The worst estimates are that we're getting 124% energy out with ethanol with current technology - a net gain. And those numbers are based upon old data for crop and ethanol yields and equipment.
All I'm saying is that the handling of a bulk material like hay is more difficult than it is for a compact material like corn. It's certainly solveable, but it is something that will need to be addressed once we start using this material on an industrial scale.
Corn is typically under 15% moisture when it is delivered (I think - not really remotely a farmer). You'll have the same issue in a bulkier form with switchgrass.
Don't forget storage and transportation of the switch grass. It's essentially like hay - a bulk feedstock. Corn is nice because we can haul lots of it in grain carts, semi trailers, and on trains - it's compact and easy to move. Hay is bulky for its weight. It can be transported, but it takes up more space for the same amount of weight. I don't think that they've quite answered that part of it yet.
The same thing goes for storage. All of that extra bulk needs to be stored somehow and somewhere prior to processing.
Neither of these problems are insurmountable. Just there and so far I've not seen them discussed much.
The United States has a system called the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network that is used to move deposits and payments electronically between banks. If you have any ACH items hit your account, Regulation E kicks in giving you as a consumer certain rights about how soon you must report bad or fraudulent items before you are out of luck (60 days from the statement that the item appeared upon).
An ACH transaction != financial identity. If I have that information about you and have access to the payment system, I can fraudulently send out ACH items and hope to collect enough to make it worthwhile before I'm shut down. This information, however, does not allow me to open a loan or credit account in your name. It sucks, but it's not identity theft.
I'm sure that the UK does also have some sort of an electronic transaction system, but I've got no idea about what it is and how it works. You guys have a different style of banking than we do in the US. We have a few major, major players, but also a very large number of small "community banks" and credit unions. The ACH network in the United States was set up as a clearinghouse to basically send transactions to a large number of different banks. If I understand things correctly, the UK doesn't have the smaller financial institutions like we do, so the electronic transaction systems may work differently there (to say nothing of the regulations defining how they work!).
As I understand the situation. Name, address and bank details alone cannot be used to withdraw money
You understand incorrectly. A name, routing number, and account number would give a criminal enough information to send through fraudulent transactions to that account.
Only if you aren't in a position to listen to the game on the radio or watch it somehow.
The Run - audio on this was from the radio play by play guy. How can this be compared to what a blogger can type during the game - "Seneca Wallace runs from sideline to sideline for a 12 yard touchdown"
A vehicle that can go only about 40 miles on a charge is useless where I live and work. I walk to work, but the nearest sizable towns are about 25 miles away...
To be useful to me, an electric car would need to get about 200 miles per charge, would need to work well in cold weather (say -20F), and would have to do something about heating in the wintertime that didn't affect the vehicle's range (once again thinking about that -20F).
We participate. I think it's a great idea for skirting the FDIC limits for those who need to do so and it is good for the banks to keep the customer's full relationship - a win-win situation.
I don't know if they actually take the CDs, but many banks also participate in the CDARs program. There's a good chance that the bank that you are using participates and can get you a fully insured CD greater than $100K.
If I remember right, the head guy for the Promontory outfit is a former head of the FDIC, and the program will do what it says that it does.
In small midwestern towns (not cities), about $40K would get a decent, but not new, house. Of course, these are areas where housing valuation hasn't boomed like it has on the coasts.
If, however, you were looking at farmland, $40K will get you maybe 8 acres of good corn ground at best.
We're so efficient at growing corn, our problem is getting it out of the midwest. Because of this, we "grow" piles of corn during the fall until it can be shipped to market for its end use.
For corn, much of the improvements have come in the genetics of the seed (hybridization in the 50's and gmo's now) and in the application of ag chemicals for fertilizer and pest control. This year, the USDA is estimating that corn yields will be in the 150 bushels per acre range (but that might be a bit high).
The pilot plant depended upon the raw material (turkey carcasses) being free (and thus implying that there was no market for them). It turns out that those carcasses did have a market so the plant had to purchase their raw materials and that raised the cost of their production.
The trick is to use a raw material on the way to the landfill - one that has no market so that you _can_ get it for free.
Yes, you'd be rich beyond Bill Gates if you invented a storage system capable of fairly extreme temperatures, yet costs a mere $1 per kw/hour and lasts for decades. Current storage runs around $50 per kwh of capacity and only lasts ~3 years. This is also what has made electric cars uneconomic. We have the motor, we have the generation, we just don't have a good method for storage.
We're from Iowa and we're here to help you - Iowa WindPower Storage. I wish I could find a better link, but didn't have a great deal of time.
They don't need your SSN to compare you to the list - just your name.
But if you were paying more than $10,000 cash for a vehicle, that might trigger a CTR (not sure if that's a requirement for car dealers though), in which case they do need your SSN.
Cattle do just fine with distillers grains - the leavings after ethanol is made. Hogs and poultry don't - they like corn.
I think that we may see a shift in the production of livestock in the United States. Much of the existing beef production takes place outside of Iowa, while much of the ethanol production takes place within the state. Iowa is also a major producer of pork - I expect that many of those operations will switch to feeding out cattle instead of hogs - especially if they can get distillers grains at a decent price compared to the corn that hogs require.
Slashdot Mirror
The worst estimates are that we're getting 124% energy out with ethanol with current technology - a net gain. And those numbers are based upon old data for crop and ethanol yields and equipment.
Most businesses, if unionized, can't hire non-union employees (unless your in an ironically named "right to work" state, like Arizona).
Not much into the freedom of association then? If a union must force its members to join, what does that tell you about its utility?
