Stick a Fork in 2009

Forget it. 2009 is toast. It's done. Stick a fork in it. There's no way EEStor is going to announce something we've all been waiting for in the next couple days.

Now, 2010, that's a different eestory.



Until then, cue the 2009 Skeptics Ball Celebration Dance Music. Distribute the carbonated apple juice and let's get funky.


NEWSFLASH!: let's go LIVE now, to a tent set up on a vacant lot in Cedar Park, TX. Sources tell me they have just begun a new dance called, "The Magical EESU Is Still Not Here, Mr. Weir." Let's see the footage:



Pretty good dancing there. I could get into that music...sort of funky, no? Tough on the knees though. Impressive. So any way, Dick Weir!, I want those friggin batteries, sir! Let's get them charged up and out on the road, please, and sometime well before every many woman and child in the Middle East is a multi-millionaire! THANK YOU! (no, i havent forgotten about you Canadian Oilers--you're just not good dancers).

EEStor's Weir Delivers in 09

Not those Weirs. This one. EEStor Board of Director, Greg Weir, who is Senior Manager of Dell Precision Workstations at Dell has helped to unveil "the World's Most Powerful Mobile Workstation" as noted in a Press Release from December 1, 2009. According to Weir,

"The Dell Precision M6500 establishes a new class of mobile workstation for the most demanding computing environments. This system is truly a desktop replacement without compromise. In addition, we’re leveraging our robust ‘eco system’ of partners to deliver the performance users require running applications in key vertical markets such as 3D animation, Computer Aided Design (CAD), engineering, and scientific exploration, defense visualization and other computationally intensive applications.”

These workstations have an overall energy density of 0 kWh so they can not be used as batteries. No word on whether they will be field upgradeable for future expansion with a 15kWh EESU.

Will any other Weirs have rollout plans for December 2009? Yes, at least one other. Betty Weir plans to rollout another elegant Christmas Dinner as she's done for years. Full menu details are covered by NDA but the Turkey cooks in about 13.5 seconds -- it's placed in between two 15kWH EESU's. I'm told this cooking method yields "a turkey that does not need to be sliced with the consistency of mashed potatoes." Yummy.

GM Comment Offers Mixed Signals

I spoke to GM-Volt.com's Dr. Lyle Dennis for the first time this past Friday. We compared notes with each other on our latest story leads and talked a great deal about EEStor. Dennis is hooked into GM and from his latest blog post, you can see that he does inquire periodically as to whether or not anything from EEStor is trickling up to GM. It doesn't appear to amount to much yet. But there may be more coming. But that's not my story. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, here's an excerpt from the GM Volt article:

"I often mention EEStor to GM executives when I get the chance. I recently asked Volt vehicle line chief Tony Posawatz what he knows about EEStor.

“I have heard a little bit,” he said. “Certainly the press releases are interesting, it causes you to take note and follow it.”

“The guys involved in it certainly aren’t a fly by night operation,” he noted. “Still some of the claims, knowing what I know, are way out there.”

-------

Is he referring to EEStor only or including in his assessment Zenn Motor Company?

Image Source: autoblog.com

EEStor Believer Video

Sages Clifford, Weir and Nelson, praise be their name! :-)

Will USEE EESU in 2009? Probably Not....

Take a good long look at this calendar. Do you see the number 10 on the second row? That's TODAY. That means there are only 3 weeks left in THE YEAR 2009. Look at those weeks and think back to what occurs in December every year. That's right, Christmas and some other religious celebrations I won't enumerate. Yes, it's true there's something called "Wright Brother's Day," on December 17 but what I am driving at is if you are expecting an EESU to drop in 2009, you should probably scale back your expectations.

Based on what's left with this calendar in terms of time this month, I just see a rapidly shrinking window of opportunity for a company like EEStor to make any announcements, not if they want to maximize exposure. My feeling is if EEStor hasn't announced anything BY NOW then they aren't likely to announce anything IN DECEMBER, ie, THIS YEAR.

Oh sure, there's tons more chatter this year surrounding EEStor about the possibility of they will be delivering an EESU to LightEVS and Zenn Motor Company, but don't let yourself get carried away. After all it's December 10th, 2009 and the holidays are upon us.



So, be of good cheer. Relax your expectations based solely on the remaining time of the year. And figure out how you can focus on the holidays and enjoy them without an EESU under the tree.

If it helps you, you can picture what is very likely true: EEStor is working feverishly to get working, testable pre-production units to LightEVs and Zenn in 2009. But just don't let yourself believe they are going to make it! OK? Are you following me? They have the power electronics. They have likely completed component testing. And they are very likely running tests on a completed EESU in preparation for allowing an outside party to test it. But there are many many moving parts....not the least of which is coordinating with partners Lockheed Martin and Zenn Motor Company about messaging, timing, wording, etc. All of this could be complicated by hitherto unannounced new partner/s in the mix. If you knew all hell was going to break lose, wouldn't you be building a modern day Noah's communcations Ark and running it through the matrix, making a list, checking it twice? All almost certainly happening as you read this.



Stop it. You're imagining something happening this month again. I'm seriously telling you to not get your hopes up. OK? LightEVs may have a plan to test their 2x2x8 in. EESU upon receipt and to trot it out before several interested bike manufacturers not including Segway, but a plan does not equate to a scheduled reality. Zenn Motor Company may have plans to announce Zennergy Drive progress shortly after EEStor makes an announcement. But these are all plans and you mustn't get carried away with the belief that any of it will happen this month. So, for example, if you had targeted specific days in the future like December 17/21, 2009 as maybe a day for launch, just set it aside already. Not likely to happen.



What about the skeptics? Well, if they have a plan for December, I would encourage them to go ahead and commence it at this time if they accept the logic of this blog post, that there's too little time for EEStor to make a substantive announcement in December, ergo, it's not going to happen in December. I think they should go ahead and declare victory. So, commence with all the "I told you so's" and "believers are irrational" and Charlie Brown's Great Pumpkin, (scroll to 4:34) etc etc. All the regular stuff we've heard before just more of it and louder given the late date.

