20 years of GPS for Dr Merrin

Wow,
I have been using GPS technology to support survey and mapping activities since 1989. How the technology has changed and the range of applications expanded!!!

During a meeting in Hong Kong with WONG Chung-hang (Deputy Director of Survey and Mapping Office), Gordon ANDREASSEND (Former Head of Survey and Mapping Office) and Simon Chi-wo KWOK (Chief Land Surveyor) on 29 July 2009 it came up in discussions that I had been using the GPS technology now for 20 years. I was amazed. So decided to write about it to capture some of those 20 years.

(Mr Kwok, Mr Wong, Mr Andreassend and Mr Pearse)

So, where has GPS taken me? Further than I ever thought.

Initially in New Zealand the technology took me via with the Government survey department (DOSLI) from one end of the country to the other teaching people to use the equipment and undertaking surveys. I either drove, walked, flew (yeah in helicopters) or sailed to forests, mountain tops, farms and to out to sea. Then into a research and application role which included:

• my PhD studies in Australia
• implementing the new geodetic datum in New Zealand (NZDG2000)
• investigating GPS height modelling with the use of geoid models, and
• undertaking audits of surveying and engineering consultancy firms.

Globally I have been involved in projects and events that utilise GPS technology in the following countries:

• Australia
• Fiji
• Iraq
• Kuwait
• Ethiopia
• Eritrea
• Nigeria
• Cameroon
• Canada
• Brazil and
• Antarctica

(South Pole Jan 2000 - fixing cables in -52DegC)

That is pretty amazing. Let me highlight these projects.

• Australia – Processing data to help establish the new Geocentric Datum of Australia (GDA)
• Fiji – Terrain surveys for a new coastal resort involving 4wd quad motorbikes and boats all mounted with GPS receivers
• Africa – Quality Assurance of boundary surveys between countries for the United Nations
• Brazil – Geoid modeling workshop with other global experts
• Antarctica – Tracking ice flows at South Pole and Earth Deformation Monitoring in Trans-Antarctic Mountains including the Dry Valleys.

What a journey so far! Now back to that meeting in Hong Kong, it finished with a tour of Hong Kong’s Satellite Positioning Reference Station Network Control Room. This is where they monitor via 12 GPS receivers the status of the GPS satellite signals in the Hong Kong region.


And to think that after 20 years I finally bought my own GPS receiver. Yeah, now I walk around with a GPS unit in my pocket disguised as a phone (Love my Nokia E71).

Grow well
Dr Merrin

EcoLog13 - The 30 Second Bus Ride

Day 6 – The 30 Second Bus Ride - 24 June 08 (15km walk)

Good start to the morning with the hotel buffet breakfast and the discovery that they have an espresso machine – yum very good coffee! We then asked at reception for the location of a pharmacy to buy some plasters for the blisters that we were both coping with. One of the “Pront Desk” ladies (yes that is the spelling on the sign at reception) offered to guide us. Firstly a slight miscommunication had us in the local doctor’s surgery. Finally got the message through and off we walked to the local pharmacy. Merrin bought the required goods while Lou wandered around looking at the Western and Chinese medicines on display and snapping off a couple of pictures. A lady holding a child was buying a range of Chinese medicines. Lou took a photo and then went to say hi to the kid at which point all hell broke loose! One screaming child…obviously found it all too much having this blond blue eyed monster leering at it! Time to make a hasty retreat much to the amusement of the locals in the pharmacy (including to mother of the child)!

We decided on a later start to the walk today as it was a very warm day. Set off with two taxi driver friends of the Bell Boy – sheer luxury…two cabs instead of all five of us jammed into one. Off we went down the straight road to the north of the city sailing past the turn off that yesterdays rogue of a taxi driver had turned off for our wild goose chase, with the total journey time all of 15mins at a cost of less than 15Yuan each taxi!!!

