Nevada Wins Tesla Gigafactory

Elon Musk and Telsa Motors have been shopping around the US looking for the ideal location for the Gigafactory - Tesla and Panasonic's massive lithium ion battery manufacturing venture. Congratulations to the state of Nevada for winning the site selection. It's an exciting manufacturing plant (the world's largest lithium ion production facility) during an exciting time in the life of Tesla Motors - The company's stock was just given a $400 target price by market analysts.  Stifel Nicolaus analyst James Albertine compared investors’ enthusiasm for Tesla stock with a “freight train.”

“While there are no fewer than a half-a-dozen other key concerns we share with industry purists, the reality is, these issues simply do not matter with respect to Tesla’s stock,” Albertine wrote in a letter to clients. “Tesla sentiment is like a freight train, in our view, benefiting from a well manicured growth story that has caught the eye of a much broader investor base relative to most auto stocks.”

The stock reached $290 per share yesterday, following upbeat second-quarter results. The electric car maker is on target to achieving an annual rate of production of 100,000 cars by the end of next year, doubling its current rate. More inroads are being made in China which are also contributing to the string of records.

The Gigafactory is an important step in the company's growth path as it prepares to mass-produce a $35,000 model by 2107.  The facility looks like it will reach 50 GWh in annual battery production by 2020, which is enough to power 500,000 of Tesla's cars.  Nevada, while offering a $1.25 billion tax incentive package, will be gaining significant capital investment and around 6,500 jobs. Governor Sandoval said at the announcement that the agreement will add up to $100 billion to Nevada's economy over the next 20 years. Check out the full Gigafactory Press Release below.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

CARSON CITY, NV – Governor Brian Sandoval and Elon Musk, Chairman and CEO of Tesla Motors, announced today that Nevada has been selected as the official site for the Tesla Gigafactory.

“This is great news for Nevada. Tesla will build the world’s largest and most advanced battery factory in Nevada which means nearly one hundred billion dollars in economic impact to the Silver State over the next twenty years. I am grateful that Elon Musk and Tesla saw the promise in Nevada. These 21st century pioneers, fueled with innovation and desire, are emboldened by the promise of Nevada to change the world. Nevada is ready to lead,” stated Governor Brian Sandoval.

“I would like to recognize the leadership of Governor Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature for partnering with Tesla to bring the Gigafactory to the state. The Gigafactory is an important step in advancing the cause of sustainable transportation and will enable the mass production of compelling electric vehicles for decades to come. Together with Panasonic and other partners, we look forward to realizing the full potential of this project,” said Elon Musk, Chairman and CEO of Tesla Motors.

“On behalf of the State of Nevada, I would like to acknowledge this monumental day and provide my initial support. This is a significant opportunity to make a major stride to improve our statewide economy. I look forward to receiving the necessary information so the Legislature can meet and take necessary action to support this major industry coming to Nevada,“ stated Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick.

http://www.teslamotors.com/about/press/releases/nevada-selected-official-site-tesla-battery-gigafactory

Mixing Business with Pleasure

Between touring and touristing, as a musician, travel is my lot, and I value it for the great experiences. Recently, with my wife, Pam, I visited the Shetland Islands, north of Scotland, which are very much a part of Great Britain.  We flew to the beautiful city of Edinburgh, then headed up to Grantown on Spey to stay with dear friends Frank and Debbie Strang. We flew from Inverness to Lerwick on the Mainland Island where further adventures ensued.

I did an interview with  BBC, which was broadcast all over Scotland. and then we visited High Level Music where I played with store owner Brian Nicholson-he was brilliant on lead guitar, kinda like Albert Lea’s little brother.  Then we took a tour of Mareel Theater.  Linda Anderson showed the new performing arts center and as she went to college at Vanderbilt in Nashville and knows everyone there, included many folks I have only heard of. What a fun time.

We then took 2 ferry boat rides and car rides,which I partially slept through, to arrive on the most northern island of Unst.  (The Island Above All Others)   Frank Strang was in the RAF (Royal Air Force) and had known about an air force base that was closing on Unst called Saxa Vord.  After much deliberation he and Debbie bought the base (which had been remodeled into a very nice resort.) They promoted me in a concert at Baltasound Hall for Friday night August 24th, where I was surprised to have Brian Nicholson play with me for the entire show.  It was a packed house with 300, or so, folks from the island cheering both me and Jennifer McCarthy, a school teacher with a great voice.

After, Pam and I toured the island on our own. We drove to the top of the treeless mountains to see firths (fiords), an incredible lighthouse called Muckel Flugga and the the outcrop of a small island called the Outcast, which is the northern most point of the United Kingdom. The history of the island is amazing for it’s crops-sheep-and the wee ponies they call Shetlands. They were not bred that small but survived the harsh conditions and worked pulling plows and working in the coal mines carrying more weight than any other horse per it’s size. They have been on the islands for 2000 years. Dating back to the Bronze Age, they are friendly and come right up especially if you have carrots which we always have from Charlie’s market. We learned all this from eleven-year old Emily Strang, an up and coming guitar player/ singer / dancer like her older brother Thomas.  The Shetland ponies each have their own passport and computer chip as they are protected. They have incredible coats as it rains a lot there.

