Tsunami watch needed urgently for real this time

Please correct me if I am wrong, but after the massive earthquake near Sumatra, near Banda Aceh in 2004, did not the Government of Jamaica make commitments with the Government of the United States of America to commence the construction of a tsunami early warning system in the Caribbean, mainly due to the fact that the entire region is a set of active subduction zones and plates?

It seems my bad memory is not so bad after all, as according to the article “Jamaica Tsunami alert centre on Fast track” published Wednesday January 24, 2007, The Jamaica Gleaner, there was indeed such a proposal on the table to implement just such a system as Local Government Minister, Dean Peart, had signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) and would have been approved by the then Attorney-General thus paving the way for the construction of such a facility which would have nine (9) sensors or stations placed undersea with a buoy marking the location of the station. But it wasn’t

This is interesting, as we are now back in the same situation again, making more eloquent speeches after the scares of the Haitian and Chilean earthquakes and the disgust and wounded pride of the Chileans when the people were shown on television looting after the earthquake, despite aiming to become a first world Latin American State as stated in the article “Chile troops, police attack post-quake looters”, published Tuesday, March 2^nd 2010, The Jamaica Observer, (AP).

The dire warnings from our body representing the engineers frightening us out of our wits with the possibility of total annihilation of Kingston as stated in the article “Earthquake Fright” published Tuesday, March 2^nd 2010 by Patrick Forrester, The Jamaica Observer.

We all seem to have forgotten this and like black footed ferrets in the Arizona Desert we stand aloof, little noses wrinkled in consternation contending with what apparently seems to be foremost in our minds, that is the possibility of losing our good relationship (and visas!) with the United States of America due to our non-compliance and foot-dragging in extraditing Christopher “Dudus” Coke as stated in the article “Dudus Bugged”, published Sunday 7^th March 2010, Cover Story, The Herald.

There were murmurings about the intention to build one such, but this seems to have been shelved again and all the talk of the University of the West Indies getting Government of Jamaica assistance to purchase needed digital equipment to better help monitor and warn or earthquakes and tsunamis was just only that - talk.

Granted with an earthquake on land one wonders how one is able to “warn” of something so sudden and with no precursors, save to just duck and cover before you are buried alive. At least with a tsunami, with offshore warning stations that detect an undersea quake, once detected, the information can be relayed to people living on the coastal areas to move further inland, depending on how far out the earthquake struck.

The learned PhD’s (not me though, as I am just the learned John Public) from the University of the West Indies who it seems should have been pushing the idea to build once such systems or upgrade the ageing analog earthquake monitoring system to an all digital one have also fallen quiet. Everyone is talking about Dudus, nobody it talking about 70% of Kingston being destroyed.

Thus it would seem a role can be played in this endeavor to better equip the people of Jamaica, and this is for the Telecoms Providers to provide the usage of their networks to relay this information quickly to people warning of an impending tsunami. The Government of Jamaica, must however foot the bill for this project, which I hope, will not be a case of too little or too late when it comes to forward planning on the part of disaster preparedness on their part.

The Big Three Telecoms Providers stand ready to assist the Government of Jamaica in the provision of the data network facilities necessary to implement such an early warning service, but with the budgetary constraint imposed by the IMF, one wonders if we will ever get to see this early warning system built, especially as we have at present such strained relations with our neighbour to the north.

The Secret of the Bloom Energy Server unraveled – and can be locally Reverse Engineered

The breakthrough by venture capitalist K.R. Sridar, CEO of Bloom Energy in developing what Leslie Stahl on “60 Minutes”, aired Sunday 21^st February 2010 refers to as “the Holy Grail” of power engineering is a Bloom Power Server, a fuel cell technology that is based on a semi permeable membrane made from pyrolized sand i.e. sand that has been heated and temperature controlled sintering under anaerobic (oxygen free, vacuum) conditions. The pyrolized sand tile is baked into the shape of a square and is reinforced with plastic to preventing it from cracking after the pyrolysis in the kiln due to physical stress.

The coatings on the sides of the fuel cell are Copper (I) Oxide, which is black in colour and Copper (II) Oxide, which is light green. Copper (I) Oxide is higher in the electrochemical series, thus it is the anode (-) while the Copper (II) Oxide is the cathode (+), which anyone with a knowledge in Inorganic Chemistry would understand.

These Copper (I) Oxide and Copper (II) Oxide coatings have to be deposited onto the surface using a linear accelerator that accelerates nano-particles of the respective chemicals and bombard the pyrolized sand tile, forming a thin layer that is also semi permeable. After making several of these tiles, they are stacked on top of each other, with iron placed in-between to complete the circuit and form a voltaic pile, thereby increasing the voltage output.

Electricity, which is DC (Direct Current) is generated when oxygen is pumped in on the Copper (I) Oxide anode (-), oxidizing it to Copper (II) Oxide temporarily while Natural Gas i.e. gaseous LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) is pumped on the Copper (II) Oxide cathode (+) side, which passes through the semi permeable membrane and reacts with the oxygen, which now has a charge of -1, thus being reduced to -2 i.e. an excess of electrons. This O^2- is then oxidized back to oxygen by the Copper (II) Oxide cathode (+), thereby completing the circuit, effectively a redox reaction, typical of most fuel cells.