Back at the clock tower restaurant we tried to no avail, to get them to organise a boat to cross the side canal to continue on our journey. Set off hoping to hail someone with a small boat to take us across, or heaven forbid walk an extra 5kms down the road to cross the canal then back to the point opposite on the other side of the canal. Time to project all our positive thoughts into manifesting a boat to take us across, as we were really not keen to walk extra kilometres. Within 5mins we had hailed a passing barge tempting them with 20Yuan. The wife unhooks the row boat and rows over to us and takes us across the canal. We are all happy! We have saved our feet. She has made 20Yuan and now only has to row herself back to the barge…that had motored off upstream without her!

The walk was fairly uneventful. Continued along the embankment alongside brick works for about 10kms with the view then changing to coal dumps (the coal is loaded onto barges and taken down the Grand Canal). Walked 14kms in total ending up at the road bridge across the lake that we want to walk across tomorrow. We stopped for a beer and a chat to the locals before heading back to Peixian. We could have phoned this morning’s cab driver to come and pick us up but decided to wait for the local bus. Thus began our next big adventure…

Bus eventually pulls up and the conductor lady gets off to ask the locals who we were. On she hops and off we trundle. Konomi asked for the price and first she says 15Yuan – Which we thought was the total for all five of us and would be a good price. But oh, no, no…it was 15Yuan each, which then escalated to 100Yuan for all of us. Once again daylight robbery!!! Paul spat the dummy and insisted the bus stop…which it did in the middle of a long bridge. As Paul was trying to leave the bus the woman conductor was manhandling him trying desperately with Yuan signs in her eyes, to make us stay on the bus. We eventually all managed to get off the bus with her following continuing to yell and try to force us back on the bus. Konomi was doing written translations and finally showed her the word “thief” at which point she hastily got back on the bus and off it went leaving us in the middle of the bridge. We walked to the other side and a helpful chap on a motorcycle phoned our cab driver and explained where to pick us up from. Cab turned up in about 20mins and we paid 40Yuan to get back to Peixian!!!

Todays lesson… Some people actually really believe that it is ok to try to embezzle money from foreigners. They think we have a lot of money. Greed takes over and they try to extract as much of it as they can. There is no conception that this is theft. One really needs to be fully aware of the value of the endeavour that is being undertaken at any one time when travelling off the beaten track in China. Thankfully for us we are in the back blocks with Paul and Konomi, who after 10 months of walking from Hong Kong en-route to Beijing, know very well cost of the various forms of transport and accommodation etc!

We went out for a meal with Andrew that night as a way to thank him for his efforts the night before. Paul, Konomi and Yuji had headed for another restaurant. Had a great meal with Andrew while learning more about the local area.

Grow well
Dr Merrin

Coordinating the Environmental Message

I love to spread the message of protecting and respecting our planet!

Many of my friends do too and as you know, you can do more as a team than as an individual.

So, I continue to team up with people. If you want assistance in spreading your environmental message then feel free to contact me. I can connect you with people or even present your message, as I love public speaking.

One of the great persons I have teamed up with is Paul Coleman – Earthwalker (http://www.earthwalker.com/). Paul has been walking around this planet since 1990 and has covered over 46,000 kilometres through more than 40 nations.

Since meeting Paul on 20 Sep 2007 we have shared many ideas via the internet while he and his wife Konomi have been on their walk from Hong Kong to Beijing (Check out the journey via http://blog.myspace.com/earthwalker_paul_coleman). I was pleasantly surprised when one day Paul asked if I would be an advisor to him. I said of course and then I looked at his other advisors.
· Charlene Hewat: Executive Director of Environment Africa, Zimbabwe
· Tadashi Inamoto: President of Oak Village, Japan
· Chikashi Kinjo: Lawyer, Political/Peace Activist, Okinawa
· Avon Mattison: President of Pathways of Peace, United States
· Koichi Nakatani: Environmental Activist, Japan
· Akihiko Ozeki: President of Real Produce, Japan
· Jeunesse Park: CEO of Food and Trees for Africa, South Africa
· Kiyoshi Shikita: Chaiman of Earthday Tokyo, President of BeGood Cafe, Japan
· Genichiro Shiosaka: Member, Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly, Japan
· Paul Sihon: Musician, Composer, United States
· Charles Spencer: General Manager of Spencer Global Consulting, Chile
· Joan Walley, MP: Member of Parliament, United Kingdom
· Rob Wheeler: UN Representative of Global Eco Village Network, United States
· Zandra Valenzuela Delgado: Lawyer, Chile

Wow I thought, they look like superb people.

