes to check in with her. Our two hour round trip commute, however, gave as plenty of time to chat and compare notes. Did I mention how happy this makes me? More importantly, I think Maya had a great time and even better learning experience.
Soldering Practice
This evening I taught Maya how to solder. Pictured here is one of her practice assignments. She starts an internship at MarkForged tomorrow which requires this skill. As with anything that involves great manual dexterity and attention to detail, Maya was a natural, producing perfect solder joints from her first attempt.
Locavore
There is something intensely satisfying about eating food that was grown down the street. We are very fortunate to live near Verrill Farm where we are members of their CSA. I stopped in today for lunch after an exhausting soccer workout in the blazing sun and high heat. I managed 5 goals in the small-sided scrimmage including the game winner. I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening working on a document describing my initial impressions of MarkForged after one month on the job. It will be part of a read-ahead package for the Board of Directors that needs to go out next week and I am glad to have it completed ahead of time.
Nico Returns
Nico returned late this evening from Georgia where he spent the last three days at a speaking engagement for Camp Coleman, a program of the Union for Reform Judaism, serving campers from the Southeast United States. In addition to sharing his personal story he played soccer with the kids in each of the eight sessions he conducted. He looks exhausted but his main complaint was that he did not bring a soccer cleat with him.
I hope to augment this post with a picture of him at the camp which he is presently trying to obtain.
On the opposite coast, Kyle has been offered an internship with Decker and Co, a leading Asian emerging and frontier specialist broker. He is seriously considering the offer but has not made a final decision yet.
Maya Returns
Maya returned this evening from her near 3 week adventure in France near the border with Italy. She was there with her friends, Sarrinagh and Emma and Emma’s family. Her exploits included paragliding, class 5 white water rafting, hiking in the Alps, and sampling the fine local cuisine. She returned with a treasure trove of photos a few of which are featured here today.
Work Load
Having taken Monday as a vacation day and been on the road for two more, I found myself crushed by work upon return to the office. I arrived home at 2am this morning, was in the office by 10 am and worked passed midnight. No time for pictures today so here is another from South Dakota.
Wrapping Up
Our business meeting this morning wrapped up by 10:30am giving my colleagues and I a few hours more for exploration before our afternoon flight. We visited Jewel Cave National Monument and Wind Cave National Park only to find all tours fully booked. We did come across a heard of bison and had a chance to enjoy lunch/dinner at the Purple Pie Place which also featured exceptional ice cream.
After Work
It was back to work today. I dropped Jeanine off at the airport, returned our rental car and a few hours later picked up a new rental car and my arriving MarkForged colleagues. Our business meeting lasted from 11am to 5pm but with sunset not until 8:30pm we had time to do some sightseeing. We visited Mount Rushmore by way of the Needles Scenic Highway. Even though this was a repeat for me, I was happy to see these sights again. For dinner, I ordered an Indian Taco, something Jeanine had read about and wanted to try.
Wyoming Wanderings
After much driving yesterday, our focus today turned to hiking. We started with the base trail around Devil’s Tower which we enjoyed immensely. It is a place of great spiritual significance to Native Americans and home to many birds which fill the air with song. The Vore Buffalo Jump is an archeological site in Crook County, Wyoming and our next destination. A sinkhole, formed where gypsum soil was eroded, leaving a steep-sided pit about 40 feet deep and 200 feet in diameter. Native American hunters would stampede bison into the pit, which was deep enough to kill or disable them. Used between 1500 AD to about 1800 AD, archeological investigation estimates place the number of buffalo remains at 20,000.
After a delightful lunch in Spearfish we explored the canyon of the same name. There we visited Bridal Falls, Spearfish Falls, Roughlock Falls, and made an extended hike to a local swimming hole featuring a natural rock slide. The hike is up a very narrow canyon and it is necessary to cross the stream within it dozens of times. After our first few attempts at dry crossings we decided it would be easier if we just walked through the water with our shoes on. Jeanine is pictured below traversing a tricky section of the “trail” by clinging to the canyon wall and sidestepping along a narrow ledge.
By evening we had returned to Rapid City, exploring the old downtown and enjoyed dinner at a restaurant on the Main Street Square where hundreds were gathered for “Movies Under the Stars” night. The free film featured this evening was The Boxtrolls.
The Black Hills
We were up with the sun (5:30AM) this morning for the start of an ambitious travel day. Our first destination was Custer State Park where we were lucky to spot pronghorn antelope, wild burros and had to share the road with a herd of bison. My craving for pancakes was more than satisfied at the Blue Bell Lodge which we happened upon just as hunger was surpassing my interest in photography (not something that happens often). After breakfast we followed the Needles Scenic Highway through the “Eye of the Needle,” a very narrow tunnel carved through one of the granite spires (the so-called needles).