This cell differs though, as when the reaction is stopped the Copper (I) Oxide anode oxidization to Copper (II) Oxide is temporary, as it is only acting as a catalyst and as such is not used up in the reaction, hence the tiles can last forever with no need to change them due to any possible buildup of Copper (II) Oxide on the anode (-) side. The fuel cells can be connected in series to increase voltage output and in parallel to increase current output and an inverter used to convert the DC (Direct Current) to AC (Alternating Current) used by most electrical devices

Advantages of the system are that it is basically an electrochemical redox reaction between the Natural gas (or any other combustible fuel) and Oxygen which produces CO₂ and H₂O, the only byproducts of the reaction, which is 95% efficient, as heat helps to perpetuate the reaction and that the material used to make it are cheap an abundant i.e. copper, iron, sand, etc..

The disadvantages of the system is that the semi permeable membrane, made of sand, is brittle, and thus has to be kept in a fixed position, so as to avoid shock that can break the tiles, which have a very low tensile strength and are prone to breakage. Also production of pyrolized sand tiles as well as linear accelerated deposition of nano-particles of Copper (I) Oxide and Copper (II) Oxide is a very expensive process, which would explain the initial price tag for a 100 KW system mentioned in the report of US$700,000 to US$800,000 for a full setup.

Currently the “Bloom Boxes” or Bloom Power Servers as they are formerly called are being tested at Google, E-Bay, Wal-Mart and Coca-Cola and have a cost recovery of three (3) to five (5) year after installation. The research is supported by such luminaries as Larry Page, one of the founding members of Google and retired General Colin Powell, who is a senior board member on the Bloom Energy Board of directors, a natural link to the United States of America Military.

The US Military who will be more than interested in the usage of this device in the battlefield aside from the obvious fact that it has the potential to replace Utility Companies by the decentralization of power production for house across the United States of America – and eventually the whole world within the next ten (10) years.

For more news on this impressive marvel of electrochemical engineering, read the article “Bloom energy unveils fuel cell of the future”, published Thu Feb 25, 9:01 am ET by Glenn Chapman, Yahoo News! AFP or Google the news on Youtube using “Bloom box” as the search term or you can consult the following lecturers at the University of the West Indies:

1. Professor Robert Lancashire (Inorganic Chemistry)
2. Dr. Anthony Greenaway and Dr. Michael Coley (Analytical Chemistry)
3. Professor Willem Mulder (Electrochemistry) 

All of the Chemistry Department, Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of the West Indies!

FLOW vs “Private” Citizens - Customer Information on Company Databases

Behavioral Targeted Advertising, as stated in the article “Study: Like it or not, behavioral ad targeting works”, published March 24, 2010 9:01 AM PDT by Caroline McCarthy, CNET News – The Social.

It is not a new concept, as Google uses this type of advertising where in which advertisements are sent to Customers based on user preferences that are being tracked whenever users visit and use the services of certain websites such as Social Networks e.g. Google Buzz, Facebook, Twitter, email or any other website which offers a service to which the user must register and which makes the majority of its revenue from advertising.

This is in stark contrast to the complaints of the supposedly “private citizens” who seem to be up in arms with the publication of their phone numbers in the Telecom Provider LIME sponsored Phone Directory.

Despite not taking the time to read the company’s policy guidelines as the Phone Directory is itself a form of Behavioral Targeted Advertising as only persons who have made a posting in the Telecom Provider LIME sponsored Phone Directory.

Or who voluntarily submitted their information to Triple Play Provider FLOW are thus published, as according to the article “Privacy breached - FLOW clients railing against Directory Listings”, published January 31^st 2010, by Mark Titus, Business Reporter, The Sunday Gleaner.

This is the accepted trade-off among Internet users for getting "free" services online: the company has the opportunity to make money from the sale of their database of subscriber preferences to Third Party Advertisers e.g. Doubleclick, Google, etc., data that is collected based on the surfing habits of its subscribers.

This level of intrusiveness and recording of surfing habits, albeit a bit disconcerting, helps to make the use of Internet services better. This as the website records the subscribers preferences and produces results that result in greater subscriber satisfaction and translates into increased purchases by subscribers who are more inclined to click on advertising banner ads and links that are hosted on the website.

Naturally, their legal restrictions on the type of information that can be recorded and collected in the website administrators database i.e. health problems, disabilities, sexual orientation.

Curiously enough, most people who have grown up with the Internet and are used to the informal nature of interaction on the Internet are a lot less concerned about their privacy, as stated by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in the article “Why no one cares about privacy anymore”, published March 12, 2010 4:00 AM PST by Declan McCullagh CNET News - Politics and Law.

So Telecom Provider Digicel using Facebook to choose the next Digicel Rising Stars Host will not be met with much resistance and most likely will be a welcomed form of Behavioral Targeted Advertising in keeping with their objectives as it relates to the launch of Digicel WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) by targeting the very lucrative Generation Y (age 12-28) and Generation X (aged 29-45) market.