On Paul’s latest trip to Hong Kong I wanted to leverage his message while minimising the effort required on his behalf, to get the greatest exposure. Little did we know the story we would have to tell.

I called on my fellow environmental team mates and organisations to see what opportunities we could create for Paul.

One of the reasons for Paul’s return trip to Hong Kong was to receive an award from Supreme Master Television. Urania had been following Paul’s story since meeting Paul 4 months earlier at the event I helped organised at Life Café (http://www.lifecafe.com.hk/).

As a member of the Royal Geographic Society in Hong Kong (http://www.rgshk.org.hk/) I contacted Rupert, the Director, and they were very keen to have Paul speaking to their members. Great place and people for Paul to connect with.

I then re-connected with Andrew Dembina at RTHK Radio 3 (http://www.rthk.org.hk/channel/radio3/), he and Morning Brew host Phil Whelan were very keen to have an update on how the walk was going.

Superb. That was three different opportunities for Paul.

At the end of his presentation to RGS members and guests, Paul announced a major change in his plans to walk to Beijing. He told the audience that he could not continue as he could not get a visa to go back. The crowd was shocked. Offers to help came flooding in. Offers of contacts to discuss the situation with officials, media people to talk to, places to stay while stuck in Hong Kong and most importantly huge encouragement to continue.

Paul got some superb media coverage. The SCMP (South China Morning Post) did an article on how the red tape was stopping a major effort to help engage people into Greening the Olympics. RTHK Radio 3 had a live interview during the evening news.

While having Paul and Konomi to stay at our wonderful bush retreat Louise and I decided it was time to experience “earthwalking”.

So now we were very keen for Paul’s visa situation to be resolved. Which it was.

Thanks to everyone who helped Paul and Konomi get their visa and return to their walk.

We will be flying to Xuzhou (550km northwest of Shanghai) and walking from there north to Qufu (The home of Confucius), which is about 150 kilometres in a straight line (of course we will be walking further). We will probably flying back from Jinan.

Grow well
Dr Merrin

The Power of an email signature - What is yours?

You know the Power of Words … so

Have you ever looked at how you sign your emails or letters?

I am not talking about offers, promotions, give-aways, etc I am looking at the intention you put into the simple part of signing off with your name.

(The offers, promotions and call to action are very important too and there are many sites talking about the marketing space in your email signature thought that is not the focus of this article)

For many years I signed my emails like probably many people with
“Regards Merrin”.

That sounded a little regular for me. So I changed my signature to
“Cheers Merrin”
back in 2001.

It made me feel a lot more happy about sending the email to the person. You know I do like a good beer so with each email sent I knew I was closer to another celebration.

In 2006 I got an email from a friend and he signed it
“Go well, Alan Stewart”.

I thought that is really cool. It both says to the recipient and to Alan to Go Well.

As you have noticed I love nature and personal development. My wealth dynamics profile is a STAR. When I learned that Stars like to stand out from the crowd I realised why I liked my email signature to be different. (Learn more about Wealth Dynamics Profiling and the STAR profile)

So in 2006 I started signing my emails as
“Grow well, Dr Merrin”.

It has been amazing to watch the change.

One is the personal power it gives you every time you sign your email. I am reminding myself to develop personally and also to appreciate and promote the health of the world’s natural environment. All that in my Signature.

Oh, by the way I put the Dr part in there to remind me of where I have come from in terms of my formal training as a land surveyor and geodesist.

The second area that I did not expect is the way it engages the email recipients to ask you questions. I have had why “grow well”?, what are you a Dr of?, can I use your signature too?, and love the signature!

So how about taking a little time to think about how you sign your emails and you too could be surprised by the difference it makes.

As the saying goes "Your wealth is in your words".

Grow well
Dr Merrin