My Alma Mater True by Tony Green

I was reading an article on line about the comedian/actor Bill Cosby being honored by at John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for Mark Twain Prize for American Humor which is the nation’s top humor prize. In the article it was mentioned that his high school alma mater will be played at the ceremony by an orchestra conducted by James DePriest who also is an alumnus of Mr. Cosby’s high school.
The irony was that most people not even remember the name of their high school other than who that went on their senior prom. The pride of being an alumnus of an institute of learning is normally reserved for undergraduate collegiate and graduate programs.
In this case, Mr. Cosby’s high school is no ordinary high school. Central High, located at the intersections of Olney and Ogontz Avenues in Philadelphia, boosts one the nation’s finest academic reputations for a high school. Many of its alumni have gone on to become lawyers, doctors and engineers. 98% of its graduates attend college. Formerly an all male institution, the admission of women in 1985 has only solidified Central’s place among the academic elite high schools in the U.S.
Even more astounding was the fact that Mr. Cosby did not graduate from Central yet he holds the school in such high regard. Mr. Cosby left Central after his sophomore year and eventually graduating from Germantown High School. After Germantown he matriculated at Temple University where he was selected for the I-Spy television series with Robert Culp and the rest, as we say, was history.
Why? Because Central High is a very special place that is dear in the hearts of all of the graduates that have spread out far and wide in their various endeavors. Central High prepared me well college and for life. Maybe it has helped Mr. Cosby achieve all of the success he has.
From that, I guess you can imagine where I went to high school.

Biofuel, where are you? by Tony Green

According to the 2009 Clean Energy Trends report on Cleantrends.com the top three types of alternative energy in regards to investment are wind, solar, and bio-fuels (Ethanol and biodiesel). Global revenue expanded from 78.5 billion in 2007 to 115.9 billion in 2008.

I found this interesting because over the past few months I have stumbled upon many stories in the off and on line media about solar and wind power.

For instance, the oil tycoon Boone Pickens is a big proponent of wind power and how this power source can reduce our dependency on foreign oil. Solar power is being promoted as the latest great technology as the Solar PV market recent passed the 4 GW point in terms of global installations. Many news stories have been written about the bright future of the solar panel industry.

A shortage of stories seems to exist about the bio-fuel industry in general and more specifically bio-fuels companies. Example most people can point out who are the large wind turbine manufactures are and who the dominant solar companies, however, there is a small amount of publicity of the bio fuel outside of the clean energy family.

The market numbers as reported in the 2009 Clean Trends report indicate the market for bio-fuels was larger than solar. The market value in 2008 for wind power was 51 billion dollars, 28 billion dollars for solar, and finally, 34 billion dollars for bio-fuel.

I suspect that the coverage of bio-fuel may increase as the result of the stimulus bill and private investment into bio-fuels which many drive enough bio-fuel facilities, particularly ethanol, to produce enough volume to begin to factor into the overall renewable energy picture.

Only then will the bio-fuels industry take its rightful place alongside the other technologies as drivers of the upcoming clean economy. You heard it here first.

Image courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy Genome Programs at http://genomics.energy.gov.

Dam the price of gasoline by Tony Green

Throughout my adult life I have been driving automobiles and purchasing gasoline. The price of gas fluctuated a great deal and this was tied, in large part, in the cost of crude oil.

I am also aware that the U.S. controls large reserves of oil which are stored in the event of an emergency if the flow of oil is stopped for any significant amount of time. In theory this cushion should smooth any gaps in supply and keep prices stable.

So why do gas prices fluctuate the way they do? Not only does the price vary by season but pricing varies in different portions of the country outside of if you chose to purchase regular, or premium. It is the same gas? After doing a little research the basic breakdown gasoline costs is, not surprisingly, about half of the price at the pump is due to the expense of crude oil.

County and local taxes account for almost another quarter of the total charge. The variability of these taxes from state to state is responsible to a large degree for the regional variation in the price of gas. The costs to refine the crude oil and profits account for another 17%. Distribution, marketing, retail dealer costs and markup make up the final another 10%.

Some retail outlets are owned and operated by refiners, while others are independent. These businesses purchase gasoline from refiners and marketers for resale to the public. The price at the pump includes the retailer’s cost to purchase the finished gasoline and the costs of operating the service station, local market conditions and the factors.

Price fluctuations will still exist based on demand and other factors. In addition some of these spikes will be drastic and will effect on the finances of many people. Yet as we need to get around and live life we will need to pay the money. So why don’t we all purchase hybrid/electric cars and be done with it?

Marketing My Career by Tony Green

Every professional should create a plan for marketing their careers. The plan does not need to written down all of the time, however, at minimum a mental game-plan should exist for getting the most out of your talents.

One of the best guides I have come across on how to market yourself is book called “Marketing your Career” by Linda Popky. One of the strengths was it used all of key words involved in marketing services and products among them positioning, differentiation, branding, and value proposition and deftly applied them to the ultimate product in everyone’s mind … you.

Linda was gracious enough to conduct a workshop on the topic while I was the V.P. of Workshops at the Silicon Valley American Marketing Association. (SVAMA)

Periodically, I re-read the book to ensure I am doing the things required to make certain I maximize my chances to having the most successful and lucrative career possible. In many careers including sales and management one often gets occupied in the day to day job requirements which accompany these types of positions.

It is easy to lose course of the overall picture of your desired overall professional destination. Case in point, I neglected reviewing my plan since I started my new position over a year ago. I am overdue for another review of Linda’s Book.

If you need guidance to your professional plan the following link to the website should set you in the right direction. http://www.woodsidebusinesspress.com/

The expense of time and money will be well worth your time if you are thinking about marketing yourself and your career.

My 40th birthday by Tony Green

My 40th birthday came and went a few weeks ago. The big 4-0. Many people asked if I feared turning 40. In short, being forty years ago is simply more justification that life moves along. Let’s take a glance at my life on the anniversary of my birthday in ten years intervals from today.

My preoccupation forty years ago involved my birth. On a clear evening my mom gave birth to my brother and me at the University of Pennsylvania hospital in Philadelphia. Unfortunately, I do not recall much from that evening :)

30 years ago I was a fifth grader at Lansdowne Friends School in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania which is outside of Philadelphia. I recall I started being interested in girls, of course, I had no idea where to start.

20 years ago I was matriculating at the University of Delaware as a Chemical Engineering undergraduate student. Like many college students who went to Delaware in those days, opportunities to party seemed to never subside. I was not of legal drinking age for the bars but I remember vividly partaking and having a good time. Moreover, I do remember many late nights which resulted in hangovers in the morning. In summary, the focus of my efforts did not center on my studies as much it should.

10 years ago in the later portions of my service in the U.S. Navy. I had been married for about a year and my son would be born in less than two weeks time. My memory does not recall what occurred on this particular day but since almost 300 days of the year either at sea or on-duty I am sure I spent my birthday on the submarine in one way or another.

All told, my life has been an interesting trip through the decades when I sit back and reflect. I do not believe appear to be 40 years of age. Assuming my life expectancy is 80 years then I am only half way through. ;) Where will I be ten years from now? Let’s worry about age fifty when the time comes.