Baby Boomers (29-90) who are Recession wary, are not inclined to spend and making their new Marketing push into Television in the form of DigiTV and High Speed Internet in the form of WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d).

Thus the appearance of a Telecom Provider Digicel that is more customizable, much in the same way that Telecom Provider Digicel’s fans that use Facebook, Twitter and other Social Networking websites.

A leaf out of Telecom Provider Digicel advertising book that Telecom Provider CLARO, Telecom Provider LIME and Triple Play Provider FLOW could adopt as it relates to the usage of Social Networking to gauge and fine tune the receptiveness of Customers for their products, thereby resulting in more improved products that Consumers want, thus garnering increased revenues. 

The Future of the Humble Newspaper in Jamaica

Currently there is a Recession in the United States of America and now in the United Kingdom, a Recession that is affecting most businesses worldwide and even here in Jamaica. Hardest hit are the Newspaper businesses worldwide. 

But if the prevalence and proliferation of digital media continues, the Newspaper as we know it, in its physical paper form will be a thing of the past and go paperless and possibly even going into Telecoms via the usage of the “white spaces” i.e. unused Spectrum in-between the NTSC standard frequencies for television broadcast as well as unused frequencies in certain geographical locations in Jamaica.

These “White” space Frequencies will be left once RJR Communications Group and the CVM Communications Group transition to HDTV, once the RJR Communications Group and CVM Communications Group vacate the frequencies that they currently occupy, based on the trend among most young people, very few of whom read Newspapers from either The Gleaner company of Jamaica , The Herald and The Jamaica Observer.

Most Newspapers that still print their news using paper in the United States of America, United Kingdom and the EU have either folded or have going to printing an online version only. Already The Gleaner Company of Jamaica and the Jamaica Observer has an online version alongside their paper based publications. The future of print media as we currently know it is on the ropes.

Even if the Recession lifts within a year as predicted by Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve Chief in 2009, most Newspapers will never recover as more and more people seek to save on the expense of reading the news by getting their news online. In addition, there is also the fact that fewer and fewer people, both young people [teenagers] in the age range from 12-18 are not even reading print news anymore.

They relying solely on TV as well as on the Internet on their mobile smart phones for specific news that they desire to read, as stated in the report written by Matthew Robson, aged fifteen (15) years old, while he was an intern at Morgan Stanley in 2009 entitled  “How Teenagers Consume Media: the report that shook the City”, printed by the Guardian Newspaper, Monday 13 July 2009 10.23 BST.

Matthew Robson’s research note is based on anecdotal observation and he is a young untrained observer and thus on this basis his research note cannot be regarded as scientific and only as being anecdotal, as it is not knows what exactly his research methodology was in collecting the statistics in his report.

Nonetheless, it is the best study possible, given that if it were conducted by an adult or someone seen as an authority figure, the young people featured in the study may have view the research, be it via casual questioning or questionnaires as a means of bringing them back into line, effectively a form of Social control as stated in “Invitation to Sociology: A Humanistic Perspective”, authors Peter L. Berger, published by Doubleday and Company Inc, Garden City, New York (1963), p 68 - 92.

Hence on this basis, Matthew Robson’s research note, albeit not scientific, given the restrictions as it relates to adults asking the opinions of young people via questionnaires, must be admissible as evidence of the point being made by this letter: the future generation no longer read Newspapers in printed form and mainly get their news via word-of-mouth using the various form of communications technology that interconnect them.

Whether it be Social Networking websites i.e. Twitter, Facebook, Email, Instant Messaging or mobile phones all of which are devices that utilize the ever expanding database that is the Internet. This is how they consume media and it is all via electronic sources, for which the younger, more tech –savvy generation have specific preferences and taste.

Enter the current iteration of the Amazon Kindle, dubbed the Kindle 2. The Kindle 2 is a product created by Bezos, CEO of Amazon, the online book retail giant. It is basically a tablet device that reproduces the usage of books in a digital format and was conceived by Amazon as a mean of making the reading of content easier by making a portable device upon which all books and other printable content could be easily stored and read. In effect, it is basically a device specifically designed for reading and storage of all printed material, effectively an eReader device.

Unlike a laptop, the Amazon Kindle 2 is optimized for book reading, with a screen technology called Digital Paper that is gentle on the eyes and having reflective qualities similar to that of paper, making extended hours of reading possible, unlike laptops which are backlit and eventually result in eyestrain.

Currently content is placed on the Kindle 2 via the 3G internet, which is available on both GSM and CDMA Networks, the previous iteration of the Amazon Kindle using the CDMA EV-DO service called Whispernet, which is a 2G wireless internet service available for mobile devices on the CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) Networks that Sprint and Verizon uses.

The Amazon Kindle 2 thus works on the 3G Networks in the United States of America of mainly Telecom Provider Verizon CDMA and Telecom Provider AT&T’s GSM Networks respectively, both of which support 3G. Books are sent to the device via Amazon's wireless service, Whispernet, which lets you download books, articles, periodicals and Newspapers from anywhere you can get a 3G connection from your chosen Telecoms Provider, once the material is purchased from Amazon’s website.

