Help me find the motor for my clock!

provolot — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 12:38:30 -0800

Help me find a motor to really make time flee! I'm trying to make an (unorthodox) clock which involves a large motor of some sort turning a loop of plastic film, like a belt. Because this is a clock, the film will have to move very accurately (1.5 millimeters per minute or so), which means that the motor will as well.

What are my options considering the kind of motor I should use? Should I use a stepper motor? Should I use a non-stepper DC motor and pass it through some kind of gearbox? Use worm gears? Are DC motors' RPM speeds fairly accurate enough to be relied upon for use as a clock?

Thanks!

Do younger people pay with folding money only?

wryly — Wed, 30 Aug 2006 15:20:36 -0800

Have you noticed a link between a person's age and whether he/she pays for purchases with exact change? Recently, when paying for a purchase that totaled $15.10, I handed over a twenty-dollar bill and a dime. The proprietor, a friendly and pleasant guy, joked, "You're too young to be paying with exact change." This led to a discussion of what "exact change" really means, reasons why a person might want to add the dime, and so forth. All in all, a nice way to waste eight minutes.

I rarely pay in cash, but when I do I often manipulate my change -- for various reasons: to get quarters for parking meters, to get rid of coins/ avoid getting a lot of new ones, to get rid of singles or to get more, depending on my needs.

I'm almost 50 years old, by the way. I remember when a candy bar cost a nickel, but I don't think that really has anything to do with the denominations of coins and bills with which I choose to pay. Or.... does it....?

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Help me find the motor for my clock!

Do younger people pay with folding money only?