Feasible Renewable Energy Solutions:
I started my engineering career at NASA when oil prices were at record highs. I worked on three energy programs: High Efficiency Power Generation Turbines, automotive gas turbine engines, and power generating wind turbines. By the mid 80s the price of energy (oil) began to drop and further development, both private and government funded, all but dissappeared. Today, renewable energy initiatives have legs because of high oil prices, the concern for climate change, and the lack of US control of world oil pricing. I want to make wind, solar and other renewable energy products viable alternative energy solutions.
Technology Leadership:
The heart and soul of a highly productive technology team is the intellectual capability, the alignment of effort, and the motivation of its members. Besides a bit of Guerilla Engineering (see below), the team needs to be bonded to both seperate and combined expertise and responsibilities. Success requires leadership focused on creating an environment that promotes innovative thinking, technology and process solutions development, instills ownership, and rewards successfull effort.
Noodling: Innovation and creativity are traits that are
often lost if they are not continually employed. Every action needs to be performed
in the context of how improvements could be made or new methods could be employed to better
the outcome. Whether it is finding a way to better forecast sales or designing a mechanism
to efficiently and economically produce a desired motion, creative and innovative juices
are constantly flowing -- at work, at play and even while resting. I refer to this mental
process as noodling.
Guerilla Engineering: Guerilla Engineers have
a clear vision of success, are dedicated to their cause, and have a stake in the outcome. Guerillas have to make good decisions and creatively utilize available resources to outflank their competition. Guerilla engineering stimulates new engineering drive and empowers more stakeholders.
Hydroponics: I began with simple Kratky bucket hydroponics. I then moved to trays with circulating
nutrients to expand capacity. Currently, I am optimizing a vertical drip system. With each iteration I continually improved my knowledge about nutrients,
importance growth factors, insect and disease control, grow media, nutrient control, and a host of design and structure information... not to
mention the network of experts I have met along this journey.
Golf Management:
What started out to be an exercise to demonstrate how information access could be managed using the internet turned into several products that have legs:
My Hobbies: These activities fill my time outside of work:
My Kids' Sports
Wood Working
Grilling / Smoking
Golf
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Motorcycling
Bicycling
Wind Surfing
SCUBA Diving
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Backpacking & Camping
Skeet & Trap Shooting
Photography & Videography
Carpentry & Woodcraft
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