The WhisperSync function allows users to share books, articles, periodicals and Newspapers with other users of Amazon Kindle 2’s by email, as each Kindle 2 device has a unique email account, which is how content is sent to the device, with the person’s email being placed in a pre-screened of approved list to prevent spam.

The Whispernet connection is a feature that, if you bought your service from Telecom Provider Sprint, it would cost you US$60 a month and requires a two-year contract that you'd have to pay US$200 to terminate early.

The Amazon Kindle service currently delivers content to its customers Kindle 2 for a reasonable cost, from books purchased online to blogs, *.pdf documents and yes, Newspapers. This service can be made to work here in Jamaica, as currently the Amazon Kindle 2 devices operate on GSM Networks, the only hurdle being the ability of consumers to pay for the plans associated with the device.

Ostensibly the device will be sold on a plan as opposed to postpaid or prepaid (prepaid and pay-as you go respectively in the United States of America), though this may present some difficulty for people who are on a plan already to purchase a new device.

Thus the idea is simple.  Newspapers will eventually be reliant on the Amazon Kindle 2 or other similar devices i.e. Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple IPad, Sony Reader and even Apple iPhones and other smart phones e.g. Blackberrys, HTC Google MyTouch 3G, Nokia N95, etc with the eReader’s app installed.

By making deals with the eReader’s content provider and a suitable 3G Telecoms Provider i.e. LIME or CLARO to deliver news and other content embedded in the paperless version of the Newspaper to the next generation of Newspaper Reader who is more wired and online than the previous generation and has less time to read the whole news, but still likes to read books and Newspapers nonetheless. 

Albeit expensive and basically an early adopters device, the Kindle 2 technology is the perfect substitute as it allows the delivery of content that you wish to read from the Newspaper, as with time mass adoption and word-of-mouth among the young will drive the price down. 

The fact that this new Amazon Kindle 2 support the GSM Telecoms Provider’s Networks that currently has 80 billion users worldwide, according to the GSMA (Global systems for Mobile Communications Alliance) website, makes it the perfect device to deliver content such as books, periodicals and Newspapers.

Thus, Newspapers and other legally registered publishers can upload their content for distribution to Amazons servers for distribution around the world to persons using Apple Kindle 2 or they can do the same with Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple IPad, Sony Reader or smart phones for the other competing eReader content providers.

This concept of distributing content is somewhat reminiscent of an episode of “Dr. Who”, a BBC Wales program which featured a similar concept with a news distributing satellite station called Satellite 5 that collected and disseminated news across the know Universe and the future Earth, according to the shows plot.

Thus the Newspaper of the future will not be printed, but paperless, with news being distributed by the Telecoms Provider’s 3G service and being read using devices that look like mini table PC’s i.e. eReaders, like the Amazon Kindle 2 or it competitors the Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple IPad, Sony Reader or smart phones.

This can be seen as the precursor of such devices and their widespread eventual usage. Already most users of the Internet, whether it is wired i.e. ADSL (Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line) or Wireless i.e. FIOS (Fiber Optic Subscriber), 2G (Second Generation), 3G (Third Generation) and WiMax internet, get the majority of their news via this media.

Telecom Providers with 2G GPRS (Global Packet Radio System) and EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution) enabled Networks such as Telecom Provider Digicel, Telecom Provider LIME and Telecom Provider CLARO 3G UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) and HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) enabled Networks such as Telecom Provider CLARO  and Telecom Provider LIME.

3.5G WiMaX 4G Fixed (IEEE 802.16a,d) enabled Networks such as Telecom Provider Digicel already support mobile products that allow for the delivery of messaging services and news content directly to your mobile instrument, mostly Blackberrys, Apple iPhones and Nokia smart phones and other branded smart phones.

In one model of such a Paperless Newspaper delivery service, these Telecoms Providers, in the future in partnership with Newspapers, can allow readers of their Daily, Weekend, Sunday tabloid and long sheet publications to subscribe for regular content, specifically Newspapers and magazine content via POS (Point of Sale), ABM (Automated Banking Machine) and subscription over the phone using Debit and Credit card.

Their content ordered either on devices like the Kindle 2, Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple IPad, Sony Reader, smart phones such as the Apple iPhone and the HTC MyTouch 3G or and even on Television, once the RJR Communications Group and the CVM Communications Group have made the decision to go HDTV (High Definition Digital Television).

In another model, the “white spaces”, it is hoped, will be left license free, allowing the Newspaper companies to possibly distribute the Newspaper content themselves in the future to one common device they themselves will own that uses these “white” space frequencies - if the SMA (Spectrum Management Authority) allows this to happen as is the case currently in the United States of America as stated in the article “TV "white" space Networks tested” published February 24, 2010 4:06 PM PST by Marguerite Reardon, CNET News - Signal Strength.

Whichever model is more suitable, one thing is for certain, delivery via wireless internet and paperless will be the eventual future of our local Newspapers here in Jamaica. Mass acceptance of the device will eventually drive the price of the Kindle 2 and similar devices down, making it a mass media device for the reading of Newspapers, thus allowing the full digital and paperless transition of the Newspaper.