We met a group of locals that act as a cross between the Chamber of Commerce-Kiwanis Club-Welcome Wagon but dress as Vikings (The vikings used to raid the Shetlands and even the dialect has been affected by the close proximity to Norway.)  These modern day Vikings take their role seriously and stayed the entire evening for the Open Mic night at the officer’s Club at Saxa Vord.  They managed to raise the roof for the many talented young and old performers who signed up and do their thing- They are an infectious lot and make everybody laugh.

The number of talented musicians in the Shetland Islands is above the norm and they are very much in tune and in touch with the modern music we hear everywhere as well as holding tight the traditional fiddle music of the Shetland Reel and the country music of the US through a famous musician named Thomas Frasier.

We had a great time staying a very nice three bedroom town home. There are 30 of these plus beds for another 100 people and incredible grounds to camp. All this plus a micro brewery called  Vahalla and  Great Britain’s most Northern distillery that makes Shetland Reel Gin.  I wrote a commercial for the gin and they unveiled the first cases at a tasting while we were there.

There is a full football (soccer) pitch made with Astro Turf next to the lodging perfect for a Bird Air tent structure (similar to Denver’s teepee looking airport)  and also a full blown airplane hangar not too far away for the major Shetland Music Festival next August 2015.   I will be helping Frank produce this with a wide range of diverse styles that combine some folks from the US with lots of talent from the Shetlands. We are hoping for a grand turnout and want you to think about joining us for the first one! (think Fred at Telluride circa 1977)   The Shetland Islands have a wonderful Folk Festival in the Spring (May) and we want to promote that, as well as Mareel and all things cultural there. Our friends Mollie and Tim O’Brien have played there and Mollie is headed back with Rich Moore next year - we are going to ask if she’d like to do two trips-she’s wonderful!    I hope you’ll tune in to 710 KNUS on Saturdays 1:00 to hear the ICOSA Radio program. It is insightful and it’s wonderful to be a part of this new broadcast as their music contributor.

Twitter to the Rescue

Tweets can get you in trouble,  if you're Cee Lo Green or any other doofus making idiotic comments... but they can also be a valuable source of information. Who knew that a 140 character social media app would become, not only a first hand reporting medium, but a useful tool for piecing together the aftermath of a natural disaster.

This month marks the anniversary of the devastating Colorado floods that wiped out miles of canyon roads and bridges, and significant portions of small mountain towns, including Estes.

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

According to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder, hashtags, and GPS locations attached to pictures sent on Twitter, detailed the scope of damage to the area's infrastructure.  What they found on Twitter feeds, helped rescuers and engineers determine where to focus their efforts. And by studying what they learned in the 2013 flood, they can map out a system for effective reconnaissance after future natural disasters.

As people tweeted vivid, detailed images of damaged bridges and washed out roads, it was one of the sources of timely information. "After the fact, we compared those tweets to the damage reported by engineering reconnaissance teams and they were all well correlated." explained Shideh Dashiti, an assistant professor of civil, environmental and architectural engineering at CU-Boulder and author of the study.

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

Tweets sent during last year’s massive flooding on Colorado’s Front Range were able to detail the scope of damage to the area’s infrastructure, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder. - See more at: http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2014/09/03/tweets-during-2013-colorado-floods-gave-engineers-valuable-data#sthash.oEnG9zds.dpuf

This is critical because engineering reconnaissance crews generally have a narrow window to investigate within the time it's safe to enter a damaged area, and when clean up efforts eliminate the evidence of weakened infrastructure. Those investigations are crucial to to allow for proper repairs, and determine the remaining life of a bridge structure.

So, although the practice of tweeting can seem banal or narcissistic, the practice of posting those pictures provides invaluable evidence, which can ultimately save lives. As we are learning in other cases, Twitter as the first draft of history provides evidence that can answer questions that would otherwise be left unanswered.

Source: Colorado.edu

Gear VR - Samsung & Oculus Advance Virtual Reality

Oculus, the rising star of virtual reality, has partnered with Samsung to turn their brand new Galaxy Note 4 smartphone into a portable virtual reality powerhouse using a headset called Gear VR.  The phone's high resolution and processing power make it an ideal fit for something like this.  As engadget's Ben Gilbert remarks, this device is aimed at a wider media audience, rather than just the hardcore gaming sector. Check out the full press release below or this informational video review from IGN.

BERLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today introduced the next generation in wearable technology, the Samsung Gear VR Innovator Edition, enabling users to fully immerse themselves in a cinematic virtual reality environment. Powered by Oculus technology, the Samsung Gear VR delivers a completely new way to experience and consume mobile content. It continues Samsung’s leadership in the wearable category through innovative technology and compelling design to expand the definition of mobile life.

The result of a deep and integrated partnership with Oculus, a Facebook company and a leader in virtual reality technology, the Samsung Gear VR creates an immersive mobile virtual reality experience that the industry has never seen before.

“The Samsung Gear VR goes far beyond expectations of how mobile technology can be used to consume content, and is a powerful representation of the progressive innovation of the Gear series,” said JK Shin, President and CEO of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics. “We are pleased to have partnered with Oculus VR to bring this incredibly immersive mobile content experience to consumers.”

"We are thrilled to reveal the Gear VR Innovator Edition, a state-of-the-art mobile VR experience powered by Oculus," said John Carmack, CTO of Oculus. "The deep technical partnership with Samsung has enabled us to create a virtual reality headset with world class resolution and performance, all on a completely mobile platform."