Does this mean the blog is shut down for December? Yeah, sure it is.

MUAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!!!!!!


HO HO HO!!!

Polarity Ships Units to EEStor

Some time in the next one to two weeks, Polarity Inc. of Rancho Cordova, CA will update their website with information about their completed work for EEStor/Zenn, according to Polarity owner Wade Goins. Speaking via phone, Goins provided this update:

"We've had some dialogue with Zenn and with EEStor. We've also shipped some things that we'd like to discuss. But we want to make sure it's ok to do that from all parties."

To handle communications for Polarity, Goins hired an outside PR consultant named Greg Jones of Jones PR. According to Goins, Jones PR will manage the "campaign" and "December looks like it should be a pretty good month to discuss what we've done." Is Goins happy with everything he's worked on so far?

"We're happy on our side. We build all types of DC to DC converters & inverters. Our stuff works. We're waiting for the holy grail which is the capacitor. "

For those keeping score with EEStor's EESU development, place a check mark next to power electronics.

____Powder Purity

____Material Permittivity

____Component Testing

____Power Electronics

Do USEE EESU yet? (phrase used without permission)

More info from Polarity when it becomes available....

UPDATE: Speaking with Greg Jones this morning, he wanted to stress that Polarity's interest in working with a PR consultant is not merely for the EEStor work but rather to assist with all of Polarity's endeavors.

Astonishing EEStor News!?!

Before we all get carried away with what could be astonishing EEStor news, it's important to calm the soul, slow down and peer into the wider significance of reality, your life and the universe around you. It's said that 25% of the Earth's inhabitants do not enjoy the use of electricity. Ergo, there are almost literally worlds amid our world which struggle with a great many things we take for granted. Our comfort and the human suffering around the world represent an unignorable lack of balance, one that we are fortunate to have had attacked by heroes who declare the status quo unacceptable.

Until we join these individuals on the higher plain, our own personal lives will very likely mirror the various imbalances in our world. That is, our attempts to satisfy our multitude of greedy desires will invariably lead to lonely, hollow illusions of human fulfillment. The real opportunity is to attack human suffering in order to win one's own humanity.

From it's inception, this blog has been dedicated to the memory of Fr. Angelo D'Agostino, founder of Nyumbani. (It's not a monument or even a church, but then again, D'Agostino has not yet been canonized so relax a little.) :-) After almost 3 years, that dedication seems fitting because EEStor represents a truth not unlike that of ridding Africa of the scourge of AIDS at least insofar as the founding vision is concerned. Granted, in wildly different realms, Nyumbani and EEStor set out to accomplish what is widely considered impossible. Nyumbani attacks human apathy with a goal to normalize & nurture the lives of children who have lost their parents to AIDS. EEStor attacks scientific hubris with a goal to create something extremely useful before giving in to the desire to explain how it is even possible, thereby jeopardizing how it is used and by whom. Does the anology feel stretched a bit? Never mind.

Even if the above reflection has no resonance for you, I felt it important to provide a bit more information about Nyumbani. So I reached out to the succesor of Fr. D'Agostino, a kind soul by the name of Sr. Mary Owens. Hopefully, it will provide additional information for why I support this great charity.

----------------------------------------------------

Dear B,

Greetings from Nyumbani.

See answers to your questions under each question.

I would have appreciated more info about who you are.
Blessings,

Sister Mary

[B's Note: Even charitable people wonder who. ;-) ]



B wrote:

Dear Sr. Mary,

I met Fr. D'Ag in the Washington DC area a few years ago and have been giving my support to Nyumbani ever since. I hope you are doing well.
I would like to write an article about Nyumbani for a blog I maintain. I was hoping you might be so kind as to answer a few questions for the article.
1) Are donations to Nyumbani accounted for in a transparent way? How can one be sure funds are used in an effective manner?

All donations are receipted and our accounts are audited by one of the leading world audit firms

2) What is the most pressing need of your organization at this time of December 2009?

We look to Christmas to receive gifts of food, household items, cash donations which help us in the running of Nyumbani Children's Home which depends entirely on donors

3) In the newsletters, I think I've seen mention of some use of renewable energy in the village. Can you share a few thoughts about how that is working? How did you come into it and are there plans to grow it? (I ask about this because my blog is devoted largely to the discussion of renewable energy)

We are growing both jatropha and castor. It was Fr. D'Agostino's dream to run our machines and vehicles on biofuel. Jatropha is taking time to adapt to the environment so we have not harvested seeds yet. We have harvested castor seeds and, because the quantity is still small, have sold as seeds, i.e., we are not yet extracting the oil for use in the Village

4) Can you share a story or two about individuals who benefitted from the services Nyumbani provides?

Our first graduate from Nyumbani Home, Dennis, having acquired a job, moved into his own accommodation in September 2007. He had been with us since 1995.
A visit to Nyumbani Home these days is an experience of meeting happy, healthy children running or cycling around, playing sport, reading in the library or relaxing in their home - totally different from a visit in the 90s when you would see children at varying stages of diminishment and when 1 to 2 would die each month

5) Do you think Fr. D'Ag is a saint? Is he helping out from up above? Any stories you can share in this regard?

Fr. D'Agostino was a good man. I believe that all good people are saints. In addition, he still inspires people - a fruit of a good life. I believe too that he intercedes for us with God.

If your charity is successful, what does it look like 10-25yrs from now?

We shall be out of business since, by then, virtually no child will be born with the virus.

Best Regards,

B


http://nyumbani.org/

Fr. Angelo D'Agostino and Sr. Mary Owens

Carl Nelson & Nobel Prize Winner William N. Lipscomb

I've written previously about how EEStor's Carl Nelson worked with world materials pioneer Arthur Von Hippel. Thanks to EEStory user BigMig, it's now been brought to my attention that Carl Nelson also utilized some notes provided to him by Harvard University's William N. Lipscomb in his 1964 Laboratory of Insulation Research government sponsored research paper.