In addition, the device can double as a convenient way to carry books that one can purchase without having to go to the bookstore as well as reduce the cost of books altogether, making books affordable and rekindle - no pun intended – the love of reading among users.

Alternatives to the Amazon Kindle 2 exist in the Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple IPad, Sony Reader and smart phones such as the Apple iPhone and the HTC MyTouch 3G, all of which could be incorporated into the mix of eReader devices supported by the different Telecoms Providers, with the eventual aim of rendering Newspapers in paper form obsolete and ushering in the age of content on demand and paperless, digital Newspapers.

Thus, one can now safely say that much in the same way RJR Communications Group and the CVM Communications Group will be going HDTV soon in Jamaica, the same revolution will also hit the Newspaper industry, dramatically changing the landscape of Newspaper readership and as in Telecoms, form a distinction between Prepaid (Subscribers who merely buy a Newspaper when they need news) and Postpaid (Customers who preorder their Newspapers months ahead in time) with the hope of making all users Postpaid Readers. 

Thus via this means The Gleaner Company of Jamaica, The Herald and the Jamaica Observer can make the transition into a paperless form delivered via 3G internet and as a plus go into Telecoms after the transition of RJR Communications Group and the CVM Communications Group to HDTV, which will free up Spectrum which can be resold to Telecoms Providers in order to provide data services.

Jamaica is waiting with baited breath on the Telecoms Industry launch of high speed wireless internet, but moreso the transition of industry RJR Communications Group and the CVM Communications Group to HDTV, which may create the potential for The Gleaner Company of Jamaica, the Herald and the Jamaica Observer to enter into the Telecoms Market.

Thus a push for Newspapers to a new generation along with VAS (Value Added Services), thereby elevating the once humble Newspaper into the 21^st century, strengthening their revenue stream and guaranteeing their survival during the Recession in the United States of America, the effect of which is predicted to last another seven (7) years in Jamaica.

Alternative Energy and Biofuels - LNG is the beginning

It seems that motorists are somewhat blissfully unaware of the impending switch long before 2015 to E85 by the Government of Jamaica, as based on numerous articles, such as the article “E10 not so sweet”, published 21^st February 2010, by Laranzo Dacres, Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner as if they were, they would realize that they will soon have to purchase new Vehicles or at least change their engines in order for them to be able to use E85.

The year is significant as it is the year predicted by the article “IEA official warns of shrinking Oil supplies: Report”, Sunday August 2nd, 9:04 pm ET, AFP, Yahoo News in which Oil production around the world would have been outstripped by demand.

Thus prices of Oil would be driven by demand only and not speculators, an outrageous fortune that has been forecasted by none other than Sir Richard Branson and British Business Leaders in the article “World faces Oil crunch by 2015”, published Sunday 14 February 2010, The Sunday Herald (AFP).

If Jamaica is still has an economy dependent on Oil and still importing Oil for Energy purposes by 2015 with no net investment (Local and foreign) and increase in production as opposed to an emphasis on services, the global inflationary effect that this increase in the main driver of production will have will most certainly force the entire world into a Second Recession

This is now possible and shaping up to occur in the United States of America, due to its reliance on debt to encourage spending in the short term, its abundance of ill-placed faith in the Services Sector and lack of investment in the Production Sector.

This Second Recession, referred to as a Double Dip Recession or “W” shaped Recession Recovery as opposed to a long term “U” shaped Recession Recovery is a theory which is echoed by Dennis Chung in the article “RISK OF A DOUBLE-DIP RECESSION?” published Friday, September 18, 2009, contributed by Dennis Chung, The Jamaica Observer.

And yet there is hope, in the form of LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) adoption by the Government of Jamaica as stated in the article “Government eyes LNG cure for Energy problems”, published Wednesday June 16 2010 by Laura Redpath, Senior Staff Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner and soon to occur in the United States of America as stated in the article “Fuel of the future?”, published Sunday July 4 2010 by Dwight Bellanfante, Gleaner Writer The Jamaica Gleaner.

Thus the Government of Jamaica would seem to have already fired the first salvos against the coming Second Recession based on Peak Oil, having announced from last year that Certified New and Used Car Dealers were not being allowed to import Cars that were more than three (3) years old, leaving many in the Certified New and Used Car industry to wonder how they would survive

Such Vehicles were priced out of the reach of ordinary Jamaicans and at the time of the announcement, many of them had already ordered and have in stock Vehicles that were older than stipulated by the Government of Jamaica directive and thus cannot be sold in Jamaica.

This is aimed at curbing Jamaica’s appetite for foreign and imported automobiles as most would naturally be priced over JA$1 million and improve the quality and E85 compliance of the Vehicles on our roadways as well as to reduce the number of outdated Vehicles entering the Jamaican road network and protect the environment, as Jamaica, being a Developing Country, is being used as a dumping ground for Motor Vehicles that people in the Developed World no longer drive.

Once this strategy begins to lose traction, as demand for motor Vehicles are elastic, especially in a Recession, the Government of Jamaica is planning to allow persons to purchase Vehicles via an exchange program similar to “Cash for Clunkers” deals that were now popular in Europe and the United States of America in 2009.