The Samsung Gear VR delivers an unrivaled viewing experience with the 5.7 inch Quad HD Super AMOLED display of Galaxy Note 4 providing stunning and engaging visuals at a mobile-leading resolution. With the Gear VR Innovator Edition, users can sit in the best seat of a theater, can be on-stage of a performance with full 360 3D video, and can enjoy gaming like it’s never been seen before - inside stunning worlds where imagination becomes reality. Samsung’s industry leading Super AMOLED display technology and cutting-edge Oculus-driven technologies fuse to create an experience that surprises and delights – all on a mobile device.

Built with soft, flexible cushioning and lightweight materials, Samsung Gear VR is comfortable to wear. It is completely wireless, so users can be fully engaged in virtual worlds without being tethered to a computer. With a robust selection of optimized virtual reality content from a wide range of top-tier creators, users will be able to enjoy a wide range of film, gaming, 360 degree video, and educational/experiential content.

The Samsung Gear VR will be available in Frost White through the Samsung online channel and selectively by carriers this year. Full details and product images are available atwww.samsungmobilepress.com and www.oculus.com/blog/.

Note to Editors:

Product Specifications for Samsung Gear VR Innovator Edition

Designed for innovative consumers, specifically VR enthusiasts, developers, mobile experts and professionals, and early technology adopters.

Gear VR	Optical Lens	96˚ Field of View
	Sensor	Accelerator, Gyrometer, Magnetic, Proximity
	Motion to Photon Latency	< 20ms
	Focal Adjustment	Covers Nearsighted / Farsighted Eyes
	Interpupillary Distance Coverage	55 ~ 71 mm
	Physical User Interface	Touch Pad, Back Button, Volume Key
	Connection	microUSB 1.1 connection to the Galaxy Note 4
	Dimension (Headset)	198(W) x 116(L) x 90(H)mm
	Contents	Available through Oculus Store
		microSD Card(16GB) in-box: A collection of 360-degree videos and 3D movie trailers from major studios will be pre-loaded.
	As part of the Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron partnership with Samsung, Gear VR users will gain exclusive access to Tony Stark's Lab inside the all new Avengers Tower.
	IMAX offers samples of Hollywood and documentary films in a virtual theatre with Samsung Gear VR – the next best thing to a live IMAX experience.
	DreamWorks VR from DreamWorks Animation allows Samsung Gear VR users to interact and laugh with DreamWorks characters and content in a whole new way like never before.
	Legendary's Pacific Rim Jaeger Pilot is an immersive content experience that puts viewers at center of the action with Samsung Gear VR.
	Cirque du Soleil Media presents a 360 live-action 3D VR experience, featuring an act from Zarkanafilmed by Felix & Paul Studios for Samsung Gear VR.
	M-GO Advanced, a new paradigm for digital video virtual reality applications, offers an unmatched interactive search and discovery of the latest premium movie and TV show content with Samsung Gear VR.
	Vevo offers more than 100,000 HD music videos, live concert events and original programming that can be enjoyed in an immersive, full-screen theater experience on Samsung Gear VR.
	Protocol Zero (working title) from DENA enables Samsung Gear VR players to infiltrate enemy grounds undetected in blackout conditions with hi-tech optics including night vision, X-ray vision, and thermal vision.
Galaxy Note 4	Display	5.7 inch (143.9mm) Quad HD Super AMOLED (2560 x 1440)
	Camera (Pass-Through)	High Frame Rate Preview (60fps)
	Audio	3D Spatial Sound on Samsung VR Player for VR Gallery contents (Earphone needed)

* The availability of each content may differ by country.

* All functionality, features, specifications, and other product information provided in this document including, but not limited to, the benefits, design, pricing, components, performance, availability, and capabilities of the product are subject to change without notice or obligation.

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in technology, opening new possibilities for people everywhere. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of TVs, smartphones, tablets, PCs, cameras, home appliances, printers, LTE systems, medical devices, semiconductors and LED solutions. We employ 286,000 people across 80 countries with annual sales of US$216.7 billion. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.

About Oculus VR, Inc.

Oculus, a Facebook (FB) company, is revolutionizing the way people experience video games and other digital content. The company’s first product, the highly anticipated Oculus Rift, is a virtual reality headset that allows players to step inside the game. It provides an immersive, stereoscopic 3D experience with an ultra-wide field of view and super low latency head tracking. For more information, visit: www.oculusvr.com.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20140903005955/en/

MULTIMEDIA AVAILABLE:http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50935371&lang=en

Contact:

MWW for Samsung Marisa Conway, 201-687-7844 [email protected]

Two Business Lessons From a Guy Who Ate An Airplane

Two great questions - Is it possible? Should I do it?

Thirty five years ago a Frenchman, Michel Lotito became well-known because he ate a Cessna 150.  Yep, he ate the whole thing; wings, tires, windows, seats, engine - everything.  It took him two years, but he got the whole thing down, and I’m assuming, out.

On a tech forum in 2001, someone recounted the story, and the first response was, “Uh ok… but why an airplane?” Which leads us to two really important business lessons we should learn from eating an airplane.

Business Lesson #1 – Hard stuff is rarely impossible

You can do anything one bite at a time.

Born prematurely at 4.5 lbs, Wilma Rudolph took her first steps at eight years old, after suffering for years from polio. She went on to become the fastest woman alive and the first to win three Olympic gold medals.