Lipscomb won the 1976 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, something that escaped by notice. Thanks BigMig!

In any case, just an interesting connection to note.

Photo is of William Lipscomb!

Top Lockheed Martin Energy Execs Lack EEStor Poker Face

Today at the National Press Club, Lockheed Martin held a hastily thrown together press conference to lay out it's vision for it's future in energy. Unfortunately, talking about EEStor was not on the agenda. However, thanks to a gutsy anonymous blogger, we have one hell of a post-event interview whereupon two of Lockheed's senior most executives demonstrate REAL TROUBLE hiding their enthusiasm about EEStor.

Additionally, the vast majority of questions submitted online during the web conference were on the topic of EEStor. Hello, Lockheed? Inquiring minds want to know. Get your game plan together already. Geeze.

Draw your own conclusions. Important: doubleclick on the video below so you can see it in full screen. Blogspot is clipping off the side.

Key take aways from the interviews:

1) Lockheed Martin Execs smile when you ask them about EEStor

2) They have trouble wiping the smile off their faces once they start smiling

3) The slightest hint of an EEStor concept brings the smile back

4) Why are they so happy?

5) What do they know?

6) Are you still reading this list?

7) Go to bed.

8) Now.

9) I mean it.

10) No, I am not the one who captured the video. ;-)

Here is a link to the webcast briefing for replays of Lockheed's Briefing. Here is a more legitimate

article covering what Lockheed actually wanted to talk about.

Darryl Siry on DOE

Darryl Siry's latest article is mandatory reading for anyone following the manner in which stimulus funding and in particular, Department of Energy funding is being allocated to private companies as of late. He makes the simple point that when the federal government begins injecting funds into particular markets (such as with the pot of gold Fisker/Tesla have drawn funds), it has the counter effect of reducing private investment in that space since the competitors chosen by the government obtain such an enormous advantage over all others.

This is a very relevant point that has wider application to discussions across all of the current stimulus funding that's being handed out these days. It's the sort of point that should give everyone involved pause and hopefully consider whether or not picking individual companies is really the best way to stimulate the economy and even usher in newer modes of energy use that many who read this blog so strongly desire.

Personally, I advocate tax credits that reward technological advances. Instead of Cash for Clunkers or Cash for Caulkers, make the credits reward innovation and technological success: Cash for Batteries Whose Energy Density Is 52kWh has a nice ring to it. Cash for Solar Panels that cost less than ____per kW. Cash for Wind Turbines that cost less than _____ per kW. Etc Etc. Cash for States that Resolve Distribution Line Right of Way Issues Before X July 2010, etc etc.

It's a simple tweak but what it does is cause more private investment, more competition and thus more jobs. Just handing out funds to a few companies who hire lobbyists and former government office holders (Al Gore) to promote a particular company to their former colleagues (Cathy Zoi) is not the best way forward if the goal is to stimulate the economy and create jobs. In fact, as Siry points out succinctly, it's probably counterproductive.

So, that brings us back to a question I've been asking (all alone apparently) and that is, how is it exactly that the Department of Energy is going about selecting the promising companies/technologies in which to invest? How many who have received stimulus funds have also hired lobbyists?

Stanford MBAs Fail to Ask EEStor Question

A group of Stanford University MBA hopefuls gathered together recently to waste each other's time by asking a collection of run of the mill dumb questions at a Kleiner Perkins & John Doerr presentation. From what I can tell by skimming through the video, no one at Stanford has any sense at all. Ok, there was a tiny bit of common sense in the crowd but it was starved for oxygen. So, non Stanford alums, walk tall today because you saved quite a bit on your education and are probably in much better shape as a result.

Yes, it is necessary to be critical of smart people who have an opportunity to ask smart questions but fail to do so! Had "the EEStor question" been asked, we might be in a more tolerating mood this great Monday morning! Now, let's show our Stanford friends how we get down to business.

Skip to 12:00 and examine the Green Fund Portfolio which includes the "stealth capacitor" investment. MUHAHAHAAHAH!!

We know who the stealth capacitor company is. One of the stealth battery companies is Fortu. Not sure about the stealth battery company and the stealth vehicle company.

A stealth vehicle company? V-Vehicle? Can't be them because they are out of stealth unless you are suggesting Kleiner partners are too lazy to update their powerpoint slides.

Special thanks to an alert reader who sent this video to me!

CIA Says It Can Talk about EEStor Founders But Would Also Have to Kill You

A recent FOIA request was submitted by EEStory user RT in an attempt to learn about the existence of any documents related to past work performed by Carl Nelson or Dick Weir on behalf of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. If you recall, in the recent leaked audio, Dick Weir mentioned the following:

At TRW I invented the chip that went into Deep Space ... I worked for the CIA for Scientific Initiative. They needed a ultra high frequency channel. They came and recruited me. I invented that channel for them.

To respond to the FOIA, the CIA issued a Glomar Response which, as with past cases, always raises interesting questions about the implications of such a response. What does it mean? What does it imply?

Only you can decide!

Note: Here is the full FOIA document.

Thanks to RT for the info!

Climate Research Unit Emails Hacked: What about their internal conversations?

Far too much attention has been given to these hacked emails passed between scientists working at Britain's Climate Research Unit. Many are drawing unreasonable conclusions about whether or not these scientists have colluded to falsify important climate change data. I for one would like to call a halt to all of this speculation based on these emails which can so easily be taken out of context and misinterpreted by neanderthal religious types for nefarious purposes!!!

Instead, I propose all of the discussion re-focus on actual conversations a few of these same scientists had recently which, yours truly, the EEStor blogger, has personally intercepted and which I will now make available for your consideration. These are actual conversations as I imagine they probably occurred.