Surrounded by magnificent rock formations, Sylvan Lake was our next stop as we made our way to the Crazy Horse Memorial. This massive mountain carving, is a tribute to all Native Americans and will dwarf Mount Rushmore in scale when it is completed. At this time only the head of Crazy Horse has been completed and that took more than half a century. Pictured below is a scale model of the sculpture with progress on the actual mountain shown in the background.
Our final destination in South Dakota for the day was the Wind Cave National Park where we took a 90 minute tour of the most complex cave in the world which includes some 140 miles of explored passage ways. Each year an average of 4 miles is added to this total, the result of ongoing exploration. The cave is notable for its displays of the calcite formation known as boxwork. Approximately 95 percent of the world’s discovered boxwork formations are found in Wind Cave.
Fortified by pancakes, I was determined to make it to Devil’s Tower in Wyoming in time for golden light. The effort was worth it and I could not be more pleased with the images I made there.
South Dakota
Jeanine and I arrived in Rapid City, South Dakota in the wee hours of the morning sans our checked baggage thanks to major thunderstorms over the Denver airport which forced all ground personnel at the airport to take cover. Adding insult to injury was a mix up at the hotel which placed us in a smoking room. With the new day, however, came the opportunity to explore the Black Hills. Our first stop was Mount Rushmore, a must see destination for anyone visiting the area. We returned to the airport to collect our recovered bags and then headed east towards Badlands National Park. On the way we paused for lunch at Wall Drug, famous for their marketing efforts to lure travelers from all over the world to their now greatly expanded enterprise. After our meal Jeanine corralled a giant Jackalope for a quick ride.
We entered the Badlands from the northeast entrance and drove west to the other side where we camped at Sage Creek. The ubiquitous prairie dog was a constant source of entertainment.
Paragliding View
Sebasco Bay
Jeanine returned from a three-day writer’s retreat with her sister Susan this evening. The siblings enjoyed peace and quiet and the beauty of Sebasco Bay, Maine where they worked on their respective writing projects. I venture to say that the writing in this blog would benefit from such surroundings. On that note, Jeanine and I have decided to get away for the weekend and are off to South Dakota where I have business next week. We plan to do some camping while visiting the state’s national parks. Probably will not post again until next Thursday.
Yellow Highlights
Driving in Cambridge and Somerville is a real challenge. You must constantly be aware of pedestrians with little regard for street crossing etiquette, potholes large enough to swallow small mopeds, and cyclist who think that traffic laws do not apply to them. I consider it a good commute when I only collide with one of the three. Occasionally one encounters bikes that stand out from the rest and although this one was resting at the time, I particularly liked the selective use of yellow paint to enhance curb appeal.
Missed Focus
I enjoy the fact that I am frequently called upon at MarkForged to make photographs for work purposes. My effort today was not up to my standards, however. This particular part was wet so I had to get the shot quickly before it saturated the paper background on which it was lying. Because the part was so dark, I missed the fact that I did not get the full depth of field focus until I looked at it on my large monitor at home. Although my artistic skills have a long way to go, I generally feel like my technical skills are right up there. Very humbling when you fail to get a simple shot like this right. The fact that it is a very dark image was intentional and thankfully that masks the focus error.
Fountain of Youth
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Almost 21
Nicolai turns 21 next Wednesday. This afternoon we had a small advanced celebration with his girlfriend Karuna and her parents at the Beehive in Boston’s South End. The Beehive is a cool little bistro cum jazz club buzzing with daily live entertainment. Featuring both an outdoor patio and a bi-level cabaret stage, it is equal parts theater and speakeasy. The food and music were outstanding but the highlight of our brunch was the opportunity to meet and get to know Karuna’s parents who are positively delightful. It is easy to see where she gets her great intellect, charm and beauty.
Final Fourth
For the last twelve years, our family has attended the Metzold’s Fourth of July party. Tom Metzold was my high school wrestling partner and we have remained great friends ever since. After 15 years, however, Karen announced that this would be the last one. Tom seemed less committed to that decision and I for one will show up next year regardless. As usual, the food was fantastic and the company entertaining (I ran into the referee from my match last week and was shocked to learn he had 9 children). Also true to form, Jeanine’s desert was the first to disappear, this year a No-bake Strawberry Ice-Box Cake.
All Nighter
Last night for the first time in a very long time I stayed up all night. I had an idea for a new printer head design and once I started the 3D model for it I could not stop. Finally, at 7 am I went to bed. I was up again at 10 am and spent most of the day continuing with the work. I paused only for food and a nap and finally took a break to watch some tennis with Nicolai who is still taking it easy after having his wisdom teeth extracted earlier this week. The photo is of the Sudbury River which I took last night shortly after sunset on my return commute.
Material Breakthrough
Thus far in my career, I have had minimal exposure to material science. At MarkForged we are into this in a big way. Every day the team is cooking up and testing new materials to improve the strength and utility of the parts we print. Pictured here are some of the guys, including founder and CEO, Greg Mark (on the left), after a successful experiment with an exciting new material.