The emphasis will be on getting motorists to purchase flex fuel Vehicles via select Certified New and Used Car Dealers, after the fly-by-night operations, under pressure due to the new regulations, have folded and gone out of business, making the current New and Used Car Market less cluttered and more tax compliant.

These chosen few, would with assistance from the Government of Jamaica be able to waive all taxes and insurance for one (1) year on the first time purchase of Vehicles that are E85, Flex-fuel (able to use Bio-Diesel, Ethanol or Ethanol blended fuel) or Electric Hybrid compliant such as the Nissan Leaf as described in the article “Nissan Leaf Projected to be in the black”, published April 30, 2010 5:44 AM PDT by Reuters, CNET News - Green Tech as well as in the article “Nissan begin limited test-drives for Leaf EV” published June 11, 2010 6:32 AM PDT by Reuters, CNET News - Green Tech.

Now the 2011 Nissan Leaf has a noisemaker to make its otherwise stealthy approach have a presence as stated in the article “Nissan Leaf brings the noise”, published June 11, 2010 9:51 AM PDT by Wayne Cunningham, CNET News- The Car Tech blog and now able to achieve a driving range of 100 kilometers as stated in the article “Nissan Leaf has 100-mile range - give ot take 40 percent”, published June 21, 2010 10:43 AM PDT by Automotive News, CNET News - The Car Tech blog.

Thus making it suitable for the Certified New and Used Car Dealers to petition the Senator James Robertson, Minister of Energy and Mining to begin to set standards for the installation of electric charging stations easily located using a GPS enabled smart phone and an App installed such as on the Apple iPhone as stated in the article “Network Web-Savvy EV-charging stations on tap”, published June 2, 2010 7:57 AM PDT by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech.

Or Google Android powered Motorola Droid, soon to be launched in Jamaica by Digicel ………..fodder again for another well researched ditty from yours truly.

Electric Cars are possibly going to be as popular as the Apple iPhones in the United States of America or so it would seem the statistics presented in a Consumer Report by the Consumer Reports National Survey Center would suggest as stated in the article “Survey: Consumers intrigued by electric Cars”, published March 19, 2010 8:53 AM PDT by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech.

In a survey of nearly 1,752 consumers, 26% of people would go electric on their next purchase, with 7% considering the possibility, not wishing to sacrifice much on performance as opposed to a traditional Diesel or E85 motor vehicle yet concerned about saving money if an All-Electric Vehicle would enable them to achieve this aim.

Rollout of all electric Vehicles is heavily predicated on the installation of electric Charging stations and common standards for the automotive industry as it relates to All-Electric Vehicles. Albeit also seen as a big thumbs down for the All-Electric Vehicle adoption with two-thirds (2/3) of the customers poled not interested in the purchase of an all electric vehicle, one must be wistfully optimistic in accepting the fact that the main deterrent is price

If it were to fall into the same range as a traditional Diesel or Gasoline powered vehicle, would drive the sales and faster adoption of these Vehicles, making them as common as washing machines or cell phones as hopefully opined in the article “Will electric Cars spread like cell phones or washing machines?”, published May 14, 2010 11:49 AM PDT by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech by Deloitte Consulting which indicated an adoption of All-Electric Vehicles in the United States of America of 2% to 5.6% by 2020, numbering between 285,000 and 840,000 units.

Using the Nissan Leaf or Tesla Model S, both All-Electric Vehicles another analyst Credit Suisse estimates 335,000 electric Cars by 2020 while Citi forecasts more than 1 million (1,000,000) and the Traffic Safety Administration says 750,000.  

Deloitte consultant Rebecca Ranish puts in perspective, comparing the adoption of All-Electric Vehicles to washing machines and dryers, which were luxury items until as she put it, “The telephone, the radio, the refrigerator were all reliant on infrastructure to support adoption and in some cases may have been slowed by infrastructure.

Electric Vehicles will have a similar series of challenges”. And like the Apple iPhone, consultant Robert Hill is quoted as saying that “There are plenty of early adopters, but the real question is about the early majority. That segment is big enough to start a mass adoption curve”, indicative of a typical market driven by early-adopters, much like smart phones were back in early 2007.

If the adoption of All-Electric Vehicles and the construction of the necessary infrastructure were accelerated in Jamaica in tandem with Government of Jamaica subsidies for All-Electric Vehicles, making All-Electric Vehicles artificially cheaper

It would encourage the Certified New and Used Car Dealer Market to sell these Vehicles, perceived as a niche market device. This reduction of importation taxes is possible due to the reduction in interest rates spreads that has now been achieved as intended by the Prime Minister Bruce Golding in the article “'No more skylarking' - PM outlines economic programme and debt exchange”, published Thursday, January 14, 2010 by Arthur Hall, Senior Staff Reporter, the Jamaica Gleaner, The Jamaica Gleaner via the JDX (Jamaica Debt Exchange) as stated in the article “JDX ends at 99 per cent; Minister says thanks”, published Thursday, February 25, 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

The stabilization of the dollar and the reduction of inflation by using the money borrowed from the IMF (International Monetary Fund) as balance of payment in the Central Bank is now having the effect of making borrowing to purchase said All-Electric Vehicles more attractive as noted by the Jamaica Exporters Association (JEA) President Titus Evans in the article “JDX makes exporting more attractive”, published Wednesday, April 21, 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

Currently in the All-Electric Vehicles market, the Nissan Leaf is the innovator, followed by the Chevy Volt as stated in the article “Eclectic Electrics”, published May 13, 2010, 5:00PM EST by Bloomberg BusinessWeek, FEATURES - BusinessWeek.