At 16, Chris Zane convinced his parents to let him take over a bike shop going out of business, borrowing $23,000 from his grandfather—at 15 percent interest. This year, 30 years later, he expects to bring in $21 million.

Anna Mary Robertson Moses stopped embroidering at age 76 when her hands became too crippled to hold a needle. With no formal training or education, she took up painting and became one of the most famous and acclaimed painters in history, Grandma Moses.

Ray Kroc started franchising McDonalds at the age of 59. Colonel Sanders franchised KFC at 62.

A lot of personal and business accomplishments defy the possible. Stop whining about what you think you can’t do. Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.”  Take one step at a time. Keep going. Don’t give up.

Business Lesson #2 – Pick something worth doing before you start

There’s nothing worse than eating an airplane just to have someone ask, “Uh, ok… but why an airplane?” Business is hard enough. Don’t make it harder by continuing to beat your head against the wall to do things that, in the end, won’t matter. Choose wisely. Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should. Michel Lotito died at the age of 57 of "natural causes". Uh-huh. Eating an airplane is a bad idea.

When setting out to do something, always make sure you ask BOTH the following questions.

1)    Is it possible? (It almost always is) and…

2)    Should I do it? (What is the possible reward?)

Lotito only asked the first one. Don't make that mistake.

Put your hand to what others think is impossible, but make sure it’s worth doing before you start.

article as seen on Inc.com

Why Doesn’t Everyone Use the Incoterms® Rule DDP? Incoterms®, EXW, DDP

The Choice of Incoterms® Determines the Seller's Responsibilities

U.S. exporters must prevent their products from entering into a counties or markets which are prohibited by U.S. laws, or into the wrong hands for use of the product in a detrimental way. Exporters need to know and have trust in the purchaser.

At a recent workshop on Incoterms®, I prepared my usual outline, using the technique of ranking the Incoterms® from least responsibility for the seller to most responsibility for the seller. Initially, exporters like the term with least responsibility for them, Ex Works. In laymen’s terms, the seller says, “The goods are at my back door, come and get them.” As the workshop develops, exporters learn that Ex Works has risks, one being diversion into the wrong hands..

The Transaction may Determine the Choice of the Incoterms® Rule

A company in Colorado sent two employees to my workshop at the Rocky Mountain World Trade Center Institute. They dutifully took notes but made very few, if any, comments during the course of the class, until we got to the last Incoterm®, DDP (Delivered Duty Paid). Then one of them made a simple statement, “I don’t understand why everyone doesn’t use DDP.”

I responded, “Sir, with that comment, I know you understand Incoterms®.”

The DDP term places full responsibility on the exporter and very little on the importer. The exporter must jump through all the hoops and over all the hurdles including transportation and insurance to the buyer’s facility. This Incoterm® requires the seller to arrange for customs clearance on the buyer’s side.

Why the Incoterms® Rule DDP Was the Exporter's Preference

Why was this important to this company? They manufacture computer products that have the potential for misuse if the goods find their way into the wrong hands. Exporters need assurance that their products arrive at the intended destination and are only used for the purpose intended. By using DDP, the seller has complete control of the shipment to its destination and can avoid the possibility of diversion to unwanted parties or countries.

Connect & Collaborate - Reaching Space from Colorado

Not so long ago, it was every child's dream to grow up and become an astronaut. No other adventure could match the race into the final frontier. Today, the United States has sidelined manned space missions. The dream of being an astronaut is swapped with being an engineer who can design spacecraft, rovers and other methods of exploration. The encouraging news is, Colorado may be the best place on earth to pursue such a career.

Edgar Johansson, President of the Colorado Space Business Roundtable talks with Connect & Collaborate about Colorado's role in the future of space exploration. The Colorado Space Business Roundtable is a collective forum for those interested in the growth of space-related industry.

You'll be amazed at the many ways Colorado reaches space and learn how you can be a part of it all.

Listen this Saturday at 1:00 to on KNUS 710 –  Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

Google is Developing Delivery Drones

At the end of last year, Amazon announced it was working on an autonomous delivery drone service called Prime Air.  Now it seems another internet giant has high ambitions too. The Atlantic just revealed that Google's moonshot program, Google X, has been secretly hard at work developing its own prototype delivery drone technology known as Project Wing.

This last month, around 30 tests were conducted in Queensland, Australia.  The team has successfully delivered a first aid kit, candy bars, dog treats, and water to a couple of farmers.

“We’re only just beginning to develop the technology to make a safe delivery system possible, but we think that there’s tremendous potential to transport goods more quickly, safely and efficiently,” Google said.

Because logistics physically connects people, products and places, these incredible advances in technology could become seriously disruptive forces. Companies are moving quickly and developing these functional systems even ahead of the FAA's expected regulatory framework. Should be an interesting ride.

Watch Solar Eruption in Slow Motion

Recently, NASA released a new video of a coronal mass ejection, or CME, in action.  The CME was reported to be about 3 times the width of Earth and the length of about 7.5 Earths.  A coronal mass ejection happens when fluctuations of the sun's magnetic fields cause a large portion of the surface of the sun to expand rapidly, ejecting billions of tons of particles out into space. The resulting magnetic waves have the potential to disrupt the Earth's magnetic field, and shift its alignment.  When a CME hits Earth, humans are able to witness one of the most spectacular natural occurrences on our planet, the Auroras.  

