Month: June 2008

My new flight video

As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m producing an aviation podcast at www.studentpilotcast.com.  I’ve just released a video for the video podcast feed.  It’s basically my first video episode, and is kinda cool, so I thought I would post it here as well. 

I realize there is a problem with the video when the prop is in the shot (I cover this in the video itself).  They’re getting better, though.  Stay tuned.


SPC Video #002-On My Own from Bill Williams on Vimeo.

Green Crude (Gas) Made From….Algae?

As a SCUBA diver, and former marine aquarium junkie, I know a fair share about algae…you know, the nasty green or brown tiny plants that grow on the glass of an aquarium, or that turn ponds and unkept pools green?  Well how about using this plant to create gas?  That’s what Sapphire Energy is trying to do.  They have issued a press release about their innovative research, and hopefully soon, a product.

I’m always very skeptical of “gasoline replacement” fads because, for the most part, they never seem to work.  Now, before you start screaming and carrying-on, take the tin-foil off of your head and join us in reality…it’s very unlikely that the government (and every government in the world) is covering up for the big bad oil companies as they murder, plunder alternative ideas, and kill off potential competition.  C’mon…you just can’t keep stuff like that a secret; too many prying eyes.  It just doesn’t make sense…so let’s not go there.

Now, being a skeptic (and I must add, a layman…as I am very far from an expert on fuel…just a concerned, but moderately eductated consumer), corn-based bio fuels has not excited me much for several reasons; trading dwindling agricultural land and water for gas production not being the least of them.  I have been waiting for something that just makes more sense…and is hopefully something a little more radical from a science perspective, but feasible from a market perspective.  If it turned out to be cleaner, cheaper to produce, and more renewable…all the better.  I also knew, from my economics training, that when gas prices got high enough (i.e. as global and local demand continued up and supply stayed the same or decreased a la rationing from OPEC, no more refinement capacity, and even possibly actual dwindling world supplies of crude) that it would become financially feasible to come up with alternatives.  Maybe we’ve finally reached that point.

As a budding airplane pilot (and avid auto driver…I’m American, after all :)), I would love more this and other efforts to produce real (hopefully cheaper in the end) alternatives to dino fuel.  But its not just so I pay less for Aviation Gas at the airport or 91 Octane at the Chevron down the street…everything gets cheaper to produce and sell if fuel prices decrease.  That said, I don’t think fuel prices are too far out of whack from inflation (I’d have to check the latest numbers), but still, cheaper is better.

Sapphire’s efforts seem promising to me.  First, algae grows like mad…and in water, even waste water.  It also grows pretty much anywhere there is water and sunlight and CO2 (i.e. pretty much anywhere).  Their process appears to produce something that very much approximates gasoline so it should run in existing cars, trucks, boats, planes, etc.  It can be moved and sold using today’s infrastructure for gasoline.  The big questions are, for me:  will it work?  will it be cheap, when it’s all said and done?  Only time will tell on these.

With Sapphire’s press release and some other sources, including this article from the LA Times (which indicates goals of having this completed and on the market in three years), though, I’m feeling some of my skepticism get ever so slightly weaker.  Hopefully for more than just a moment.  For now, I’m rooting for my gas to turn green in a few years.

My Student Pilot Cast Audio Cast

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this here yet, but I wanted to make anyone following this blog aware of one of my other endeavors.  I’m currently learning to fly (getting a private pilot license), and before starting, I decided to produce an podcast about that endeavor called the Student Pilot Cast.  It has been pretty fun producing this, although it can be a bit time consuming.  It’s also interesting to put all of my training out there for the world to see, the good and the bad.

I have several reasons for wanting to podcast my training

  • I’ve been inspired and entertained by all of the aviation podcasts that I’ve been listening to, and wanted to add to this content by “giving back” some of what I have gained from all of these peoples hard work.  I felt like I could do that by podcasting myself (see reason ‘b’ below).  Some of these other podcasts that inspired me to do this include:
  • As a budding pilot (and a long time wannabe :)) I felt very strongly that it would be interesting to be involved in the chronicle of someone getting their private pilot license.  I know this because I would have loved this content (and did with Will Hawkins first podcast, and others), so that helped me understand that for those of us who have the flying bug badly, this content would be interesting.
  • Making this content available might just help to inspire a few people to get involved in aviation, finally take the plunge themselves, or just improve the perception of general aviation for someone.  I know this sounds a bit self-absorbed, but trust me, it is more about the realization that the content out there helped me, so I realize that every little bit might help someone else…and if that’s true, assisting in the popularity or perception of General Aviation is good for those of us who realize how important it is.  I’m actually still amazed that anybody listens…but if I think about how voracious I am with aviation content, I shouldn’t be surprised.
  • Keeping a good, rich, record of accomplishing this important thing to me will be something I personally will love having.  As I mentioned in episode 0, it is like keeping a media rich scrapbook and the body of content that I have when I’m finished will be priceless to me personally.  By having listeners wanting more episodes insures the external motivation necessary to help me to not slack off.  J
  • It’s fun!  And since I’m a technologist professionally, and an amateur audio/video/photography enthusiast…why not combine some of these passions (including aviation) into something that benefits others…and we all win.  Believe it or not, I’m a social, but very private person…but I’m in awe of my colleagues and friends (like Tim Heuer , and many others…its very common in my industry) who continually put themselves out there in the public eye for the benefit of everyone.  I think the generation after me (I’m 36 years old) has grown up with technology based social networking, and are comfortable wearing their lives on their sleeves (see things like myspace, facebook, twitter, etc.), and so to keep with the times, I need to teach myself to be more open, and what better way than to learn to fly in front of the world?  I think there is a societal benefit to sharing experience (there are downsides, too, but that’s another topic), and I am having fun learning to participate in this on a more grandiose scale by leveraging technology.  I know this is a bit philosophical, but I hope I’m getting my thoughts across.

Anyway…if you are so inclined, please check out my podcast at www.studentpilotcast.com.  I’ve released now something like nine episodes, and its speeding up.  Let me know what you think.

Student Pilot Cast Logo