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2) A Dwarf Makes Giant News

Astronomers are given the spotlight as they announce that Pluto, the dwarf planet with a changing orbit, has passed Neptune to become the ninth planet from the Sun. It had been the eighth farthest since 1979. Of course, we now know that Pluto is not a planet at all but some kind of ball of rock and ice. 

 4) Re-imagining Literary History

Tom Stoppard and Marc Norman win the Writers Guild Award for SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE. Also nominated were Robert Rodat for SAVING PRIVATE RYAN and Andrew Niccol for THE TRUMAN SHOW.

6) You’re Still the One

Shania Twain wins a Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for “You’re Still the One,” in which the Twain passionately announces, “We’re still together, still going strong.”

9) Run to the Hills

Gloriously, and to the headbanging delight of metal heads across the globe, Iron Maiden announces that singer Bruce Dickinson has rejoined the band. 

11) The Tumultuous Days Continue for Kid Dynamite

Early in the month, Mike Tyson is sentenced to four years in prison for assaulting two motorists after a traffic accident in 1998. The judge gives him only one year of jail time, followed by two years of probation and a $5000 fine. Days after he begins his sentence at the Montgomery County Detention Center, he is put in solitary confinement for throwing a TV in the general direction of some guards. He is released from solitary after about six days.

13) Return Mail

TLC releases their third album, FANMAIL, after a five year hiatus. The new album sells 318,000 copies in its first week, and it becomes clear to the world that TLC “don’t want no scrubs.”

15) The Dawning of the Age of the File Share

The Artist Formerly Known as Prince makes headlines a second time as he files a lawsuit against nine websites for copyright and trademark infringement. He accuses websites of selling bootlegged recordings and offering unauthorized song downloads.

Power cables are the basic components of any electrical system. There are different types of cables that are available in the market. The choice of which specific cable types should be used for specific purposes is based on several factors, the most important of them being the technical specifications of the functions.

As much as you may be conversant with electric cables, it is possible that there are things about power cables that are new to you. Here is a brief outline of some of the things about power cables:

Many people believe that copper is a far better conductor of electricity than aluminium at all times. This is inaccurate. When it comes to matters of what type of conductor is better between these two metals, there are many factors that need to be taken into account.

The most important one of them is that conductivity in relation to cable wires is not merely a function of the measure of resistivity but rather a unique combination of the size of the cables and the insulation material that is used. Hence, in cases where super-high voltages have to be used over long distances, it becomes economical for one to use aluminium cables as opposed to copper ones.

It is common to hear people talk of the possibility of their current cable capacity to remain stable forever. Incidentally, this is a common misconception about electrical cables that people hold.

However, the truth of the matter is that the cable current capacity changes all the time and does not remain stable over the lifetime of the cables. These changes are usually caused by factors such as the prevailing ground or air temperature, the actual manner in which the laying has been carried out and the depth at which the cables have been laid.

There are several reasons as to why newly installed power cables do last as long as people expect them to. The first one is that since there are many manufacturers of electric cables, it is highly unlikely that all the power cables that you install will last for a specific period of time.

The second one is that there are many different types of power cables. A specific type of power cable is defined in terms of its capacity, durability, usage and other industry-specific characteristics.

The third one is that the extent to which a cable lasts heavily relies on the manner in which the installation is done. A poorly done installation may significantly shorten the life of a cable.

The armor that is used on your cable is not meant to help in protecting the cable against any chances of physical impact. On the contrary, if any type of power cable is exposed to a form of physical stress, it is possible that the damage to the cable arising from the impact is likely to be aggravated by the armor!

If you have a lot of appliances running at once,  you can actually increase your chance of having a surge. When high-powered electrical devices such as AC units and refrigerators are working at peak capacity, it takes a lot of energy to keep their motors and compressors going. This high demand can upset the steady voltage flow through your electrical system.

You should also unplug your important appliances during a power outage. There is often a surge when the electricity comes back on.

Additionally, consider a surge protection device which goes in the electric panel where the circuit breakers or fuses are located. The suppressor will channel the extra electricity during the power surge and prevent it from getting into your main system. If you live in an area that experiences a lot of storms, a lightning rod might be a good idea to mitigate the damage of a direct strike. Finally, make sure your homeowner's policy insures you in case a surge does knock out your devices, despite your best efforts to protect them.

Your local Mister Sparky® electrician can help protect your electronics and appliances with whole-home surge protection. Give us a call and we'll explain the options and help you make the right choice for you.