Scene: Office Kitchen Area.

Phil Jones: Hey mates. Did you remember to delete your emails?

Ben Santer: Sure did and wow, mate, it's getting so hot lately. Don't you agree?

PJ: Yes yes of course. And you Master Tom?

Tom Wigley: Lord Phil, I deleted all of my email and all of the latest data we've got coming in from all of the probes around the world. I mean ALL the probes, mate.

PJ: Nice show old chap! Really, all of the data from the probes too? Good GAWD, Al F&%ing Gore is going to bleeding love you mate! I love you! Nice pants, by the way.

TW: Oh definitely every probe. And I do like the new pair too. Had to buy new because some tosser and I scrapped at the last conference over some graphs he presented. I love them.

PJ: Fantastic. Now listen mates. We've got to keep cool on the raw data.

BS: The Climate data?

PJ: No....no.

TW: The sensor data?

PJ: No, no, you idiots...THE DATA!

[two guys shrug]

PJ: The F&*^%&*ing Investment data you twits!!!

[two goofy guys nod understandingly]

PJ: No more checking your investment portfolios from work! And please stop calling all of those greentech VC companies from your offices! Buy a f*$&%ing private cellphone, mates!

----

Update on EEStor Expansion

Based on Lyle Dennis's lazy reporting yesterday, I was forced to call up Cedar Park's Phil Brewer this morning and ask for clarification of his remarks from yesterday. (I'm just kidding Lyle! :-) ) While he acknowledged his quote from yesterday, I pointed out to him the permit of occupancy provided in September and he acknowledged he was unaware of it.

"Well ok. My mistake. Everything doesn't go through my office when it comes to issuing permits. I was mistaken when I said that then. "

Thank you, Mr. Brewer.

Please note, it must be hell on people like Brewer to have to deal with this internet circus that is following EEStor. He's been extremely patient under the circumstances which I greatly appreciate.

Another Day, Another Puff Piece about the Department of Energy

It's a sad day for Journalism. Despite the fact that the USA is experiencing an unprecedented increase in federal government spending as part of a stimulus program, there are no worthy investigative reporters doing ANYTHING AT ALL to tell the story.

Instead, in their infinite Wisdom, the jokers at the WashingtonPost have allowed the federal bureaucrats to write an article about what else? Bureaucrats. Who else could paint such a rosy picture of stimulus spending while quoting Cathy Zoi but not asking about Al Gore's White House lobbying effort recently disclosed?

In the article, Steven Chalk is quoted on the topic of stimulus spending. He says his team's motto is "Spend fast, but spend well." Oh really, Mr. Chalk? How do you go about spending well? What do the processes look like? Who makes the decisions? How are they made? How does your process handle disagreement? What are the key criteria for picking one proposal over another? How many of your choices have been made to firms who haven't made enormous recent campaign donations or spend millions on lobbying? What guidelines protect the American taxpayer from donations to venture capitalists?

EEStor Expands Cedar Park Offices

Thanks to alert TheEEStory.com forum participant, Jay, we now have reason to believe that EEStor is expanding their corporate HQ. According to a permit filed in August, 2009 and issued 8/25/09 to "EE Store, Inc" (sic) the office #110 with 2800 sq ft will be brought into the EEStor domain. Plenty of room for a pick n' place robot named B.

The new space is to the right of the existing EEStor offices (behind the small tree in the photo above).

To discuss this topic and come up with other names for EEStor's robots, visit TheEEStory.com.

If you have trouble with the link, google this: CO-09-03700 Should be 4th link down.

Secret EEStor Patents Not So Secret Any More

Thanks to what appears to possibly be a bit of a slip up on the part of the US Patent & Trademark office, we now know the descriptions of two additional EEStor patent applications. They are:

11/499594 Systems and methods for utility grid power averaging, long term uninterruptible power supply, power line isolation from noise and transients and intelligent power transfer on demand

11/45381 Methods of purifying barium nitrate aqueous solution

The slip up appears to be that the patent examiner did an intranet search on the USPTO network to locate all patents/applications whose inventor name is Richard Weir. He then published the search results to the file wrapper for patent application 11/400,875.

Oddly, these patents were filed before others that have already published which is odd. What is even odder is another patent filed at the same time, 11/400,875 is about to granted based on a recent issue letter. If that happens soon, it means we will have two patents filed at roughly the same time, where one has been granted and the other hasn't even been published yet!

Keep in mind, as I've stated previously, the normal process as I understand it is for a patent to publish 18 months after being filed unless the applicant makes a secrecy request, which would not be possible if World patents are filed. The other possibility is that EEStor's patents are under government secrecy protection.

For those keeping notes. The search was performed 6 August 2007.

Marine's B-day

Happy Birthday, United States Marine Corps! It's fitting to honor this day by recalling an example of why it is celebrated. Enjoy. Here's another.

In Obama Administration a Green Economy Means Lobbyist Interests Get Rich

Anyone familiar with the political connections of VC firm Kleiner Perkins, reasonably assumes that if they go after federal stimulus funds, they will likely get what they want. As we've seen with Fisker Automotive and Silver Spring Networks, Kleiner firms now have won over $1Bil from the Department of Energy or roughly the size of what others have reported to be Kleiner's entire investment in CleanTech. (can anyone say "break even?") But, before you conclude that Kleiner only needs to show up to win these funds, take a note of caution: it turns out that Kleiner Perkins is not the only politically connected CleanTech firm with it's hand out for DOE funds. That's right, even if Kleiner Perkins companies in some cases do not have to compete in a market to win these DOE funds, Kleiner Perkins the VC firm will have to compete for President Obama's money. I'm sorry, I mean Tax Payer Money! (how could I screw that up?)

