There is an unbelievable stream of rhetoric coming from everywhere these days on the U.S.and how socialism is taking over. I would like to be the first to say we are a long way from socialism. I just wish my in-laws would quit listening to Rush Limbaugh and his half truth or no truth rhetoric. I have also noticed the tea parties that are cropping up in different locations across the U.S. in protest of the latest Federal budget. Did the Republican party already forget how we got here? Eight years of tax cuts for corporations, reduced capital gains taxes, and tax cuts for all. You cannot have a balanced budget by spending more than you have coming in. Now, tea parties? C'mon, let's see some real protesting. Even those prissy Europeans know how to throw a good riot...something that is lost on those of us in the U.S. of A.
As U.S. citizens, no matter what your political leanings and your stance on anything from the stimulus package to the CEO of GM being forced out, stop being apathetic, stop listening to all the trumped up rhetoric. Most people in the U.S. need to grow a pair and educate themselves with facts. All the politicians want to do is get you whipped into a frenzy and feed you their party line. That is the real danger in the U.S., not the deficit, not socialism, it is IGNORANCE and being too APATHETIC to get the facts. We have to overturn this cultural drought if we hope to maintain our world leadership position.
We are spoiled and afraid of our own shadows when it comes to taking risks and living on the edge. That is why we are in danger of being overtaken by Chinese, Russians, and Indians. They know what being disadvantaged is, they know what pulling themselves up by the bootstraps is and they are not afraid. They embrace the challenge - all they want is opportunity. We have to be prepared to compete with this.
Zombie Corporations are companies that are basically on the verge of bankruptcy that are holding on by continuing to get funding from somewhere. The Financial Times this week warned of the high number of formerly strong companies that no longer have access to credit markets and are being propped up by their owners, by their parent firms, or by their creditors. All these attempts to keep the company afloat are desperate attempts to bridge the gap from last year to the next secure economy. Leverage used to be King, Now it is back to Cash is King....but I'd like to go further and say after this event we should say "Warchests are King". Because small firms that don't have a warchest are in danger of not even getting credit to carry them forward to deliver their next contracts, despite being able to make a profit. Anyway, the warning from the Financial Times is a harbinger of worsening conditions as firms will continue to cut staff and continue the downward spiral.
The fastest way out of this sluggish economy is for everyone to stand up and SACRIFICE a little, stop watching the doom and gloom news, and for companies to SACRIFICE a little, and for our leaders to stop taking cheap shots and LEAD for a change.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
Smart Grid
I decided to investigate all the hoopla about SMART GRID and attend a workshop. It was put on at the American Public Power Association conference by Burns & McDonnell (engineering firm).
In a nutshell, smart grid is simply a way to even out the peaks and valleys of demand and production as well as improve reliability...remember the blackout in the summer of 2003?
Smart grid is not a solution in and of itself, it simply provides better information for utilities, homeowners, businesses, and producers to make decisions. To do this correctly will require software, decision systems, IT infrastructure, communications hardware, and a comprehensive strategy for entire regions and potentially the country to ensure that decisions made on a local scale do not have negative effects in other regions. Yes, not understanding the ramifications and tying everything together reminds me of the global financial meltdown and having a smart grid with too much data coupled with poor decision making by people could be a train wreck waiting to happen.
The potential risks aside, to build this smart grid infrastructure sounds like it should provide plenty of IT professionals along with telecommunications technicians work for quite a few years into the future. Business opportunities that evolve from this could be infinite.
Smart grid in the home will involve communications networks in your home that allow your electrical meter (smart meter) to communicate wirelessly to other devices in your home. It would also allow the utility company to segment the rate you pay based upon the time of day and appliance used.
For power producers, it would help regulate the peaks and valleys of power, especially renewables that are considered weather dependent (solar, wind, wave). First, understand that traditional power plants use large generators to generate constant streams of power. These can take hours or days to turn on, turn off, or adjust. On the other hand, a windmill produces exactly the power based upon how hard the wind blows. It is very uneven and inconsistent. In the midwest there are already power producers that "chase" the windmills because the windmills can produce more power than they need...only in spurts. So instead of installing large generators, the utilities are having to install small, quick to start and quick to shut down systems. In essence, they are chasing the power produced by the windmills with their generators.
The solution to that problem, besides utilizing smart grid technology and being able to control some of your appliances, is to have an ability to store excess power. Progressive companies like Austin Energy have looked into this and don't see the need to have huge battery packs for storage. (This reminds me of the Soviets burying fuel tanks all across East Germany so they could easily supply themselves in the event of a ground war). Nobody would want large battery packs buried all through the countryside. Instead, plug in cars, air conditioning units, and other grid connected options are being considered to both store as well as potentially provide power to the grid when not in use. It is much like a heat pump running one direction for cooling and the other for heating.
The bottom line with the smart grid is that it is a huge potential impact for jobs, especially IT, and prosperity in new businesses, even though we are still years away from perfecting the technology and its use.
In a nutshell, smart grid is simply a way to even out the peaks and valleys of demand and production as well as improve reliability...remember the blackout in the summer of 2003?
Smart grid is not a solution in and of itself, it simply provides better information for utilities, homeowners, businesses, and producers to make decisions. To do this correctly will require software, decision systems, IT infrastructure, communications hardware, and a comprehensive strategy for entire regions and potentially the country to ensure that decisions made on a local scale do not have negative effects in other regions. Yes, not understanding the ramifications and tying everything together reminds me of the global financial meltdown and having a smart grid with too much data coupled with poor decision making by people could be a train wreck waiting to happen.
The potential risks aside, to build this smart grid infrastructure sounds like it should provide plenty of IT professionals along with telecommunications technicians work for quite a few years into the future. Business opportunities that evolve from this could be infinite.
Smart grid in the home will involve communications networks in your home that allow your electrical meter (smart meter) to communicate wirelessly to other devices in your home. It would also allow the utility company to segment the rate you pay based upon the time of day and appliance used.
For power producers, it would help regulate the peaks and valleys of power, especially renewables that are considered weather dependent (solar, wind, wave). First, understand that traditional power plants use large generators to generate constant streams of power. These can take hours or days to turn on, turn off, or adjust. On the other hand, a windmill produces exactly the power based upon how hard the wind blows. It is very uneven and inconsistent. In the midwest there are already power producers that "chase" the windmills because the windmills can produce more power than they need...only in spurts. So instead of installing large generators, the utilities are having to install small, quick to start and quick to shut down systems. In essence, they are chasing the power produced by the windmills with their generators.
The solution to that problem, besides utilizing smart grid technology and being able to control some of your appliances, is to have an ability to store excess power. Progressive companies like Austin Energy have looked into this and don't see the need to have huge battery packs for storage. (This reminds me of the Soviets burying fuel tanks all across East Germany so they could easily supply themselves in the event of a ground war). Nobody would want large battery packs buried all through the countryside. Instead, plug in cars, air conditioning units, and other grid connected options are being considered to both store as well as potentially provide power to the grid when not in use. It is much like a heat pump running one direction for cooling and the other for heating.
The bottom line with the smart grid is that it is a huge potential impact for jobs, especially IT, and prosperity in new businesses, even though we are still years away from perfecting the technology and its use.
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