The Tesla S is one.

Other entrants are soon on the horizon from unusual manufacturers, such as the phone battery maker BYD China as stated in the article “BYD dreams of Electric Cars”, published June 28, 2010, 3:10PM EST By Inder Sidhu, BusinessWeek - BOOK EXCERPT and ford with its All-Electric Vehicle, the Focus Electric, slated to debut in 2011.

Another, much more cost effective way this diversification from a current 90% dependence on Oil in the Jamaican Energy Market can be achieved in the medium to long term, is going LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) and having FDI (Foreign Direct Investors) specializing in vehicle conversions to come to Jamaica to do vehicle conversions

Such as Zap, a company that does such conversions in silicon Valley and is famous for its current conversion project, which involves converting U. S. Postal Service Gasoline powered Vehicles to E85-Elecric Hybrid Vehicles as stated in the article “A day at Zap: The Future of Electric Fleet Cars has arrived”, published July 1, 2010 12:53 PM PDT by Suzanne Ashe, CNET News - The Car Tech blog.

Also Ford, which is currently converting its popular Transit Connect line of vans to All-Electric Vehicles for customers as stated in the article “Ford to debut all-electric Transit Connect van”, published February 9, 2010 11:21 AM PST by Lance Whitney, CNET News - The Car Tech blog.

Locally, there are entrepreneurs that can achieve vehicle conversions to LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas), a derivative of LNG, mainly in the form of Challenger Transport Corporation Ltd (926-6414). Challenger Transport Corporation Ltd (926-6414), a company more known for the rental of buses and trucks, has decided to launch the installation and servicing of such units in Jamaica which is already common in Dominican Republic

This after apparently having undergone two (2) years of extensive training of its technicians to be ISO9001 certified to not only offer the installation but the sole maintenance of the units based on the presentation made on “Smile Jamaica Morning Time” broadcast 8:15am March 16^th 2010 on Television Jamaica and explained in some detailed in my blog article entitled “LPG and the Challenger Transport Co. Ltd - A Cheaper Fuel”

Other companies that do this type of conversion are soon to appear.

One such could be a partnership annex between Carlos Slim owned AMX, operating under the brand name of CLARO can partner with Challenger Transport Company Ltd (926-6414) the Technology Partner, Gas Pro (928-7301) and IGL Gas Ltd (923-8434) the Distribution Partners and PEMEX (Petroleos Mexicanos) the LPG Supplier to provided a VAS (Value Added Service).

This VAS being the retrofitting of Vehicles to work with LPG, a very popular option in Dominican Republic and thus an implicit benefit to CLARO in terms of reducing the cost of operating its fleet Vehicles as well as its generators by retrofitting them to work with LPG as explained in my blog article entitled “Alternative Energy and Telecom Providers - An Environmental Marketing Strategy”.

This would lead the way in a clean Energy Revolution that not only will save the environment but also save the Government of Jamaica billions of US dollars on the cost of imported Oil.

It also bears repeating that my main point in that it would drive the cost of Energy to more business-friendly levels and thus be a driver of growth in our economy by virtue of lowering Energy Costs in terms of Electricity Generation and Transportation as my blog articles thus far suggest.

This as Senator James Robertson, Minister of Energy and Mining seems to be effectively promising with the implementation of LNG by 2012 and re-negotiating JPS Co 2001 license to allow for a rate increase every five (5) years as stated in the article “Government eyes LNG cure for Energy problems”, published Wednesday June 16 2010 by Laura Redpath, Senior Staff Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

It even offers a solution to the little known and ill-published scourge of Diesel Fuel Theft from generators and may even lead to increased co-location on Telecom Providers cell sites allowing the usage of the same generator to power multiple Node B’s or BTS (Base Transceiver Stations) by Telecom Provider’s LIME and CLARO, otherwise known as RBS (Remote Base Station) by Telecom Provider Digicel.

Conversions would involve being able to make a Diesel or E10 vehicle have its engine replaced or modified to become a E85, flex fuel or Electric Hybrid vehicle via a partnership with the Certified User Car Dealer, also with all taxes waived in order to encourage motorists to take up the opportunity.

While this is ongoing, the Government of Jamaica will have to do an island wide heavily publicized radio, televisions and newspaper education campaign via the JIS (Jamaica Information Service) to encourage more Jamaican to exchange their old Cars for new ones, effectively a JDX (Jamaica Debt Exchange) - of sorts - for motor Vehicles.

With the issuing of the Energy Policy by Senator James Robertson, Minister of Energy and Mining and recent statements by him indicating a timeline for conversion to be within four (4) years achievable by 2014 as stated in the article “Government eyes LNG cure for Energy problems”, published Wednesday June 16 2010 by Laura Redpath, Senior Staff Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

The promise of a 25% to 35% reduction in the electricity bills of JPS Co is a likely possibility.