Filmed at the NASA's IRIS (Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph) labs, the camera has to be pointed at the Sun more than a day in advance, and catching the event involves more than just a bit of luck.  The IRIS laboratory was imagined and the mission managed by the Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory.  This amazing video can be viewed below.

Colorado Names New Chief Technology Officer

As reported earlier this morning in the Denver Post the Governor's Office of Information Technology announced that David McCurdy will take the post as the new chief technology officer. David McCurdy has been named the state of Colorado's new chief technology officer, the Governor's Office of Information Technology announced.

McCurdy comes to the post from Arapahoe County-based Catholic Health Initiatives, parent of Colorado's Centura Health hospitals, where he spent 10 years in various positions, including associate vice president and chief enterprise architect, leading a 1,000-person IT staff, OIT said.

Overall, he has 17 years of experience as a programmer, system engineer and related fields, OIT said.

"McCurdy will continue OIT's critical work of enhancing state IT systems for state agencies and the residents of Colorado," the agency said.

He starts Sept. 2, reporting to Suma Nallapati, the cabinet-level secretary of technology and chief information officer. Nallapati was chief technology officer until her promotion in June, and she also previously worked at Catholic Health Initiatives.

Kristin Russell, the previous secretary of technology and CIO, announced April 21 she was stepping down to take a job with Deloitte Consulting LLP.

This article appeared in the Denver Business Journal and can be reviewed - http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/news/2014/08/28/colorado-names-new-chief-technology-officer.html

Wine and Dine Disasters

The cost of dining out is going to get higher, and we have natural disasters to blame for it. First up, a loss that got everyone's attention, followed by more devastation that only made it into agriculture news.

In the early morning hours, on Sunday August 24th,  a 6.0 magnitude earthquake in the San Francisco area didn't result in human loss, but wine reserves took a severe hit. Napa Valley was the epicenter of the  August 25th earthquake, home to nearly 500 vineyards in the area. The impact of an earthquake would be felt in the wine reserves, thousands of barrels and bottles of wine were destroyed. Many of the buildings that sustained damage were those that had been retrofitted to withstand earthquakes.

Wineries are reporting $15,000 to $20,000 losses to their inventory. One vineyard claims its water tank came untethered, which could result in further crop loss in the midst of current drought conditions.

It's estimated that Napa Valley alone could submit millions of dollars in loss claims, counting wine losses alone.

Likewise, beef prices are rising, about 6 - 7 percent due to the devastating loss of cattle in a South Dakota storm last October.  Today, ground beef has reached a record high of $3.55 a pound up 56 percent from 2010.  CNN Money reports that price increases in February resulted in the biggest month-over-month rise in more than a decade, but they don't seem to connect it to the loss of cattle only months before.

In case you missed it, and it seems like everyone outside of agricultural circles did, South Dakota cattle ranchers took a catastrophic hit to their livelihoods when a sneaky freak storm took them by surprise in early October.

It was seasonably warm one minute, and the next their cattle were caught in a blizzard. The cattle, in their summer coats, and still in summer pasture were soaked by the rain, then frozen in the bitter cold wind.  Fall roundup was still two weeks away, when ranchers would bring them in for closer observation and more navigable terrain. As it was, the cattle became disoriented in the snow, and unreachable by ranchers. The storm resulted in the deaths of  40 - 50 percent of most herds, primarily heifers due to calve in the in the spring.

An estimated 60,000 to 80,000 head of cattle were lost, and it is expected to take at least five years to recover the generations of beef cattle that can feed America. I wouldn't expect the price of steak to level out any time soon.

So if you're planning to go out for a juicy steak and a nice bottle of wine any time in the next couple of years, be prepared for the expense. Consider it a worthwhile contribution to the beef growers and vineyards who work so hard to put it on your table.

Sources: ProgressiveCattle.com  Grubstreet.com

Manufacturing Edge Returns to US & Mexico

The economics of global manufacturing are shifting. For decades, people have been saying that manufacturing costs are cheap in regions like Eastern Europe, Latin America, and most of Asia. On the other hand, the United States, Western Europe, and Japan have been viewed as having high costs. That worldview is out-of-date according to a new report released by The Boston Consulting Group. Costs have been shifting and the competitive edge now belongs to the U.S. and Mexico.   While the common narrative was still that American manufacturing was dead and done, heavy machinery manufacturer Caterpillar has been shifting production of construction equipment from Japan back to the U.S., creating hundreds of jobs.

Designed with executives of export manufacturing firms in mind, the BCG report describes how steady changes in a variety of factors, such as wages, productivity, energy costs and currency values, are redrawing the map of global manufacturing cost competitiveness. While seemingly subtle, these changes are dramatic.  Some of the shifts in relative costs are actually quite surprising. A decade ago, not many people would have predicted that Brazil would now be one of the highest-­cost countries for manufacturing— and that Mexico could be cheaper than China. Costs in Eastern Europe and Russia have risen to near equivalence with the U.S.

Key factors behind all these changes vary widely by economy. The BCG researchers say, "skyrocketing labor and energy costs have eroded the competitiveness of China and Russia. A decade ago, for example, manufacturing wages adjusted for productivity averaged an estimated $4.35 an hour in China and $6.76 in Russia, compared with $17.54 in the U.S. Again, adjusted for productivity differences, labor costs have roughly tripled in both countries, to an estimated $12.47 an hour in China and $21.90 in Russia. Average productivity-adjusted manufacturing labor costs in the U.S. have risen by only 27 percent since 2004, to $22.32. The cost of industrial electricity increased by an estimated 66 percent in China and 78 percent in Russia, while the cost of natural gas soared by an estimated 138 percent in China and 202 percent in Russia from 2004 to 2014."