Competitor #1 to Kleiner's complete domination of DOE stimulus funding: another VC firm called the US Renewable Energy Group. These are the guys that partnered with Cielo Wind Power and The Communist Party of China, I mean bankers in China, to put together a Texas Wind project. It might succeed because have a look at the team trying to pull home the funds (well, tax credits anyway). The US-Reg team reads like a Barak Obama grade school soccer team roster. "Kick it over here, Barak!" Does anyone formerly in politics do anything but seek federal funding any more? Depends on what Dick Cheney is up to these days I guess.

Before the Obama US Reg good ole boys get too celebratory though, they still face steep obstacles...not so much on the merit of their technology or program (a throwback to a market system we used to have) but rather on political momentum. First of all, they have Senator Charles Schumer on their back complaining about their prospects. Senator Schumer has received campaign contributions from Kleiner's John Doerr (to name at least one). So Schumer is upset but not enough to necessarily ding Fisker Automotive for having an investment from an Arab Company on their financial sheets. (google prior blogs about that or search SEC records--you won't find it in a newspaper).

Cathy Zoi & Al Gore

Assume for the moment that Schumer settles down and US-Reg has a fighting chance. Probably not going to happen even in that case because, Al Gore's former Alliance for Climate CEO, Cathy Zoi is the Department of Energy's treasurer of $20Bil in stimulus funds. That's with a B not an M, US-Reg.

Kleiner's John Doerr and the rest of Barak Obama's "outside" Economic Advisors

If you are Al Gore, you don't even have to lobby the DOE to get a buck or two. Why would you? Crazy talk. But the idiots over at the Wall Street Journal asked Gore about this any way. Let me summarize: Gore, did you lobby anyone in the administration for DOE funds? Nope. Ok, good enough. So, it's silly because everyone knows Gore's connections are so tight he doesn't need to lobby. In fact, even when Gore is lobbying for DOE funds it's not even really lobbying really. At least, that's what it seems like considering the recently released White House Visitor's log.

Kleiner's Gore has visited the White House 4 times in 2009 including one visit with Kate Brandt, who is a special assistant to Energy Czar, Carol Browner. Browner made the news recently when she announced several million dollars in DOE funding would go to Kleiner Perkins investment Silver Spring Networks for a project in Browner's home state (see beginning of article). So, you see, US-Reg and Al Gore fans, there's a bit of a but not much of a contest here. And that's good, because there might not even be a problem around which a competition can be organized if the new revelations around the supposedly better understood causes of global warming being tossed around now...causes which include less impact by CO2.

Carol Browner

In case any other Kleiner competitors are out there wondering about their prospects due to doubts raised by this article, there's additional information to show just how tight this little political team is today. I'm going to quote at length from a US News & World report interview of John Doerr:

Has the recession affected what you do?

The answer is profoundly. Were it not for the policies in the stimulus bill, America would be out of the energy business. The capital markets to fund new solar—the capital markets are terrible. What has happened is Congress has said, "We want to see this kind of work funded."

How so?

More secure Department of Energy loan guarantees. There is funding for R&D. I am very optimistic.

Are you optimistic about the long-run?

There has never been a time to be more optimistic than right now. Obama has put together the dream team to work on energy and energy policy. I'm really privileged to be on the outside advising them. If you look at the team, they've got Cathy Zoi [DOE assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy], they've got Matt Rogers [a former McKinsey executive and now senior adviser to Energy Secretary Steven Chu]. He's creating four investment banks within the Department of Energy—here's $80 billion we want to invest really wisely. There's Carol Browner in the White House. We've got leadership in Congress that understands these matters—Barbara Boxer, Nancy Pelosi. This is an A-Team.

You were tapped for the p resident's economic advisory board back in February. What has your role been?

I think this president has said he is not interested in being trapped inside the echo chamber of Washington, D.C. [Our goal] is to provide outside advice directly to him about what we can do to get our economy going. He's juggling a lot of balls at once. I think he's going to achieve his agenda. I think he's going to make sure this isn't a jobless recovery. I am an American, a grateful kid from St. Louis, and I think we've all got a responsibility to the generations to come to ensure that America is a leader for the planet.

Which brings me back to batteries. Regardlesss of whether or not the Earth is warming and it's caused by humans, the United States needs better energy storage to kick the foreign oil habit. Unproven electric vehicle programs aren't going to get us there. Only better batteries. Yawn.

Photos are linked to original sources.


Note: many people who read an article like this ask, "How much does that cost?" If you're really truly cynical and you discount all human effort outside of pure money changing hands (which is incalculable unless you go by lobbyist fees), then the figure for $1bil in funding may be around $2Mil. At least, that's how one might read the Wall Street Journal's numbers. I'm not cynical like you though.

GO EESTOR!!!

EEStor's Carl Nelson Flexes Muscles

EEStor's 80 Yr Old Carl Nelson after a recent workout. (accuracy of photo not guaranteed)

Thanks to an alert tavern owner in Thailand known only as Mark, we learned yesterday that EEStor's principle co-inventor, Carl Nelson, former colleague of MIT's Arthur Von Hippel, is busy battling away with the United States Patent & Trademark office for EEStor's claims. In a letter dated November 6, 2009, Nelson continues to press for the EEStor discovery of "a primary particle having an unexpectedly high relevative permittivity with low variance within the temperature range of -55C and 125C and having desirable breakdown voltage above and beyond what those idiots like Y_Po and EE-Tom think it should be." Elsewhere, Nelson states that the "primary particles of composition modified barium titanate [have a] dielectric constant of greater than 33,000 and high break down voltagae of greater than 6000V. Or in other words, plenty of power to kick any other capacitor's ass. Bring it."

In a rare follow up interview, Nelson reflected on EEStor's relative strength and power in relation to all other would be competitors, "as far as energy storage is concerned, it's us vs a bunch of puny 12yr old boys. We will dominate the world with our genuinely ULTRA capacitors and enjoy life feasting on our victory." (editor's note: accuracy of quote similar to photo).

