Matthew Engel

This fall, I was invited to attend the wedding of a good friend of mine. It was one of the most spectacular displays I have ever witnessed, with extravagant foods presented over 12 courses and enough flowers for 3 weddings. It was truly amazing, and I will try and post some photos.

As a wedding gift, I painted him a watercolor piece depicting the first line of the Shema, a Jewish prayer. Alex met his fiance in Israel, while studying at Yeshiva.

Below I show the evolution of the piece starting from my inking, to the watercolored layers, to the frame. Enjoy!

Recently, I have been learning alot about Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This is the practice of designing a webpage so that it can be readily discovered by Google. More specifically, it can be used to increase your page rank, anotherwords it will show you closer to the top of Google search results. I think I will write more about this later, but would like to ackowledge the help of my good friend Andrew Perry.

Andrew runs his own florist business (perrysflorist.com) and maintains a website for finding florists all over the globe. Find him at www.find-florists.com.

Today I spent at least one hour trying to fix some code on another site I am working on. It was such a pain to do, that I am writing the solution here so that others may learn from my struggles.

The problem was that I had a piece of php code outputing some nice html on the webpage, but I could not figure out how to edit the font of the html. Php uses the ‘echo’ command to output html, which is great and really simple. However, for the life of me I could not make the desired output in bold face, which was so frustrating. I was not sure if I would need to use css or not, but found finally found the quick and easy solution here.

Originally my code looked like:

Which I needed to change to:

Notice the bold html tags <b> are in quotes. This was critical to get it to work, but not sufficient. The critical part was actualy putting the periods! So annoying. Anyway, notice the additional periods after the opening bold tag quotation marks and after the php command itself.

The Stony Brook University Graduate School magazine (sbgradmag.org) is looking for writers to contribute their thoughts and ideas to an online forum. Get involved!!

Much has been made of the recent drop in oil prices world wide. As we all understand, the price of almost everything in the U.S is directly tied to the cost of non-renewable fossil fuels. This is an extremely unfortunate situation, which we hope to change in the next century, the ‘green’ century some are calling it. I have seen more commercials and ads claiming their product are ‘going green’ in the past month than ever before. Apparently, even the oil companies are going green if you believe BP’s television ads, hardly a trustworthy source of information. The truth is, we could only hope for that type reality right now. Our automobiles are no cleaner than they were last year and our consumption of oil has steadily increased, even with record prices. You should note that value of stocks on the London Stock Exchange skyrocketed, bolstered by record profits of BP - British Petroleum. BP’s earnings were up 83% this year, meaning profits nearly doubled!! Profits increased from $4.4 billion to $8.05 billion this year alone, due to an increase in energy prices.

However, as Thomas Friedman of the New York Time’s reports, the recent (temporary) slump in energy prices has sent the alternative energy (AE) companies scrambling. AE investors are watching their stock holdings crumble as people run to the gas station to buy their $2.89/gallon petro. This is a real shame, however it is fleeting. I think we can all safely assume that after the election prices will resume their normail uphill climb and alternative energy technologies will once again be in full demand.

Therefore, we should all be prepared for a huge spike in gas prices at the end of this year. For the record, it should be noted that in July regular gas was costing $4.11 in the US and oil was selling for nearly $150 a barrel, which is now down roughly 25% at the pump and 50% less for a barrel of oil ($64.02 today on NYME). With the economy diving and spiking wildly, consumer confidence has steadily declined leading to less spendong on recreational items. In turn, this has led to a decrease in fuel consumption and with an oil glut, prices have bottomed out. Thankfully, OPEC has been on the case and called an emergency meeting in Switzerland this week to discuss reducing supply. In fact, OPEC has decided to cut supply by 5%, or 1.5 million barrels a day beginning November 1, 2008. Be prepared.

Ali Naimi of Saudi Arabia - Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Oct. 23 in Vienna.

If I were a commodities trader, I would be stocking up on barrels of oil. Imagine oil bought at $65/barrel - what profit could be made when it reaches $150/barrel in a few months? If you had the capacity, individuals could store large volumes of gasoline for a personal inventory in preparation for the eventual price spike.

I seriously hope this company takes off !! (No pun intended) But seriously, a car that runs on compressed gas? How genius is that! Big thanks to my brother Seth for pointing this out to me. I am seriously excited about this technology, developed by ex-Formula One engineer Guy Nègre . Think about how a car which produces zero emissions, travels long range with low horsepower could transform commuting in America today, reinvigorate our automotive culture and promote environmental awareness? Would these vehicles be socially acceptable? What if, the vehicle cost $17,800 and could travel up to 1,000 miles with one fill up and a top speed of 96mph? Granted, a 75-horsepower engine may not sound impressive, but when you consider that Zero Pollution Motors (ZPM) is selling a car capable of running on compressed air, the feat becomes remarkable.