As Forbes reports on the BCG study, the U.S. has emerged as the lowest-cost manufacturing location of the developed world, roughly on par with South Korea. The manufacturing-cost gap between the U.S. and other developed countries widened significantly between 2004 and 2014. Average U.S. costs are now estimated to be 9 percentage points lower than the UK, 11 points lower than Japan, 21 points lower than Germany, and 24 points lower than France.

According to the study, the U.S. is even approached cost-parity with some nations of Eastern Europe.  Our cost gap with China “has shrunk dramatically” and, BCG researchers said, “if the trend of the last ten years continues, will disappear before the end of the decade.” Labor is one key to the growing U.S. competitive advantage. The U.S. has one of the developed world’s most flexible labor markets, ranking as the most favorable economy in terms of labor regulation among the top 25 manufacturing exporters. The U.S. also has by far the highest worker productivity among the world’s 25 biggest manufactured-goods exporters. Adjusted for productivity, U.S. labor costs are an estimated 20% to 54% lower than those of Western Europe and Japan for many products.

Prices for natural gas have risen around the world, but have fallen in the U.S. by around 50% since 2005, when large-scale recovery from underground shale deposits began in earnest." Natural gas currently costs three times more in China, France, and Germany and four times more in energy strapped Japan. The energy component will be a hard one for competitors to tackle in the years ahead, BCG researchers said.

Forbes contributor Kenneth Rapoza continues by saying, "For Mexico, Latin America’s second largest economy has regained its status as a leading low-cost manufacturer, replacing China on many product lines."

In 2000, Mexican manufacturing labor was roughly twice as expensive as China’s. Since 2004, Chinese wages have risen four fold. Mexican wages also rose, but by much less in pesos and even less in dollar terms while the Chinese yuan has gotten stronger over the same period.  The report said that even though China has had higher productivity growth, the average Mexican productivity-adjusted labor costs are now estimated to be 13% lower China’s. Add attractive electricity and natural-gas costs, and Mexico’s total costs are estimated to be 5% below those of China, 9% below those of the U.S., and 25% below those of Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy.

“Many companies are beginning to see the world in a new light,” said Harold L. Sirkin, a BCG senior partner and co-author of the report. “They are finding that many old perceptions of low-cost and high-cost countries are out of date, and they are starting to realign their global sourcing and production networks accordingly.”

Bankers' Acceptances Used in The Great Salad Oil Swindle

Bankers' Acceptances, Federal Reserve Bank, Warehouse Receipts

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Federal Reserve Authorization for Bankers' Acceptances

Banks have many tools for financing international trade, but one of the lesser known ones is the Bankers’ Acceptances (B/A’s).  This financing arrangement, authorized by the Federal Reserve Bankin 1913, allows U.S. banks to compete with London banks in the international financing arena. B/A’s have several advantages. Considered short-term, each  180 days or less, each B/A ties to a specific self-liquidating transaction. Once the bank creates the B/A, they can sell it into the secondary market and thus maintain liquidity.

Bankers' Acceptances used for Financing Goods in a Warehouse

The Federal Reserve Bank specified certain transactions which qualify for B/A financing. The transactions must relate to a shipment of goods, or be secured with readily marketable staples stored in independent warehouses.

The Swindler

The warehouse receipt financing arrangement used by “Tino” DeAngelis in the early 1960s bilked banks and investors out of $219 million. DeAngelis falsified warehouse receipts for the alleged storage of salad oil in tanks. His tanks had false or hollow bottoms which allowed only a portion of the tank to be filled with oil. The swindler then used these receipts to pledge as collateral to borrow millions of dollars, which he used in an attempt to corner the cottonseed and soybean markets on the commodities exchange. Apparently, he intended to make a killing in those markets, and then use the profits to buy salad oil to legitimately fill the tanks.

DeAngelis made heavy margin purchases of soybean oil and cottonseed oil futures with the expectation that the USSR would buy vegetable oils in the U.S. However, the prices of the futures began to drop, and DeAngelis failed to come up with the money to cover the decline in the value of the contracts.

The Conviction

Officials discovered the truth when they examined his fake warehouse receipts. DeAngelis was charged with fraud in 1965, convicted, and given a twenty-year prison sentence. The Feds recovered all but $1 million from the so-called “Great Salad Oil Swindle.”

Instagram's New Hyperlapse App

Today at 11am Mountain Time, Instagram is releasing Hyperlapse, a remarkable new app that empowers users to create fantastic tracking shots and time-lapse videos. Yesterday, this would have required $10,000 or more in professional production gear. Now, with the use of a clever algorithm, it's available on smartphones for free.

Introducing Hyperlapse from Instagram from Instagram on Vimeo.

Instead of intensively processing the raw video to artificially model the camera's movement, the app makes use of smartphones' built-in gyroscope to measure the phone's movements directly.  As WIRED reports, the concept of Hyperlapse may be too complex for average Instagram users, so the company decided to release it as an entirely separate app rather than a feature on the core Instagram app. “We didn’t want to create a special use that would just be hidden,” says Mike Krieger, Instagram’s co-founder and CTO.

