Have you ever thought of where the Great Blue Herons in Maine go during the wintertime? Danielle D’Auria, a wildlife biologist, led a presentation on this subject in February at the Merryspring Nature Center on the Heron Observation Network of Maine.

In this talk, she spoke about how citizen volunteers, scientists and students have been monitoring migrations of great blue herons beyond state lines. Five adult great blue herons were equipped with lightweight GPS trackers in 2016 and then released so the researchers could monitor their movements during migration, nesting and wintering.

Out of the five Maine birds, two migrated to Florida, one to Cuba, one to the Bahamas and one flew to Haiti.

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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has just released its “Most Wanted” list of transportation safety improvements for 2019 – 2020. While there are no big surprises topping the list, there are some safety improvements that could go a long way toward saving lives if accidents do occur while also limiting the number of accidents that happen on the roads today.

Among the top items on the list are the following:

• Eliminate driver distractions.
• Ensure safer shipment of hazardous materials.
• End impairment related from drugs, alcohol, and other substances.
• Implement a comprehensive strategy to reduce or crashes resulting from speeding.
• Reduce fatigue-related traffic accidents.
• Make collision avoidance technologies more widely available in motor vehicles with the eventual goal of including it in all new vehicles.
• Make stronger efforts to improve occupant protection protocols in vehicles.
• Require professional drivers to screen for and treat obstructive sleep apnea.

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As a town Car service company, you provide invaluable convenience to the customers you serve. Your services offers more than four wheels and a ride. Patrons could get that from ride sharing or local taxis.

Instead, you provide a certain element of luxury, sophistication, style, and service that is a cut above what others offer, and for which having advanced technology can help give you a leg up on your competition. Read the rest of this entry »

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released its first-ever report on snowmobile thefts in the U.S. on February 5, 2019. While, perhaps, not as widespread as thefts related to other types of vehicles, snowmobile thefts can prove particularly impactful in areas of the country where it is difficult to get around during certain times of year without one.

The report reveals some stark information concerning snowmobile thefts, including the fact that 32 of 50 states reported having at least one snowmobile stolen during the three year reporting period. Minnesota reported the greatest prevalence of snowmobile thefts at 314 which Michigan with 207, Wisconsin with 129, Alaska with 128, and Washington with 109 thefts rounding out the top five.

One surprising fact is that while there were many stolen while owners left their snowmobiles unattended while in use. The majority were stolen from trailers, either while in transit to trails or when stored on trailers outside homes.

The sad news for snowmobile owners, whether intending their snowmobiles for joy riding or more practical purposes, is that only 57 percent of snowmobiles are recovered after being stolen.

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GPS is currently a lifeline to some four billion people worldwide. Even those who don’t use GPS specific devices often use GPS features on their mobile phones to help with directions, navigation, and more. Businesses rely on it for planning safer routes, even college campuses are beginning to use GPS technology to fuel delivery robots. In other words, the world relies on GPS.

The technology that drivers GPS is somewhat dated, however. It’s been around since the 1960s, and reached full viability in 1995. With the speed at which traditional technology advances, that means the technology that drives GPS is somewhat dated. Just think about the computers that dominated in 1995. Honestly, most people were just discovering dial-up Internet services at the time.

What is GPS III?

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