Popular Mechanics reports that ZPM, a New Paltz, N.Y. start up, has acquired licensing rights from MDI- the original Luxembourg-based inventor of the compressed air engine and plans to begin manufacturing in the Northeast U.S. by 2009. MDI is an exciting young french company, which self reports financial investment from AirFrance. In my brief international expereince, I have found that most other countries are embracing new clean technologies, leaving the U.S. in the dust. Europe and India are already deploying many small, fuel-efficient vehicles which are profitable. Where is the American part of that equation? When you ask Ford or GMC, they show a complete lack of global integration into the American market, which may eventually be their downfall if they continue to produce vehicles reliant on petroleum.

In 2007, it was reported that the original Air Car, called CityCAT would only be marketed in India’s most congested cities for a retail price of $12,700 with a range of 125 miles hitting 68 mph. It would be forced to refuel at gas stations equipped with custom air-compressors, requiring $2 for to fill the car’s carbon-fiber tanks with 340 liters of air at 4350 psi in just a few minutes. However, the car also sports a built in air compressor which can self-refuel the vehicle in four hours when plugged into the electrical grid. For all the skeptics, I would highly recommend reading MDI’s engine technology pages off their homepage, which go into much more detail than I have at this time. Enjoy and good luck!

This is a big step.  I have been following the development of Tesla Motors for two years, and they are finally hitting mainstream! Tesla has been achieving public recognition for their contribution to the development and public acceptance of the electric vehicle. Here, we have the world’s first electric powered sports car which can compete in terms of performance with a Chevy Corvette, Porsche, or Ferrari. Not only that, but it was engineered and manufactured in the United States. This is something I can be truly proud of.

The Tesla was designed to break the stereotype that electric cars are slow and unsightly. Unfortunately, this has traditionally been the case when one considers the Honda Insight or even hybrid-gasoline powered cars such as the Toyota Prius. The styling of these cars leave much to be desired. The Tesla beats all hybrid vehicles hands-down by eliminating the need for all petroleum for fueling. This is superior even to the much touted Chevy Volt, which still requires gasoline for daily driving and with a 50 mile projected range for battery only power. This is in stark contrast to the Tesla which offers roughly 240 miles on a single charge.

The car can be charged at home or on the road in roughly 3.5 hours. The instrument panel contains an indicator to display the current battery capacity, analogous to the typical fuel gauge. Above is an image of a Tesla Roadster being charged, with a close up of the plug. The image was supplied by a Tesla Roadster blog which contains some cool images. Below, I found what is now a very rare site - an actual image of an owner charging his electric vehicle. You can notice he actually owns two cars and the plugs are extended from a charging base to the vehicle parked in his driveway.

The U.S. Army has launched several new domestic energy conservation projects to join their existing platforms. Led by the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Environment Keith Eastin in conjunction with the Senior Energy Executive for the Army, Paul Bollinger, the organization aims

to reduce energy consumption and increase efficiency while operating, building, and maintaining structures and bases. I think this is a major advancement in our national understanding of the current energy crisis. The military has traditionally been at the forefront of technological developments with full financial support from the government. Improvements in efficiency coupled with an increase in solar energy production could make a formidable impact on our energy usage over the long term.

By increasing alternative and renewable energy sources, the Army beleives it can significantly reduce the $3 billion it spends on energy annualy. The Army wants to serve as a model for the rest of the military and nation by installing a 500 MW (megawatt) solar thermal plant in Fort Irwin, CA in the Mojave Desert, purchasing 4,000 small-neighborhood electric vehicles for maintenance and operations staff use, developing biomass fuel projects in conjunction with the Navy, and entering into pilot energy savings contracts with the private sector. New solar projects are in the works for Fort Sam Houston, TX and Fort Carson, CO. At Forst Shaffter, HI photovoltaic cells are being installed in barracks as an ambitious recycling program begins in Fort Bragg, NC.

XOHM is a new mobile internet technology which was officially released this week on Monday, September 29, 2008. I found about about it on Friday, 5 days later as I was shopping for a new highspeed internet provider for my home. As a current Cablevision customer, I am unsatisfied with the cost of my service, which has recently increased from $29.99/mo to $49.99/mo.

This led me to search for a new service, and I called just for comparison’s sake a T1 provider, who was extremely knowledgable. Apparently, a T1 line at the minimum costs $300 a month providing stable IP addresses and at least 1.5 mps (megabytes per second) for both up and downloadong files. I definitely, don’t need this service, however it would be appropiate for a corporate account. The sales person recommended I check out WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) which is being provided by XOHM using the 802.16e protocol. XOHM is currently running its platform off Sprint cell phone towers, and is partially financed by Sprint and Google, Inc among other equity stake holders. What is XOHM? For $25/mo XOHM provides ‘broadband’ like speeds to a mobile device such as a laptop or tablet PC that is within range of the XOHM network. The currently claimed speeds are between 2-4 mps for downloads and 0.5-1.5 mps for uploads. The $30 price package lasts 6 months, at which point the cost becomes $45/mo with NO CONTRACT!! This is a huge deal! (For all you newbies, uploading refers to the act of putting files up on the internet, usually on some sort of server. For example, sharing files with your friends via FTP or giving away files on BitTorrent are examples of uploading. If you don’t understand what I’m talking about, then don’t worry you probably don’t do it anyway, but understand it is the opposite of downloading. Out current  infrastructure is optimized for downloading files from the internet, i.e. viewing webpages and is therefore much faster in this direction).

