Happy Mother's Day

This is a day where we stop to take the time to recognize and honor our mothers, who nurture and protect us, who give of themselves and then some, who love us no matter what we have or have not done. The best image in my mind is the one at the left. My philosophy has always been that this is part of every day, but one day is better than none at all.

So here is hoping that if you are a mother, that you have a glorious day. If you are a son or daughter, I hope you had the chance to tell your Mom how much she means to you, and most importantly, that you love her.

Happy Mother's Day!

Business Travels...

Headed of to PA for a business trip, back on the weekend.  


Carry on citizens. 

PAL-V, Not Quite the Jetsons

The Pal-V, which stands for Personal Air and Land Vehicle, is actually more of a driving autogyro than a flying car, but it can drive like a car, and it can also fly.

An autogyro is an old idea--it uses an unpowered rotor on the top of the vehicle, but it's not like a helicopter, which generates lift by blasting air downwards with it. Instead, power is provided by a smaller propellor at the rear, and the top rotor is used for pitch and yaw, more like a glider. (That also means if your power goes out, you can glide slowly to the ground.) The Pal-V, a small, one-person autogyro that also drives sort of like a three-wheeled motorcycle, leaning into turns, just completed its first flight.

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Bucko's Sunday Journey

Mile 1: So glad that I decided to go for a jog instead of doing the home gym routine.  My elbow is sore and needs a break from weights.

Mile 2: Everything is so green, the flowers are blooming, what a beautiful spring day.

Mile 3: Glad I got the lawn mowed yesterday, seeing these other mowed lawns, it looks so nice compared to the ones that are overgrown.

Mile 4: I am amazed at the amount of litter along the roads, at least 50% of it are beer cans/bottles.  Really, can't wait until you get home?  Shameful.

Mile 5: Images of our dinner tonight (steak on the barbie, grilled sweet corn, salad with blue cheese lite, and a fine 2005 Cabernet) urge me on a greater distance.

Mile 6: My feet are telling me that there will be "tiny bubbles" in my future.

Mile 7: My mouth is a dry as being at the dentist, with cotton swabbing in all my cheeks, ready for some diabolical procedure.

Mile 7.5: Depressing to look down and see caterpillars and snails passing me in the grass...

Mile 7.75: The "I think I can" mantra changes to "I knew I could"

Mile 8: Sitting on the deck, looking over Nutwood, drinking some awesome well water. 12.25 minute miles, no timing or style points, but I can deal.

Thanks for joining me on my journey.

Sunday Silliness - Marketing :o)

I Think I Can :o)

"If you think you can, you can. 

And if you think you can't, you're right."

- Mary Kay Ash 

Future of Fire-Fighting

Admittedly, the emphatic gesturing and unnatural command language that Octavia’s human handler must employ--under emergency conditions, no less--are a bit awkward and clunky, as user interfaces go. Octavia itself seems in no real rush to extinguish this simulated shipboard fire--and if there’s one thing all flesh-and-blood firefighters understand, it’s that there are no spare seconds when your ship is ablaze in the middle of the ocean.

But to be fair, this platform is brand new. The NRL is working on improving the interface to be more natural so human-machine interactions will come off much more organically, like an exchange between two human firefighters. And if all goes to plan, Octavia will someday be able to not only go where human firefighters simply can’t, but also to use various instruments to characterize the type and behavior of a particular fire in order to devise the proper strategy for putting it out quickly and effectively.

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How High Can You Go?

High altitude wind power systems continue to be explored with new systems and new approaches. The latest comes from Altaeros Energies, who recently tested the Altaeros Airborne Wind Turbine (AWT), a prototype 35-foot diameter, helium-filled, tethered structure with an onboard turbine. The prototype turbine is able to be transported and deployed from a trailer, which makes it potentially very useful for use at remote locations.

Using a Southwest Skystream turbine, the test model of the AWT was flown to an altitude of 350 feet where it produced more than twice the power as what is generated at a conventional tower height. The company is interested in developing high-altitude wind resources at elevations over 1,000 feet (over 300 meters) above the ground, where the winds are stronger and more regular.

How Do You Measure?

Not everything that counts can be measured. Not everything that can be measured counts.

-- Albert Einstein

Credit Check!

Give credit where credit is due. It sounds obvious but it doesn't always happen. Especially in highly political and hierarchical organizations, people often get credit based on their power, not their actual contributions. As a boss it's your job to change that — not just in private meetings or conversations but in public. Look closely at your team or organization to identify the biases that cause some people's work or ideas to be overvalued or undervalued. Then make sure that the right people are getting the right credit for the right reasons at the right time.

Credit team members for crediting one another. Good leaders incentivize their team members to acknowledge and appreciate others' contributions. This "expansion" of credit enhances team cohesion and trust, promoting more and better collaboration.

Avoid the temptation to blame. When setbacks occur, it's natural to look for a scapegoat or a rationalization. But this diminishes your team's social capital. You should instead give everyone (even those outside your team) the benefit of the doubt and consider all the complex factors that may have directly or indirectly contributed to poor performance or bad outcomes. This is how you start working constructively to address the problems. Encourage your team members to do the same by reminding them of their long-term shared interests and goals.

As a leader, you need to pay more attention to the allocation of credit and blame to individuals so — perhaps paradoxically — your team pays less attention to it. If you do, they'll start performing in a way that is more collectively creditworthy.

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