> > ...it means recording the > > sound and taking it back to the computer, doesn't it?... > Using a PC to perform the analysis doesn't necessarily require one to > go back to their home base... > I would leave the laptop in the truck > (powered by the truck's 12V system) and then use some sort of > wireless microphone/headset combination to transmit sounds from the > hive back to the PC. Jerry is talking cheap transducers in every hive, and satellite links to relay hive activity data to any *remote* location anywhere on this planet -- or off. This is not science fiction. He is already doing this. Students who have never been to his apiaries are able to conduct experiments at schools far distant, I understand. For possible software interfaces interpreting data, he has created a simulation, complete with alarms, etc.. I have seen it. Very impressive. Visit his observation hive page, accessible from my page at http://www.internode.net/HoneyBee/ under "Observation Hives'. Here's another idea for sound observation: if you take a parabolic or spherical reflector and mount a microphone at the correct point on its axis, you will get a very sensitive device that can hear faint sounds at great distance. Such a cheap and simple device was described using a child's sliding toy - the 'Flying Saucer' as the reflector some time back. Such a device could be fixed mounted, aimed at each hive in succession -- and possibly hear what needs to be heard. Sound is a funny thing. Bomber pilots used to use throat mics with great success. There is the old eavesdropping trick of holding one's ear to a glass held against the wall. Windows in a room vibrate when people speak, and some snoopers use this diaphragm effect for listening. Polling lasers could notice the slight up/down movements in hives mounted on foam or rubber and deduce weight changes from a distance. There are many tricks that could result in economical harvesting of data, and, now -- just recently -- there have been developed economical ways of relaying and processing them to give useful and meaningful output. Can this be applied to everyday beekeeping? I think so, and the process is starting right here. allen ----- See if your questions have been answered in over a decade of discussions. BEE-L archives & more: http://www.internode.net/HoneyBee/Bee-l.htm Search sci.agriculture.beekeeping at http://www.deja.com/ or visit http://www.internode.net/HoneyBee to access both on the same page.