4 Steps To Hiring People You’ll Never Have To Manage

Resumes Are Nearly Useless

Most of our hiring practices were developed for the Industrial Age. But it turns out resumes are nearly useless and our hiring process is backwards.

#1 - Business Beliefs and Culture

Business Beliefs determine your culture. Beware the picture on the wall of an eagle with a clever saying. You don’t create a culture; you just live out what you believe.

Before you ever look at a resume, test for Business Beliefs. Your best future Stakeholders will believe they should Make Meaning at work, not just money. And they’ll believe that taking ownership of their job, processes, teamwork and results are fundamental responsibilities. Traditional employees believe they trade hours for money. Stakeholders believe they go to work to create Significance in the world around them.

Business Beliefs and Culture are everything, and you don’t find these on a resume.

#2 - Talent

Unlike skills, talents are those innate abilities that can’t be taught; a sense of urgency, attention to detail, silver-tongued communicator, ability to work alone or in teams, etc. Every job requires unique talents. Figure out what those are and hire second for talent, before you look at their resume. You don’t find talent on a resume.

#3 – Skills (Demonstrated)

Resumes are a terrible place to find talents, too.  You don’t test for skills by sitting across from someone asking them if their resume is true. Have the person demonstrate whatever they are being hired to do. If they are good at it, they have the skills. If they don’t, you have to decide if training them makes sense. My company focuses on hiring talented people, because you can teach skills, but talent can’t be taught. People who are highly skilled but untalented will never be great contributors.

#4 Experience.

If someone passes the first four tests, only then should you bother to glance (yes, glance) at their resume. Resumes are just obituaries about what someone used to do, and like obituaries, they are always embellished while downplaying shortcomings. Use resumes at the end of the hiring process to see if someone is a job-hopper, and to help you talk to their references.

We have it all backwards.

So to hire someone who you’ll never have to manage, who will take ownership and become a contributing Stakeholder, interview for these four things, always in this order:

1. Business Beliefs and Culture

2. Talent

3. Skills (test for them, don’t look at the resume)

4. Experience

But how does the traditional Industrial Age process do it? Backwards:

1. Experience - “We need someone fast. We won’t have time to train.”

2. Skills - “Their resume says they’re good. They must be good.”

3. Talent – Rarely looked at

4. Business Beliefs and Culture – At best, an afterthought

Is it any wonder we end up hiring Industrial Age style employees who need to be herded into office day care centers and supervised like seven year olds?

Key-Word Searches Are The Worst Possible Hiring Practice

Using software to do key-word searches as the first step is broken. The rationale is that there are always too many candidates and it eliminates the 90% who won’t be a fit. But what it eliminates is great people who could be a perfect cultural fit, with all the right talents and possibly even the right skills. Instead it selects BS’rs who wrote the best, and possibly most exaggerated obituaries.

Reboot

If you want to hire people you won’t have to manage, throw out most of what you’ve been taught about hiring. Hire first for Business Beliefs and Culture, second for talent, third for demonstrated skills, and use experience as a tiebreaker. You, and the people who you hire, will all be happier and more productive.

Article as seen on Inc.com

by Chuck Blakeman, Author of the #1 Rated Business Book of the Year, Making Money is Killing Your Business and Top 10 business book, Why Employees Are Always A Bad Idea

www.ChuckBlakeman.com

Dark Chocolate Demand

Of all the commodities to be impacted by high prices and export issues, why chocolate? It's a tragedy against the sweet life-blood of ... of... oh, just give me chocolate. Chocolate prices are increasing about seven to eight percent in the United States, due to commodity, transportation and manufacturing costs. Blame in part on the high cost of cocoa beans which has gone up 18% this year alone. M&M/MARS and Hershey's have responded by recently increasing their wholesale prices.

Other contributing factors are low yields in cocoa growing regions, combined with increased demand, strangely, because the American palate has shifted from what I call, "watered down milk-chocolate" to rich dark chocolate combinations. The change in tastes can be attributed to health studies in the past ten years, reporting that dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants which gives chocolate gluttons more reason to consume the sweet, tasty goodness with wild abandon.

High prices are not a great obstacle for U.S. sales, as Americans are notoriously willing to pay for such luxuries. None of that changes the fact that cocoa yields in regions like the Ivory Coast are very sensitive to changing weather patterns. Possible climate change could impact crops to the point of a significant loss of yield over the coming years, at which point we will be forced to find a substitute for heaven on earth.

Prices are likely to be impacted further as efforts to reduce the slave trade related to the harvesting of cocoa, gain more ground, which may result in fair compensation for cocoa farmers. To see more about the laborious process of harvesting cocoa, and the small proportion of income the farmers receive from the process, watch this revealing video. It's worth the full five minutes, and will cause you to appreciate chocolate all the more.

And for an example of the critical influence of chocolate in various cultures, watch my favorite SNL skit.

Matthew Fox on SNL - Mayan Chocolate from Jor on Vimeo.

Sources:  Slate.com 

& World Cocoa Foundation

2 Years Later: A Look at Curiosity

"The first footfalls on Mars will mark a historic milestone, an enterprise that requires human tenacity matched with technology to anchor ourselves on another world"  - Buzz Aldren

August 6th, 2012 - One of the most ambitious space missions to date went into action.  The unmanned space rover, aptly named Curiosity, was set to land on Mars, all that was left was the trip.  After the "Seven Minutes of Terror," Curiosity was to begin its mission into the Martian wilderness.  Over the course of the two years, Curiosity has been active studying the Mars for signs of life and water, reporting diligently back to NASA.  Armed with cameras and a rock-vaporizing laser, Curiosity has been shooting and rocks and taking pictures for two years now, and we've learned some pretty astounding things.

