Reality finally impacting ethanol requirements

The EPA has reduced the amount of ethanol that must be used in gasoline. The federal requirement is based on absolute volume of ethanol and not the amount of gasoline sold. Thus, even though gasoline use dropped instead of rising, the amount of ethanol has to increase. This would force us to use E15, which would damage many auto engines on the road.  The AAA asserts that only 5% of the light trucks on the market can use E15.  That linked article also says E15 actually has twice as much corn (ethanol) as E10.

A small victory for consumers who buy gas, everyone that owns a vehicle with an engine that otherwise would be damaged, and the poor who spend a disproportionate share of their income buying artificially high-priced corn.

Other good news:

Continue reading “Reality finally impacting ethanol requirements”

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”

That quote from George Bernard Shaw is also the title of a post pondering its meaning at Philosiblog.

The focus of the discussion is we must be willing to change our mind, especially our opinion of ourselves, if we are going to make progress toward the goals we value.

Consider this: Continue reading ““Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.””

Another prediction for oil production in North Dakota: back off the accelerator a bit

I watch the Million Dollar Way blog closely. I’ve learned much from Mr. Bruce Oksol. Thank you sir.

In his post, Bakken Fanatics; Fasten Your Seatbelts – We’ve Not Seen Anything Yet, he mentions a Goldman Sachs study which predicts 10 years of continued growth in Bakken production. Their worst case scenario is 1.3M bopd in 2017.

More interesting is Mr. Oksol’s speculation that the state may slow things down a bit as an intentional choice.  He says: Continue reading “Another prediction for oil production in North Dakota: back off the accelerator a bit”

Simple, Complicated, Complex, Chaotic – a way to make sense – part 2

Previous post introduced the four quadrants of the Cynefin Framework: simple, complicated, complex, and chaotic.

One of the major implications of the framework is to highlight that the world is not neatly ordered.

In addition, leadership styles need to change based on the nature of the situation.

(This series of articles is cross-posted from my other blog, Nonprofit Update. I’ll put them on this blog as well because the Cynefin Framework is quite helpful for understanding the messy world around us.)

Boundaries

The boundaries in moving between quadrants, from simple to complicated to complex to chaotic, are fuzzy. Situations can blend from one to another.

Continue reading “Simple, Complicated, Complex, Chaotic – a way to make sense – part 2”

Compared to slice-and-dice, wing-toasters, and corn-for-gasoline industries, seems like oil and gas is an oasis of common sense

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Million Dollar Way ponders The Irony Of It All – North Dakota Will Lose More Grassland, More Wetlands To Ethanol Than To The Oil And Gas Industry:

And with an ever-increasing number of slicers and dicers killing bats, eagles, hawks, and whooping cranes, the oil and gas industry is starting to look like an oasis of common sense.

Four industries: wind power, solar power, ethanol, and oil & gas. What common sense is visible seems to be in oil & gas.

Ethanol …

…is environmentally unfriendly. Maybe. Probably. Possibly.

Continue reading “Compared to slice-and-dice, wing-toasters, and corn-for-gasoline industries, seems like oil and gas is an oasis of common sense”

Short overview of Bakken – introducing term ‘boomier’

A 3 minute intro to the Bakken boom with some really nice video of the plains, oil work, and the charm of the prairie.

 

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=OS9aZCxESsc]

 

Irish correspondent says the Bakken boom is getting boomier.

Also calls it the new Klondike.

(Hat tip: Bakken Shale) 

9-13 North Dakota oil production 932K bopd – I missed my guess to hit one million barrels by September

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=LUQZc4ilyuo]

September production was 932,174 barrels a day. That is a 2.3% increase for the month.

I missed my prediction

Continue reading “9-13 North Dakota oil production 932K bopd – I missed my guess to hit one million barrels by September”

About those fantastical make-believe tricorders? 31 teams will compete to develop one.

There is a $10M prize in the XPRIZE competition to develop a functioning machine portable machine that can assess a patient for 15 conditions. There are 31 teams entering the competition. That will be whittled down to 10 during the qualifying rounds in April 2014.

Scientific American describes XPRIZE Unveils Medical Tricorder Teams.

The goal is to develop Continue reading “About those fantastical make-believe tricorders? 31 teams will compete to develop one.”

A simple explanation why we will never run out of oil – Peak Oil #32

In one sentence:  Some other energy source, perhaps fusion, will provide our energy needs before we actually use up all the oil.

That is my summary of the comments by Professor Bernard Weinstein in a presentation made in North Dakota, as summarized by The Dickinson Press:  Energy expert:  World will ‘never run out of oil’.

We simply do not know how much oil is recoverable. Check out these two comments: Continue reading “A simple explanation why we will never run out of oil – Peak Oil #32”

Q: What churned up 5M acres of never-before-plowed land, increased carbon output, poisoned rivers, and drove up food prices for the poor?

A: Ethanol.

Yes, gasoline from corn does all that and more.

In what Million Dollar Way calls a Cronkite moment, the AP has a major story out, the title of which I will edit to make neutral as to political parties, since ethanol is the official policy of one R and one D administration:  The secret, dirty cost of {two administration’s} green power push.

Here’s a bit of the information the AP reported:

Environmental damage

The overall conclusion:

The consequences are so severe that environmentalists and many scientists have now rejected corn-based ethanol as bad environmental policy. 

Continue reading “Q: What churned up 5M acres of never-before-plowed land, increased carbon output, poisoned rivers, and drove up food prices for the poor?”

Simple, Complicated, Complex, Chaotic – a way to make sense – part 1

For the last week I’ve been pondering a new tool to help understand the world around me. It’s called a sense-making model by its inventor.

The Cynefin Framework was developed by David Snowden. It’s pronounced cunevin or ku-nev’-in.

This series of posts will give an overview, provide two links to videos, and apply the model to several areas.

(This discussion is cross-posted from my other blog, Nonprofit Update. I’ll put them on this blog as well because the Cynefin Framework is quite helpful for understanding the messy world around us.)

The model has four quadrants. The primary driver is how the relationship between cause and effect changes based on the nature of the situation.

Simple

Continue reading “Simple, Complicated, Complex, Chaotic – a way to make sense – part 1”

More good stuff on the open frontiers – 11-9-13

I’ve used the analogy of a newly opened frontier in the areas of :

  • education,
  • space,
  • energy, and
  • publishing.

This post starts a new “good stuff” series.  Don’t have time to write a full post commenting on all the cool articles I see, so sometimes I’ll just link to articles and give a brief comment.

Here are some articles talking about the open frontier.

Education

Continue reading “More good stuff on the open frontiers – 11-9-13”

Another estimate for eagle casualties in Altamont Pass

Estimated avian mortality in 2005 at Altamont Pass:

Two or three dozen golden eagles. Two hundred red-tail hawks.

Per year.

Let me extend that out – a couple dozen golden eagles and hundreds of hawks…

Every year.

For 4 decades.

A study published in 2005 estimated the raptor casualties in the Altamont Pass slice-and-dice operation. I’ve looked around for the study. It appears to be in a paywall site. Found multiple references to the study and one good summary.

Continue reading “Another estimate for eagle casualties in Altamont Pass”

Amazing progress in living standards from 100 years ago

“Then and Now” at Café Hayek discusses the radical change in living standards since Don Boudreaux’s grandparents were born.

Look at some of the improvements:

Maternal and infant mortality has dropped dramatically – His grandfather lost his mother (i.e. his great-grandmother) in childbirth. His grandfather and grandmother lost their 4th child a few days after birth.

Continue reading “Amazing progress in living standards from 100 years ago”