February 3, 2004
Twenty-First Century Thinking... Let's take five with Moira Gunn. This is "Five Minutes."
Several years ago a friend of mine complained vehemently about how slow his computer was running. He was a contractor that didn't use it for much more than the occasional word processing document, daily email and nightly web surfing. I figured he had some old clunker and a dial-up connection, but then I learned he had a hot computer and a high-speed line.
I asked him every question I could think of, but he claimed he'd cleaned up his disk, didn't download netherworld video games, and kept his virus checker fastidiously up-to-date. Then I came to find out he hadn't turned off his computer in three months.
I told him to turn it off and back on again, and what happened? The computer worked like a dream. "What's with this?" he asked indignantly. "I don't have to turn my refrigerator on and off every day."
--
The behavior of machines has always held a particular fascination for me, which includes how we humans expect them to behave. With the first rule of thumb being "care-in-handling," our two Mars rovers are no exception.
At this writing, the first one, Spirit, is in recovery from a software problem, while the second rover, Opportunity, is right on schedule, attending to its work. Since they both have the same software, why aren't they both on the fritz?
Well, once NASA engineers figured out the problem was software, they made sure to never ask the second rover to do anything that might send it into the glitchy part of the program. While this is the technical equivalent of "Don't go there, girlfriend," it disguises a larger concept called "operating well within the envelope."
The definition of envelope is conceptual here, but thinking about a standard paper envelope is just as useful. What are the chances of success if you fill an envelope to complete bursting and try to send it through the mail? Alternatively, what if you just enclose a single sheet of paper, neatly folded?
In envelopes, as in computers and technology of any sort, success smiles on any use that doesn't stress the system.
--
What's also interesting about the crippled Mars rover is what's being done to fix it, and I can assure you that they've already turned it off and back on. Since the problem is software, NASA engineers here on Earth are making programming changes, which they'll beam up when it's ready.
In case you missed it, this is a major advance in the space program. So, to say that there are no humans up on Mars to fix problems is only partially true.
Which gets me back to my friend, the contractor. He had a software problem, but to be clear, I didn't fix it. I gave him a hint about how machines behave, which is essential thinking in the 21st century - wisdom I very much enjoy passing on to my children.
One of my sons has been complaining of late that his two-year old laptop has outlived its useful life - you see, it's started freezing up. He's lobbying hard for a new one, but I keep telling him that his hardware is perfectly fine.
"Clean out your disk, erase all those goofy games, stay away from the far reaches of the Internet, and start operating within the envelope," I say. "In fact, while you're at it, go clean up your room and keep it that way. I'm not buying you a new room, either."
I'm Moira Gunn. This is Five Minutes.
Back to Five Minutes List