Thanks to the intrepid rover, we have evidence that there was most likely once water on Mars.  We now know that life on Mars was possible given the history of the red planet, and we have an idea of where to search for it.  Among the many things that Curiosity has discovered on its extra-terrestrial mission, the biggest benefit from the rover may be a renewed interest in the space program.  From lego sets to t-shirts to its own Twitter handle, people are interested in what's going on on Mars.

Now, 2 years later, we get a look at what the time and elements have done to our beloved space-faring friend.  And maybe, just maybe, we can one day send someone up there to go meet our rover buddy and thank it for all it has done for us.

Connect & Collaborate - Dick Franklin

If you want to learn something valuable for the business world, take it from someone who has not only been successful in business, but who has learned what he knows from the greatest number of industries.  This week, we've got your man! Dick Franklin has dabbled in everything from law enforcement, to the beverage industry to promoting clean tech enterprise. Along with raising world-class Olympic swimming gold medalist, Missy Franklin, he knows a thing or two about success.

Franklin has worked for Coors, the 7-UP Corporation, Reebok and other name brands, all of which met with exposure to big name celebrities. Someone like Dick Franklin doesn't see these simply as impressive elbow-rubbing events, but opportunities to learn from others who are great in their own right. One example is a young Wayne Gretzky, whose inexplicable skill on the ice left Franklin confused. He's not the fastest hockey player, not the most agile, not an enforcer... what made seventeen-year-old Gretzky such a star? "Well mister Franklin," Gretzky replied, "I think it's because I skate to where the puck is going to be."

That lesson of knowing how to be steps ahead of everyone else carried with Dick Franklin. Today, as the Executive Director of the Clean Tech Open, he helps enterprising, clean tech start-ups head toward commercialization of their products.

Franklin also subscribes to the 10,000 hour rule, as explained by Malcolm Gladwell, which explains, in order to be successful at something, ten thousand hours of work and dedication must be devoted to that endeavor. It's true for athletes, entrepreneurs and business people alike.  To learn more from Dick Franklin's wisdom, Listen Saturday at 1:00 AM on KNUS 710.

Please let us know what you think of our program, either by commenting here or on Facebook at Connect & Collaborate with ICOSA or join the discussion on Twitter @ICOSAMagazine.

Serendipity Brings Music Lovers Together

"Music does bring people together... No matter what language we speak, what color we are, the form of our politics or the expression of our love and our faith, music proves: We are the same." - John Denver

Whereever you travel, through whatever country, people can always connect through the shared experience of enjoying music.  Everyday more and more people turn to online streaming services for their jams, creating a nexus point of musical diversity used the world over.  There are already ways to make online music a more communal experience, but this newest one is something else entirely.

"Even though listening to music can be a very private experience, I wanted to see how often this experience is shared.” - Kyle McDonald

Spotify, one of the largest music streaming services, recently unveiled a map, that shows when any two people around the world are listening to the same song at the same time (within 1/10th of a second of each other).  The map, named Serendipity, jumps from song to song showing the location of each of the listeners worldwide, and what they're listening to.  It also gives you the option to pause, stop and listen for a while. This project, based on real-time data was created by Spotify's first artist-in-residence, Kyle McDonald.  About the project, McDonald says “In person, it’s easy to see the features we share, or when we share stories in online discussions. But we’re also connected in more ephemeral ways, and we can extract these relationships with new tools. Even though listening to music can be a very private experience, I wanted to see how often this experience is shared.”

If you want to get connected with others through music,

check out Serendipity for yourself. 

I'd Swim across the Pacific to Avoid Using a Letter of Credit

Letter of Credit, Open Account, Documentary Collection

As I found my seat on the plane in O’Hare Airport to return to Denver, I introduced myself to the passenger next to me. He introduced himself as the controller of a meat packing plant in Colorado. My international banking instincts caused me to ask, “Do you export your product?”

He replied, “Yes, we export boxed beef.”

I next probed, “How do you get paid?”

“Cash,” was his short answer.

Letters of Credit and Other Methods of Payment

In my experience, most exporters use all or most of the various payment methods: cash, letters of credit, documentary collections and open account. Industry and market conditions often dictate the choice. When asking the question, “How do you get paid?” I expect answers such as: “We get paid by cash when selling to countries A and B, Letters of Credit in country C, and open account to our established distributors in countries D and E.”

My fellow passenger’s short answer caught me off-guard because I expected a more elaborate response. “Cash?” I asked. “Don’t you ever ship on a letter of credit?”

“No way,” he said with conviction. “If I can’t collect payment on a letter of credit, I’m not swimming after the boat to get our goods back.”

Leniency with Payments Can Be a Competitive Advantage

He implemented a hard and fast credit policy. One has to admire the quality of his foreign receivables. He slept well at night and never had to inform his president of a slow paying customer overseas. However, one has to wonder if this policy didn’t limit their ability to expand their export markets. Certainly they had competitors who offered more lenient terms. Competing involves more than just pricing. Payment terms often dictate the success of an overseas sale.

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