The London Olympics are certainly on the tip of nearly everyone’s tongue (and Courtesy of FrenchArt-Deco.com

This piece, entitled “Swimming Pool” by French artist Albert Decaris won gold in the Engravings and Etchings competition.

In 1949, the International Olympic Committee decided to stop all art competitions, reasoning that it was illogical to let professional artists compete, while only amateur athletes were eligible. Instead, cultural festivals replaced the art competitions, and still do to this day. There’s still a chance for the best of the best artists and entertainers to showcase their stuff on an international stage, and for lighting designers, this is certainly a world class exhibition. 

LED is the light source that’s in it to win it this summer, wowing Olympic fans with spectacular light shows and festive monuments alike.

At the opening ceremony, LEDs were at the center of almost everything. The dove bikes used LEDs to light up their wings as they performed a circuit of the stadium.

LEDs lit the screen showing the Queen’s acting debut, with none other than James Bond.

Even on the sidewalk outside the main Olympic Stadium, there are 20 circular slabs that capture the kinetic energy of pedestrians’ footsteps to light up nearby LED lamps for 30 seconds at a time!

With over 1 million homes in the Dallas area over 20 years old, older home electrical safety is a major concern that should be assessed by a licensed Dallas electrician. Many homes in the 70’s and 80’s were built with electrical wiring and breaker panels that have been known to be a fire and electrical shock hazards. If you live in one of these older homes, and it has not been updated, it is very important that you have a licensed Dallas electrician come out and take a look at the electrical system in your home, to ensure your family’s safety.

You’re on top of grounding your children, but are you familiar with grounding your home? It improves the safety of your home as well as increases the life of your electronics, and who doesn’t want that? Mr. Electric has all you need to know in order to have your home properly grounded.

Electricity likes to travel the path of least resistance. When there’s too much of it, it needs somewhere to go. That’s where grounding comes in. You see, without it, that path of least resistance is your appliances and electronics – and possibly you when you use them. Burn! Zap! Not a good thing.

Since you don’t want your appliances – or you – to take the heat in these situations, a grounding wire is added to your home, offering all that electricity the perfect chance of escape, via a wire attached to your home’s electrical system which is submerged firmly in the ground – the reason it’s called “grounding.” Both your home’s electrical box and your home’s outlets need to be connected to this grounding wire in order to be properly and safely grounded.

Without proper grounding, you and your home could suffer burned out electronics and appliances, electrical fires and potentially deadly electrical shock.

Without special testing equipment, it may be difficult to tell. Just because you have three prong outlets does not mean the outlets – or your home – are properly grounded. These outlets must be properly wired in to your home’s main grounding wire for proper protection. There is also more to grounding than sticking a big metal rod in the dirt, such as properly attaching wires, grounding to your home’s water pipes correctly, and much, much more. If you don’t want your electrical behaving badly, you can ensure it is properly grounded by having it inspected by a licensed, qualified electrician.

Newer homes, as a result of increased safety regulations, are typically properly grounded. Older homes, on the other hand, may not have had a proper grounding experience, or any at all. Homes built before 1950 are especially at risk. You should always have your home, regardless of age, inspected for proper grounding by a licensed, qualified electrician to avoid the potential risks of fire, electrical shock, and property damage. You never know what the previous resident did without a permit.

Don’t suffer the punishment of burnt out electronics or a burned down home. Mr. Electric® will keep you out of trouble – get grounded today!

The world is getting more connected, and machines are collecting massive amounts of data about consumer habits. In the energy sector, the rise of big data is poised to revolutionize the way utility companies provide electricity to homeowners. That's good news for you – the more information you have at hand, the more opportunities you’ll have to save money. Read on to find out how big data may affect you in the near future.

Machines Learning the Patterns

Analyzing the patterns inside the enormous amounts of information provided by big data is known as machine learning. By letting computers do the heavy lifting, analysts can discover trends and efficiencies that no one would ever think to look for. Ultimately, what we learn from data analysis will trickle down and impact your interactions with any appliance or device that is electrical. Work conducted by machines will show humans the best way to move forward.

IntelligentUtility.com recently listed seven ways that machine learning can affect the relationship between you and your utility provider:

In the meantime, if you need tips about how to save energy or need electrical work performed on your home, call a qualified electrician today.