All I'm saying is that the handling of a bulk material like hay is more difficult than it is for a compact material like corn. It's certainly solveable, but it is something that will need to be addressed once we start using this material on an industrial scale.
Corn is typically under 15% moisture when it is delivered (I think - not really remotely a farmer). You'll have the same issue in a bulkier form with switchgrass.
once a farmer harvests it, then what?
Don't forget storage and transportation of the switch grass. It's essentially like hay - a bulk feedstock. Corn is nice because we can haul lots of it in grain carts, semi trailers, and on trains - it's compact and easy to move. Hay is bulky for its weight. It can be transported, but it takes up more space for the same amount of weight. I don't think that they've quite answered that part of it yet.
The same thing goes for storage. All of that extra bulk needs to be stored somehow and somewhere prior to processing.
Neither of these problems are insurmountable. Just there and so far I've not seen them discussed much.
The United States has a system called the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network that is used to move deposits and payments electronically between banks. If you have any ACH items hit your account, Regulation E kicks in giving you as a consumer certain rights about how soon you must report bad or fraudulent items before you are out of luck (60 days from the statement that the item appeared upon).
An ACH transaction != financial identity. If I have that information about you and have access to the payment system, I can fraudulently send out ACH items and hope to collect enough to make it worthwhile before I'm shut down. This information, however, does not allow me to open a loan or credit account in your name. It sucks, but it's not identity theft.
I'm sure that the UK does also have some sort of an electronic transaction system, but I've got no idea about what it is and how it works. You guys have a different style of banking than we do in the US. We have a few major, major players, but also a very large number of small "community banks" and credit unions. The ACH network in the United States was set up as a clearinghouse to basically send transactions to a large number of different banks. If I understand things correctly, the UK doesn't have the smaller financial institutions like we do, so the electronic transaction systems may work differently there (to say nothing of the regulations defining how they work!).
As I understand the situation. Name, address and bank details alone cannot be used to withdraw money
You understand incorrectly. A name, routing number, and account number would give a criminal enough information to send through fraudulent transactions to that account.
I was at that game kind on that end of the field. Never gets old watching that! It's just too bad that they couldn't make it over the hump that year.
ComSci '95
Only if you aren't in a position to listen to the game on the radio or watch it somehow.
The Run - audio on this was from the radio play by play guy. How can this be compared to what a blogger can type during the game - "Seneca Wallace runs from sideline to sideline for a 12 yard touchdown"
300 miles or more.
A vehicle that can go only about 40 miles on a charge is useless where I live and work. I walk to work, but the nearest sizable towns are about 25 miles away...
To be useful to me, an electric car would need to get about 200 miles per charge, would need to work well in cold weather (say -20F), and would have to do something about heating in the wintertime that didn't affect the vehicle's range (once again thinking about that -20F).
We participate. I think it's a great idea for skirting the FDIC limits for those who need to do so and it is good for the banks to keep the customer's full relationship - a win-win situation.
The banks won't be bailed out nor will the owners or shareholders of the banks. The banks' customers will be.
I don't know if they actually take the CDs, but many banks also participate in the CDARs program. There's a good chance that the bank that you are using participates and can get you a fully insured CD greater than $100K.
If I remember right, the head guy for the Promontory outfit is a former head of the FDIC, and the program will do what it says that it does.
In small midwestern towns (not cities), about $40K would get a decent, but not new, house. Of course, these are areas where housing valuation hasn't boomed like it has on the coasts.
If, however, you were looking at farmland, $40K will get you maybe 8 acres of good corn ground at best.
Google listing of pictures of piles of corn
We're so efficient at growing corn, our problem is getting it out of the midwest. Because of this, we "grow" piles of corn during the fall until it can be shipped to market for its end use.
For corn, much of the improvements have come in the genetics of the seed (hybridization in the 50's and gmo's now) and in the application of ag chemicals for fertilizer and pest control. This year, the USDA is estimating that corn yields will be in the 150 bushels per acre range (but that might be a bit high).
The pilot plant depended upon the raw material (turkey carcasses) being free (and thus implying that there was no market for them). It turns out that those carcasses did have a market so the plant had to purchase their raw materials and that raised the cost of their production.
The trick is to use a raw material on the way to the landfill - one that has no market so that you _can_ get it for free.
Yes, you'd be rich beyond Bill Gates if you invented a storage system capable of fairly extreme temperatures, yet costs a mere $1 per kw/hour and lasts for decades. Current storage runs around $50 per kwh of capacity and only lasts ~3 years. This is also what has made electric cars uneconomic. We have the motor, we have the generation, we just don't have a good method for storage.
We're from Iowa and we're here to help you - Iowa WindPower Storage. I wish I could find a better link, but didn't have a great deal of time.
Then they do need the SSN.
They don't need your SSN to compare you to the list - just your name.
But if you were paying more than $10,000 cash for a vehicle, that might trigger a CTR (not sure if that's a requirement for car dealers though), in which case they do need your SSN.
He's still on there because the estate hasn't closed yet.
Cattle do just fine with distillers grains - the leavings after ethanol is made. Hogs and poultry don't - they like corn.
I think that we may see a shift in the production of livestock in the United States. Much of the existing beef production takes place outside of Iowa, while much of the ethanol production takes place within the state. Iowa is also a major producer of pork - I expect that many of those operations will switch to feeding out cattle instead of hogs - especially if they can get distillers grains at a decent price compared to the corn that hogs require.
This is absolutely true.
I have - in Minnesota. I've seen none in Iowa.
Not the Greys. The Pak