So, there you have it. Carl Nelson, getting a bit feisty and flexing his muscles. What else would you expect the co-inventor of the 21st century's greatest technological wonder?

Note: the photo and silly quotes are not real.

Is Al Gore lying to Charlie Rose about Energy Storage?

Charlie Rose is a sort of journalist well known for his interviews of interesting people. He recently interviewed Al Gore on November 4, 2009. This is interesting to eestorians because Charlie Rose is a limited partner at Kleiner Perkins. That means he gives his money to Kleiner partners who then invest it in companies like EEStor. As we know from SEC records, Kleiner invested $3mil in EEStor. Based on the valuation of Zenn Motor Company and Dick Weir's statement that KPCB owns "twenty something percent" of EEStor, that $3Mil is now worth $300Mil even before EEStor has revealed 3rd party validation of their claims. That is a 100X return on investment and if you own shares in a Kleiner fund, you may have access to information about investments that show that much progress. Based on how Kleiner loves to tout it's success, it's very likely you do have access to that information, if you are an investor like Charlie Rose. Naturally, any time you talk with one of the key partners, you might want to inquire how your dollars are performing with that stupendous return they keep mentioning when asking you for further investment in new funds. (can you imagine looking at the EEStor returns to date and having Kleiner report something like 'Oh, that? You won't have access to any of it. We made such a silly mistake there. Every time

I'm asked about that, I wish I could find a bag for my head.' Yeah right!)

Enter the interview with Al Gore.

As you see in the above youtube video, Al Gore starts pontificating about solar technology and then abruptly turns to the "extremely important" topic of energy storage. Rose then inquires not about where we are in terms of energy storage development but rather, oddly, about "where are we in terms of dramatic developments in battery capacity?" Such wording makes one want to ask Charlie Rose the same question. Also, notice specifically, how Rose's eyes glare into Gore when he asks the question much as they do when Rose is sipping coffee in his lovely garden on weekend mornings while he thumbs through his financial statements which document what makes his lavish lifestyle possible. (emphasis mine--focus on the glare of truth on Rose's face, almost like if laser beams were x-raying Gore to see what brand of underwear he has on or if it

it made of hemp).

Gore's response is not quick because he is likely hearing the echo of John Doerr saying, "if we bring you on, you can't spill the beans, man." The pace of his voice slows initially--happy he

caught himself.... exactly like someone keeping a secret. Then, we have unusual body gyrations similar to shifting in one's chair. Gore's eyes shift in several directions (note: Gore is a southpaw). It's difficult to interpret all of these movements because what Gore is hiding, in terms of his EEStor knowledge, is not easily drawn out by the question Rose asked. Had it been a more direct question, we might be able to more easily make sense of Gore's shiftiness.

Here's what we do know. KPCB only has one interesting investment in energy storage--that is EEStor. Gore specifically mentions non lithium chemistries. Any genius out there want to show me a non-lithium chemistry that beats lithium? No? Class dismissed then. Conclusion: Al Gore was not fully truthful when he answered Charlie Rose because he knows EEStor is en route. Outside of politics, we sometimes refer to that as lying. Whether or not we can politely call it lying may best be answered by Charlie Rose. Charlie? Charlie? .......Charles! Come to! Stop drooling on your financial statements.

Note: this posting is dedicated to one of my favorite readers who happens to be a family member and who asked me to write more articles such as the one on EEStor's Carl Nelson.

Don't forget to send a tweet to @algore on twitter.

NASA Says No Sale

As previously reported here, NASA internal discussions seemed to indicate that at one point they had acquired EEStor technology. According to follow up correspondence today between a FOIA administrator and Mr. Ambrose, NASA did not ever purchase EEStor technology as Ambrose seemed to indicate in his released email.

The NASA information on EEStor is still under investigation and it would appear that there is definitely more to learn. For example, the six SBIR proposals EEStor supposedly submitted in 2002. Proposals, I can't seem to find in the online NASA database.

Lockheed Ad in Scientific American

Pick up a copy of the November 2009 Scientific American. It has an interesting set of articles about wind, solar and water power source systems. Somewhat interesting was the full page add that Lockheed Martin has on page 3 where they go into detail comparing their new mission as an energy company to the Apollo space mission, a program Lockheed was heavily involved with at the time. They talk about "energy security" as the goal and list energy storage as one of the means.

To my knowledge, Lockheed has no special connection to energy storage other than EEStor Inc., despite what any occasional Lockheed employed lithium researcher might tell you. Sure, Lockheed runs Sandia Labs, but no one is going to make the claim that any lithium ion solution Lockheed is directly working with will provide the means to energy security. No one with a brain that is.

NASA: Do They Own EEStor Tech or Something Else?

So, as predicted, yesterday's NASA revelations have been dissected by few thousand EEstory addicts and the consensus appears to be, what else, extreme uncertainty. :-) While these several thousands continue to orbit around the truth, let's summarize the current mission status. Doubters believe the key correspondence includes reference to generic ultracapacitors as having been purchased while others looking at the context of the discussion, point out that EEStor is the topic of interest in the thread...and want to believe, as I did, that NASA may be in possession of at least some components. I'll accept the plausibility of the doubts registered in discussion and simply say, we await NASA for more answers on this.

In the meantime, there is still very intersting new information in this FOIA. Additional specs, EESU sizes. And probably the most important revelation is that EEStor claimed in writing to NASA that their underlying technology was already "completely" developed, tested and certified. I dont know how many times I have to say it---ALL of the evidence gathered to date means EEStor can only be a scam or real. Anyone who looks at the scam theory with any depth, rejects it. Ergo, EEStor is real.

NASA Purchases EEStor Technology: EEStor Expands Claims for 8X Improvement of EESU.

