Sunday, October 30, 2011

Stanley FatMax TLM 100 Product Review

!9# Stanley FatMax TLM 100 Product Review

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I have used sonic measuring devices for years in my cave survey projects and have been waiting for the price to come down on the laser measuring devices. At last I have one that cost under a hundred dollars. Leica has made laser measuring devices for several years in the three hundred dollar price range, and now they are building one for Stanley that retails for .00.

Specifications:

Accuracy: ± 1/4" (± 6mm) at 100-ft (30m)

Range: 2'-100' (0.6m - 30m)

Laser: 650 nm, Class IIIA

Display Size: 2-line

Units of Measure: FT/1/8", FT/100ths, IN/10ths, Metric

Size: 7.5 oz. 2 1/2 X 4 3/4 X 1 1/4 inches, Splash and dust proof

Low Indicators: Low Battery, Message Codes, Measurement reference (front / rear), and more

Battery: 9V (included)

Includes: Soft Carrying Case with Belt Loop.

Cave Survey
For a cave survey, this is the ideal tool, the measurements are easy to read and the laser spot is ideal for the darkness in the cave. Measurements can be made from the front of the instrument as well as from the back of the instrument by the touch of a button.

Simple
The TLM 100 is simple to use with only four buttons, on/dist gives you the distance with two quick clicks of the large red button. The laser then goes out to prevent danger of shining it into someone eye. Unlike the sonic tape measure, there is no waiting for the reading, it is instant.

The unit of measure can be changed by holding down the center button, and the TML 100 will remain in that mode until it is changed. With the sonic device I was always having to select Ft/100ths after each measurement. The unit will remain on for 60 seconds after making a measurement. The laser will remain on for 30 seconds, waiting for the second press of the button, giving you plenty of time to find the survey station.

By holding down the left button, the measurement can be changed from the front to the back of the device, with an indicator on the screen showing which is in use.

It will keep a running total, but only if the measurements are made within 60 seconds of each other. This is not much help in surveying as I cannot move that fast between stations. It can also make quick measurements of square feet and volume.

When making measurements from the survey station, it is very easy and quick to get the up, down, left and right distances for the survey.

I am looking forward to my next cave survey using the TLM 100.


Stanley FatMax TLM 100 Product Review

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Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Mapping the United States-Mexico Border

!9# Mapping the United States-Mexico Border

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The border between the United States and Mexico has a long and often tumultuous history. After the end of the Mexican American War in 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo gave the U.S. over half of Mexico's land. This area eventually became all of California, Nevada, Utah, and Texas, and parts of Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.

The land that Mexico gave up in this treaty was still relatively unmapped when the treaty was signed, so the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo also called for commissions from both the United States and Mexico to map the boundary and place permanent markers on the ground. The U.S. and Mexico Boundary Commissions mapped this boundary between 1849 and 1857, producing over fifty maps in the process.

During survey negotiations, the United States-Mexico boundary was marked by negotiators on a map. The surveyors' job, then, was to find this drawn boundary on the land itself. The treaty writers understood that they could not define the boundary line exactly where the surveyors would end up placing it on the ground, so they decided that the surveying commissions would have the final decisions as to its exact placement. Because the commission included members from the United States as well as Mexico, the results and conflicts often reflected varying politics as each side vied for as much land as possible.

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo did describe some of the boundary areas, following both natural rivers and geometrical lines. These geometric lines were nearly always drawn by a treaty committee with no personal knowledge of the area's geography, meaning that surveyors often found it difficult to access the land in order to conduct a survey and place boundary monuments.

However, river-based boundaries were not perfect either. The precise location of river banks is likely to change over time, and in several occasions differing lines following the various river channels could be interpreted as the true boundary. In fact, the Rio Grande became a point of contention for several decades following the completion of the boundary surveys, and an International Boundary Commission was created in 1889 to resolve problems related to changes in the Colorado River and the Rio Grande.

Another issue complicating the matter was the map upon which the treaty writers based their decisions; much of the area had not been properly mapped before this time, and the treaty writers were relying on an old and incorrect map. In many places, the treaty writers wrote that the boundary would be drawn at a particular point shown on the map, but they did not ensure that this map actually coincided with geographical reality. The map they used did not correctly show the location of several existing towns or the route of the Rio Grande, which were used as important points to describe the location of the boundary.

These issues caused problems almost as soon as the surveyors began their work. The boundary was particularly questioned to the west of the Rio Grande. The result, known as the Bartlett-Garcia Conde compromise, was soon embroiled in controversy too. In California, the surveyors began entangled in a political battle over the port of San Diego, which was wanted by both sides. In 1853, a new U.S.-Mexico treaty known as the Gadsden Purchase was signed to further describe the boundaries, removing several sources of controversy and clarifying what the surveyors had already accomplished.

The surveying of the U.S.-Mexico boundary, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean, was completed in 1855, Once this fieldwork was complete, the then produced the first maps of the surveyed boundary line; these were completed in 1857.


Mapping the United States-Mexico Border

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