The best way to get paid is to have a clear "collections-friendly" contract by which you and your client have shared expectations. If payment issues do arise, you may need to file a lawsuit. However, mediation or arbitration can provide a satisfactory resolution. The FPGA Summit is the only practitioner-oriented conference dedicated entirely to FPGAs and their applications. Attend this conference from December 9-11, and use the discount code to save on your registration. Consulting contracts are an important but often overlooked aspect of consulting work. This presentation will be like a cooking class for consultants who want to cook up their own contracts, as well as to better understand how to review and modify clients' contracts. We all face the same core challenges whether we are a consultant, an engineer or a manager in a corporate environment. We would all like to be able to communicate so effectively with our customers or colleagues that we are able to influence them to our way of thinking. In this talk, Steven Cerri will give you his perspective on how to achieve this goal. MEMS (Micro-Electro Mechanical Systems), sometimes called Microsystems Technology (MST), encompasses the manufacturing technologies that enable the fabrication of micro-scale sensors and actuators. This talk will provide an introduction to MEMS, an overview of how MEMS products are made, and a review of current and future applications of this exciting technology. IEEE-CNSV is an Affiliate Partner for the AlwaysOn GoingGreen conference, which runs from September 15-17. Members are eligible for a half-price discount for this cutting-edge greentech event. IEEE-CNSV will have a booth on the Exhibit Floor at this event, allowing CNSV members with a great vehicle for publicizing their skills as well as the merits of our organization. CNSV members also receive special pricing for this conference, and two CNSV members will be awarded full conference admission as well. Many aspects of this event that are free, so register now on the conference website. IEEE-CNSV member Tom Coughlin will talk about writing his recently-published book Digital Storage in Consumer Electronics: The Essential Guide. Ron Laurie will present an overview of the new patent monetization ecosystem, and will highlight the areas in which domain expert support is needed. He will also discuss the effect of the current legal and economic environments on the growth and adaptation of the various business models, and how the exploding market for IP has created opportunities for technical and patent experts. Flow cytometry is a technique for classifying and sorting blood cells. This presentation will discuss the embedded system design of the flow cytometers that are becoming increasingly important as tools for biological research and clinical diagnostics, particularly for the therapeutic monitoring of cancer, AIDS (measurement of CD4 T-Cells) and leukemia in patients.