"The thing in question was the product of Ahmed’s love of invention. He made the clock out of a metal briefcase-style box, a digital display, wires and a circuit board. It was bigger and bulkier than a typical bedside clock, with cords, screws and electrical components.""He said he took it to school on Monday to show an engineering teacher, who said it was nice but then told him he should not show the invention to other teachers. Later, Ahmed’s clock beeped during an English class, and after he revealed the device to the teacher, school officials notified the police, and Ahmed was interrogated by officers."
This is B.S., either by the NY Times or by the kid and and a high school "engineering teacher."
The photo shows a AC power plug and cord going to a transformer. The transformer is laying loose on its side in the case (a safety hazard). Normally the transformer would be used, e.g., with a bridge rectifier, to supply power. But with the 9V battery connecter seen, perhaps the transformer might just be used to supply 60 Hz (or 120 Hz rectified) signals for time pulses. In either case the clock shouldn't have "beeped" during "English class" unless he had it plugged in. Oh, and where is the speaker or beeper?
Why would the "engineering teacher" say the clock is "nice" and then warn him?
Something's fishy here, even if it's just misleading and incompetent fifth-column media reporting.