Accoding to Wikipedia “Sprint Nextel announced in mid-2006 that it would invest about US$ 5 billion in a WiMAX technology buildout over the next few years.^[6] Since that time Sprint has been dealt setbacks in defections of (Nextel) iDEN and 3G subscribers that have resulted in steep quarterly losses and led to a management shake up with Dan Hesse as its new CEO. On May 7, 2008, Sprint, Clearwire, Google, Intel, Comcast, and Time Warner announced a pooling of 2.5 GHz spectrum and formation of a new company which will take the name Clearwire.” Apparently, Sprint has been losing their profit margin as Nextel subscribers fade. They are investing in mobile internet technologies, properly so. However, forming larger private comglomerates may not be optimal for the customer if it leads to price fixing monopolies, but hopefully will come with a wave of new technological developments.

Currently, XOHM allows you to choose a PCI card, USB adaptor or laptop with built in WiMAX technology. The WiMAX PCI card could be switched from one machine to the next, giving internet access to any computer you choose that has the installed software package. Essentially, internet service, is tied to the card. It should also be noted that a less expensive home service is offered which requires a specific XOHM modem (80$) instead of the PCI card, for only $25/mo which becomes $35/mo after 6 months. You can cancel your service at any time. These speeds are roughly equivalent to High Speed internet access provided by Verizon which travels through existing phone lines. These are not fiberoptic cables, but rather copper wiring which can provide 3/1.5 mps (3 down/1.5 up). It should be noted, that for more cost, Verizon also offers Fios at 3 speeds: 10/2 ($42.99/mo), 20/5 ($52.99/mo), and 20/20 ($64.99/mo). The last package would only be appropiate for individuals uploading massive quantities of data. According to the Verizon rep I spoke with the most popular service in my area is 20/5 which hits the ~$50/mo price point. However, note that all these services require a CONTRACT!! How many times have I wished I could change cell phone providers effortlessly without violating my one or two-year agreement. It is impossible to get a cell phone plan now without these types of ridiculously cumbersome contracts. It prevents customers from jumping on the newest technology or nabbing deals offered by competitors. I hate it!

The picture above is of a Nokia N810 Internet Tablet, WiMAX Edition roughly $449. I think this is incredibly overpriced. Note that for a relatively cheap (~$100) PCI card you can turn your exiting laptop into a highspeed internet powerhouse! This is definitely the way to go, as I have often wanted internet access in my car to access emails or directions while on the road.

In summary, I think this could be a great service for people who need the internet on while traveling. It is a great technology and you should keep your eye on and your ears open for WiMAX this coming year. But you should know, as of right now it is only available in Baltimore, MD. XOHM is planning on moving into the Chicago and Washington DC markets throughout the next year. I asked if NY was on the horizon, but got no commitment from the consultant I spoke to.

Today marked a significant milestone in the course of American history. The single largest non-military expenditure ever in US taxpayer dollars was approved by Congress and the President allocating $700 billion for funds aimed at refinancing the banking and lending industries. On Monday, a bill proposed by the Senate failed in the House by a margin of 228-205, with the majority of Republicans voting against. I must commend the Congress for not flashing a green light on first blush, as they wisely held out for key incentives which were included in today’s revision, passing 263-171 in the House. The initial legislation was denied by a majority of Republicans who could not acknowledge such a massive government intervention in the financial industry. This would go against their core beliefs in free markets and probably upset most of their constituents just a month before elections. In it’s essence, the bill will give taxpayers equity stake in potentially risky ventures.

However, on the bright side, the final allocations included several sweeteners which will give new life to the wind and solar energy industries, at least for the near future. Wind power subsidies, in the form of tax credits, are extended for one year. I found this slightly unhelpful, as wind energy producers will have to lobby again during the next budget hearing and redouble their efforts annually. For a government who is supposed to show strong leadership in the energy sector, this is a feeble accomplishment, compared to all the hoorah surrounding offshore oil drilling. But more positively, solar energy subsidies were extended for eight years, pledging support to homeowners who install these electricity generating systems.

As the dust clears between Senators and Congressional leaders in the House, it is fairly obvious that improvements in alternative energy have garnered enough support to make or break critical decisions on the floor. It is also obvious that the House is far more supportive of alterantive energies. This is clearly evidenced by their original counter bill proposed on Sept. 26 which included most of the approved incentives. According to the Wall Street Journal, a modern $40,000 solar power system, which is sufficient to completely power most homes, is only eligible for $2,000 in federal credits. The new bill would give homeowners as much as $12,000 federal dollars on new installations. This is a significant milestone for personal solar energy use, and I hope to see this rise to its full potential during my lifetime as a mianstream fuel source.