Very cool device

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/26194 or
http://arxiv.org/abs/1012.4415

This is a new nanoscale device that can detect RF.  You put in a bias current between D and S, it goes through the graphene (sheet of 1 atom thick carbon).  The graphene sheet resonates mechanically at an RF frequency (33 MHz in the reported device) when a signal is coupled in capacitively from the gate.  The vibration induces a signal on top of the D-S current.  The device works at 77 K (liquid nitrogen temperature), but hopefully can be developed for room temperature operation.

A Visit to Cable & Connectors

One of the features of having a volunteer gig at ARRL in Newington, CT, is getting to drop in at this store. To my mind, it's what Radio Shack should have been - a great place to browse for doo-dads for the next building project.

What stopped me in the aisle was an item hanging on the rack - An "11-pin octal socket". A weird concept, that.

You can search for them, too. I also find a listing for 4-pin octals.

Note added: Latin lovers and computer geeks will realize that "octal" means eight. See Wikipedia on tube sockets. I find sockets named "Septar" (7 pin), "Noval" (9 pin), "Decal" (10), and "Duodecal" (12). There was a brief time when engineers still knew some Latin! Now, an 11-pin octal doesn't raise an eyebrow.