NASA released a treasure trove of EEStor documentation today including revelations that they have already purchased EEStor Technology. According to internal documents obtained from a recent FOIA request, at least one NASA official has indicated making a purchase of EEStor technology for testing purposes. In the January 16, 2009 email, NASA researcher Robert Ambrose is responding to an internal query about EEstor and writes:

"We have been studying them for use in our regenerative braking scheme, where they need high specific power, but don't need a large total energy. We purchased some and will build them into a flywheel test that we do for all our servo drive systems. "

Ambrose was unavailable for comment due to a meeting he is attending in the Netherlands.

The apparent purchase of EEStor technology would be the first publicly known transaction for the technology to date. Included emails from other officials express doubts which were filtered to Ambrose because of his apparent knowledge of EEStor.

The documents released today by NASA also contain a presentation from EEStor where they claim their future generations of EESU will have two to eight times more energy density than their first generation technology. Thus, the much discussed 52kWh EESU could go as high as 416kWh or in other words, the 300 mile Electric Vehicle range could become 2400 miles.

The presentation also includes a slide comparing EEStor specifications to those of lithium battery maker A123 Systems.

This release of new information about EEStor comes on the heals of a bit of dissappointment surrounding whether or not EEStor successfully completed component and/or UL testing. Without a public announcement, many followers have been starving for net new news (NNN).

As with most EEStor stories, you can be certain a predictable hysterical debate will ensue on TheEEStory.com, the official site for hysterical EEStor debate.

Former Tesla Executive Says 'FBI Should be Chasing EEStor'

Although I'm sure he was probably joking...somewhat....Daryl Siry, former CMO of Tesla Motors recently answered a tweet I sent him with some not so subtle thoughts about EEStor.

After Siry's recent Wired Article on EEStor in which he highlighted EEStor's theoretical value of $1.5Bil (based on Zenn Motor Company's current market valuation, I sent him the following tweet:


EEStor is worth either $0 or much much more than $1.5Bil. DOE should be chasing them before Tesla or Fisker.

To which Siry responded:

more like the FBI should be chasing them


It's been reported elsewhere that Tesla & EEstor have held talks. So, if you are a skeptic, read a lot into Siry's tweet. If you are a believer, brush it off as an offhanded joke. But either way, it illustrates that nothing is as it seems when it comes to the EEStory.

BTW, I was serious about the obvious point that EEStor's work is much, much more important than Fisker's or Tesla's. The DOpEs should not be passively sitting idle with regard to EEStor. Rather, they should be actively trying to engage them. After all, how long will Tesla and/or Fisker survive if EEStor/Zenn decide not to sell them EESU's?


Note: I first learned about EEStor from a Wired article 2 years ago.


Image Source: Triplepundit.com

EEStor Dream Dinner Guests to Assemble for Electric Car Panel

Imagine you could have dinner with anyone related to EEStor (but outside of EEStor & Zenn) and engage in a riveting discussion about EEStor. Who would you pick and why? How about William Ford Jr., who has held discussions with Ian Clifford of Zenn Motor Company? Or, what about Jennifer Granholm, the governor of Michigan who recently supported Zenn Motor Company's DOE application for a facility to be built in Michigan. Or how about Kleiner Perkins' Ray Lane, whose name is listed as the primary point of contact on SEC documents related to EEStor ownership?

I don't know about you but that would be appetizing conversation for sure. Add to that a representative from the Edison Electrical Institute, which would call to mind the last debacle of electric cars due to an intentionally set battery factory fire, and you'd have the makings of one fascinating discussion.

Well, you won't be having these people over for dinner any time soon, I'm afraid to say. (yes, wake up). But! You can catch these persons of interest Oct 19 & 21 at the 2009 The Business of Plugging In conference at the opening session.

If you attend this event and allow these fine individual to escape without discussing EEStor, you are a fool. Let me help you formulate the first question for Ray Lane:

1) Ray, according to filed lobbyist records of Fabiani & Company, Kleiner Perkins companies Fisker, Fortu and V Vehicle have all had lobbying performed on their behalf. Is there some reason why EEStor is not also represented?

Small World

Cathy Zoi & Al Gore

This is not a well researched article. It has almost no underlying fact checking. It doesn't have a central organizing principle or unifying theory. Just a set of related questions. It's being written only partially as a public service to anyone hoping the Obama administration lives up to it's goal to be the most transparent administration ever. It's written by someone who simply wants the United States to recognize the need we have for better batteries and to prioritize around that fundamental fact.

Point Number 1: The Wall Street Journal recently wrote an article highlighting the fact that Fisker Automotive received some funds from the Department of Energy and is backed by Kleiner Perkins with whom Al Gore works. Presumably, what makes this news above and beyond other similar announcements is that Gore is on the Kleiner team. Certainly, there is a story there about potentially deserving firms not receiving funds and sorting out the details of selection criteria, etc. But, honestly, I don't see that one having legs unless someone is going to lay out a substantiated theory about deliberate fraud on the part of DOE. That'll never happen. In the meantime, it's news primarily because Gore is involved. Agreed?

Point Number 2: The article does mention that Kleiner Perkins partners donate significantly to political campaigns. $2Mil recently. That's a good fact to report since it launches a set of related questions. What I can't figure out is why the article didn't address them directly. Here are the related questions:

1) Did Al Gore personally lobby the Dept of Energy on behalf of Fisker? (Not a problem at all provided the DOE selection criteria is easy to understand, explain and apply)

2) Has Al Gore had any contact with Cathy Zoi since she was appointed over the program that awarded funds to Fisker? (after all, she was Gore's first CEO for the Alliance for Climate Change Protection. Anyone home at the Wall Street Journal? )

3) Of the companies who have received DOE funds, what percentage have made campaign donations and to whom? Also, how much has been spent on lobbying by the winners vs the losers? (Everyone has a right to lobby congress and donate to elections. It's a fundamental aspect of participating in the political process. It's an opportunity every individual in this country enjoys. But, the question is, are procedures in place to ensure this participation in our Democracy does not afford less deserving projects with federal financing advantages? Not a pot shot at anyone--just a relevant question any ordinary tax payer may contemplate)

4) What exactly is the criteria DOE is following to provide funds to a foreign firm like Fisker? (We have no doubt that Fisker employs a great group of individuals of the highest character and caliber. They have great ideas, great designs and a rosy future. But, on what basis were they selected? Surely, the DOE staffs competent, fair and insightful staff. Laying out how they conduct their work is to their advantage.)

