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Archives for March 2009

Getting Intentional with my Cloud Watching: Cloud Computing Expo, NY March 30 & 31

March 16, 2009 By brenda michelson

Last month, I spoke of how, despite my best intentions, I found myself cloud watching; and shared my cloud watching plan:

1.  Cloud watch with the lens of an enterprise architect type practicing business-driven architecture.
2. Share information and observations on selected (#1) cloud computing developments and activities.
3. Highlight interesting, relevant (#1) works of the cloud computing community — providers, consumers and consortia.
4. Add to the conversation, but not engage in "
yet another" syndrome. (No "What is Cloud Computing" piece from me)

Since then, I’ve had some interesting conversations with cloud computing providers, consumers and some individuals who fall in both categories.  I imagine the latter will become quite common.

Next on my agenda is a trip to the Cloud Computing Expo in NY.  I’ll be attending Monday and Tuesday, and wifi willing, plan to do some live blogging.

If you are planning to attend the Cloud Computing Expo and want to connect, or bribe me to cover your session (strong black coffee please), drop me an email, or ping me on Twitter.

In the meantime, I’ll be preparing for and running a “SOA All-star” SOA Consortium meeting in DC.

Filed Under: circuit, cloud computing

Economist Tech Quarterly: Fueling your morning and commute with coffee

March 11, 2009 By brenda michelson

As you probably gathered from the title, although this post is technology related, it is definitely off-topic.  However, I found the article interesting, and thought others might as well.  Plus, my brother (an engineering geek) stops by occasionally, so if nothing else, this one is reward for slogging through posts littered with “tech acronym du jour”.

And yes, I did the math.  1 gallon of coffee ground derived biodiesel requires the consumption of 50lbs, approximately 2,250 cups of coffee.  So, if you see a major uptick in my writing output, accompanied by jittery speech, you know I’m doing my part in the “beaning of America”. 

Without (even) further ado, what follows are excerpts from Fuelled by coffee, in the most recent Economist Technology Quarterly.

The basics:

“In the case of coffee, the biodiesel is made from the leftover grounds, which would otherwise be thrown away or used as compost. Narasimharao Kondamudi, Susanta Mohapatra and Manoranjan Misra of the University of Nevada at Reno have found that coffee grounds can yield 10-15% of biodiesel by weight relatively easily. And when burned in an engine the fuel does not have an offensive smell—just a whiff of coffee. (Some biodiesels made from used cooking-oil produce exhaust that smells like a fast-food joint.) And after the diesel has been extracted, the coffee grounds can still be used for compost.”

The accidental discovery:

“The researchers’ work began two years ago when Dr Misra, a heavy coffee drinker, left a cup unfinished and noticed the next day that the coffee was covered by a film of oil. Since he was investigating biofuels, he enlisted his colleagues to look at coffee’s potential.”

Advantages beyond aroma:

“The researchers found that coffee biodiesel is comparable to the best biodiesels on the market. But unlike biodiesels based on soya or other plants, it does not divert crops or land from food production into fuel production.

A further advantage is that unmodified oils from plants, like the peanut oil used by Diesel in the 19th century, have high viscosity and require engine alterations. Diesel derived from coffee is less thick and can usually be burned in an engine with little or no tinkering.”

The math (why we won’t be doing this at home):

“Although some people make their own diesel at home from leftovers and recycled cooking oil, coffee-based biodiesel seems better suited to larger-scale processes. Dr Misra says that a litre of biodiesel requires 5-7kg of coffee grounds, depending on the oil content of the coffee in question. In their laboratory his team has set up a one-gallon-a-day production facility, which uses between 19kg and 26kg of coffee grounds. The biofuel should cost about $1 per gallon to make in a medium-sized installation, the researchers estimate.

Commercial production could be carried out by a company that collected coffee grounds from big coffee-chains and cafeterias. There is plenty available: according to a report by the United States Department of Agriculture, more than 7m tonnes of coffee are consumed every year, which the researchers estimate could produce some 340m gallons of biodiesel.”

If you found this interesting, check out the full article and the reader comments.

Filed Under: innovation, sustainability

Federal CIO appointment, enterprise architecture and innovating / improving via technology

March 5, 2009 By brenda michelson

By now, you’ve probably heard that Vivek Kundra has been appointed Federal Chief Information Officer (CIO) at the White House.  I don’t know Mr. Kundra, but I’ve seen nothing but positive reaction from those who do.

What I find interesting is the responsibility of enterprise architecture as described in the press release:

“The Federal Chief Information Officer directs the policy and strategic planning of federal information technology investments and is responsible for oversight of federal technology spending.  The Federal CIO establishes and oversees enterprise architecture to ensure system interoperability and information sharing and ensure information security and privacy across the federal government. The CIO will also work closely with the Chief Technology Officer to advance the President’s technology agenda.”

The next paragraph continues with the CIO’s business mission:

“President Obama said, “Vivek Kundra will bring a depth of experience in the technology arena and a commitment to lowering the cost of government operations to this position.  I have directed him to work to ensure that we are using the spirit of American innovation and the power of technology to improve performance and lower the cost of government operations. As Chief Information Officer, he will play a key role in making sure our government is running in the most secure, open, and efficient way possible.””

Now, my question is, doesn’t (shouldn’t) enterprise architecture also contribute to “American innovation” and using “the power of technology to improve performance and lower the cost of government operations.”?

Is this delineation of enterprise architecture and chief technology office restricted to US government IT?  Or, is it starting to crop up in corporate IT as well?

What do you think? Is this delineation a good thing?  Or, do you find it troublesome? 

Filed Under: business-driven architecture, business-technology, enterprise architecture

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Brenda M. Michelson

Brenda Michelson

Technology Architect.

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