5) Does the DOE only look to provide funds to firms who seek them? Is anyone at the DOE proactively going out and looking at firms who have not submitted applications to learn whether or not they could be encouraged to gain some advantages with federal funding? (hint hint: EEStor).

6) What sort of lobbying does Kleiner Perkins perform? Does John Doerr's role on President Obama's Economic Advisory Board constitute lobbying?

Point Number 3: Let's dissect this last question a bit because maybe lobbying isn't the proper word. According to the white house press release from Feb 6, 2009, one of the functions of the Advisory Board is to:

"meet regularly and provide advice directly to the President on the programs to jump-start economic growth and facilitate economic stability. "

That is interesting because according to the Department of Energy website, Cathy Zoi's role includes the following:

"Ms. Zoi oversees EERE's $16.8 billion in funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. EERE is responsible for education, conservation, regulation, and efficient use of our nation's energy resources, including federal energy management, building codes, appliance standards, vehicle technologies, and the ENERGY STAR® program. EERE works to strengthen the United States' energy security, environmental quality, and economic vitality through public-private partnerships.

In her role as Assistant Secretary, Ms. Zoi manages the U.S. Department of Energy's $2.1 billion applied science, research, development, and deployment portfolio, which promotes marketplace integration of renewable and environmentally sound energy technologies."

Do you see the issue here? It seems we have one of those innocent and accidental situations where a group of loosely or tightly connected individuals comes together in a configuration that can only lead honest, hard working people to wonder. This wondering, if conducted unfairly, has no place in the constructive advancement of this country. So, let's put some fairness on the table.

In life, Cathy Zoi is an accomplished winner. She's devoted herself to important topics, ie, energy. Her list of accomplishments is a mile long and Obama was very fortunate to have her join the DOE. Indeed the whole country is fortunate someone of her caliber would mix with the historically unaccomplished federal government. Additionally, these energy issues for which Zoi is on the front line affect me deeply as an individual since I'm a staunch advocate of cleaner fuels and energy independence for this country. I salute Zoi.

Secondly, Al Gore is, to say the least, a politically interesting character in our time. His campaign for climate control is admirable even to those who do not agree with his evidence or conclusions. He's shown passion for his goals and I count myself as one of those who felt An Inconvenient Truth really humanized Gore and made him an endearing figure.

How can you criticize John Doerr? For what? For being a successful businessman whose personal activities rightly bring him in contact with political figures? I mean come on. He's made clear that his passion for climate change is not about money but in keeping a promise to his children and future generations to act now in the event climate change will make the earth uninhabitable for humanity. I'm sure even he would agree that as far as being a spokesperson for cleantech and renewable energy, his conflicts of interest run deep. No issue there.

So, what's my beef with all of this? Why even write any of the above? It's about means versus ends. Luxury sedans such as Fisker's or Tesla's or even GM-Volt's for that matter are secondary technologies whose impact is limited by the lack of a key, enabling technology that makes them viable: batteries! Energy Storage! Nothing Fisker or any automaker can do changes the fundamental importance of energy storage as a catalyst for economic change in our country. The lack of energy storage is what is preventing the adoption of electric vehicles. The lack of energy storage is preventing the adoption of renewable energy sources like wind and solar. It's preventing our grid from being efficient, thus, requiring power plants to produce twice as much energy as we actually need (and all the pollution that goes with that). It's the most important issue in all of renewable energy.

When you wake up to that reality and begin asking questions like, "how can we accelerate the delivery of better energy storage? Who can bring it to us the fastest?" and then you then start to wading into the available technologies such as lead acid, lithium ion, lithium from Bolivia, lithium from China, etc, you quickly arrive at a crossroads. The crossroads is this blog that you are now reading and a fundamental question sticks out: What is EEStor Inc.? How does it relate to all of the above? What is being done to advance EEStor?

Honestly, I don't care if Fisker and Tesla or even EEStor competitors A123 Systems or Johnson Controls have received federal funds or even if they gained advantage of available funds via political connections. What gets me is the distinct lack of attention to the more fundamental energy storage problem. And yes, here's where I take everyone to task:

Is Al Gore out there talking about better batteries or mentioning EEStor?

Is John Doerr out there talking about better batteries or mentioning EEStor?

Is Cathy Zoi or Steven Chu out there talking about better batteries or proactively contacting EEStor?

Is anyone anywhere talking about better batteries? President Obama, for example?

Robert J. Stevens at Lockheed Martin seems to know what is going on. Congressman John Carter seems to know what is going on. Senator Carl Levin and the Michigan political establishment would appear to know what is going on. Need I even suggest that Kleiner Perkins doesn't know what is going on? Why can't everyone know what's going on? Most especially, why can't the Department of Energy know what is going on? Is EEStor IT or not? If it is, let's acknowledge it and move on. If it is not, let's acknowledge it and move on. The stakes are too high to keep rearranging deck chairs or dipping one's hands in the various cookie jars.

I'll end this article with two things. One, as I've mentioned before, like Kleiner Perkins, I have an investment in EEStor via owning shares of Zenn Motor Company. Secondly,

MUHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAHAAHAAHA!

Ford's 1914 Electric Car

running on batteries by Thomas Edison!

UPDATE: Last but not least, it's only fair that I lump EEStor into the mix partially. After all, if I'm criticizing these public figures for not saying/doing more about EEStor, it only makes sense that I include EEStor. Wait a second, I guess I have to criticize everyone then except for me for not talking about EEStor as much as I talk about it. That's really arrogant and pompous of me. I apologize. :-)