This possibility has increased thanks in part to its endorsement by none other than Ernest Moniz, Director of the prestigious engineering institute, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) recently in Time Magazine, a prestigious USA publication

 Ernest Moniz posits the fact that LNG deposits accounts for only 24% of the Electricity Generation within the United States of America, yet they possess 98% of the LNG that they use to generate this 24% electricity demand as stated in the article “Fuel of the Future ?”, published Sunday July 4 2010 by Dwight Bellanfante, Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

Thus, if the good Senator James Robertson, Minister of Energy and Mining plays his card right and diversifies the Energy Sector both in terms of Energy Sector Liberalization in terms of Electricity and the fuel used by Motor Vehicles as is now shaping up in our closest neighbor, Cuba as stated in the article “Gulf Oil spill reignites Caribbean Energy Security”, published Sunday June 20 2010 by David Jessop, This Week in Europe Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

It is expected to be a boom time of those who are early investors in the soon to be liberalized Energy Sector, both Local and foreign investors alike.

It will attract investors both from Local Private Sector Companies as well as FDI (Foreign Direct Investors) interested in capitalizing in the Local Energy Market, both in providing competitive electricity generation solutions, based on either a centralized model or a distributed model.

There is the burgeoning bio-fuels Market for motor vehicle and generators with benefits to customers, the environment and to the Government of Jamaica.

Increased Tax Revenues from these Alternative Energy solutions as well as from the reduction of our massive Oil importation bill will satiate our hunger for foreign imported Oil and in the process driving inflation down.

The 4G Revolution and the Summer of 2010

{1:9} The thing that hath been, it [is that] which shall be; and that which is done [is] that which shall be done: and [there is] no new [thing] under the sun.

{1:10} Is there [any] thing whereof it may be said, See, this [is] new? It hath been already of old time, which was before us.

Ecclesiastes 1 vs 9-10

It seems that the above cribbed Bible verse in the Book of Ecclesiastes rings true, as now globally the world is ramping up for the coming of 4G in its two (2) dominant flavours, LTE (Long Term Evolution) and WiMaX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access), as suggested in the article “On call: Welcome to 4G”, published March 9, 2010 11:01 AM PST by Kent German CNET News.  

Albeit LTE is touted by most 3G Telecoms Providers as the next evolution, requiring only a software upgrade and few hardware upgrades of their existing 3G infrastructure, WiMaX on the other hand was developed and based on Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11n) and incarnated in two (2) forms WiMaX 4G Fixed (IEEE 802.16a) and WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d).

As such is a breath of fresh air into the Global Telecoms Sector which has largely been controlled by Telecoms Providers Vendors, whose technology is based on proprietary WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) licensed by Qualcomm.

Technology change seems to be in the air for the Summer of 2010, what with the recent announcement of the Apple IPadeReader device debut to challenge the Amazon Kindle and its ilk as confirmed by Daniel Ionescu in the article “Apple rolls out TV ad for IPad”, published Monday March 8^th 2010, by Daniel Ionescu, PC World PCworld,  Yahoo News.

There is also the soon-to-be tsunami that is the launch of HDTV compatible 3-D televisions and Blu-Ray bundles as stated in the article “Samsung, Panasonic start selling 3-D TV's this week”, published Tue March 9 2010, 11:04 am ET, By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer, Yahoo News.

There is also the increasing dominance of the Google Android Mobile OS Development Platform, evidence from it wide scale adoption by such Handset Vendors as HTC, ZTE, Dell, Samsung, LG and even Nokia, which has also decided to make its proprietary OS Symbian Open Source and Sony Ericsson as stated in the article  “Sony Ericsson shows love for Android”published February 14, 2010 6:18 PM PST by Marguerite Reardon, CNET News.

The fear RIM, makers of Blackberry have of Google Android is obvious by their release of the Blackberry Enterprise Server license free as stated in the article “RIM to give away server software”, published February 16, 2010 4:32 AM PST by Marguerite Reardon, CNET News.

Then there is the impending launch of OnLive in June 2010, a streaming gaming portal that will allow players to play high quality video game titles over their PC without the need for expensive setup as stated in the article “OnLive game streaming service to start in June”, published Wed Mar 10 2010, 3:19 pm ET By BARBARA ORTUTAY, AP Technology Writer, Yahoo News.

Indeed, already here in Jamaica, we have two (2) Telecoms Providers who have launched 3G namely Telecom Provider CLARO and Telecom Provider LIME.  Telecom Provider Digicel was slated to launch a WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) at the end of the second quarter of 2010 as stated in the article “Digicel to offer mini Laptops with 4G service next year”, published Friday September 4^th 2009 by Lavern Clarke, The Jamaica Gleaner.

ZTE Corp of China will be their build out partner of their new WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Network as stated in the article “Digicel signs ZTE as 4G Mobile WiMaX Internet partner”, published Sunday, September 27, 2009, The Jamaica Observer.

There is even a more potent mix that is set to be made more explosive in the Summer of 2010 with the impending launch of Telecom Provider Digicel’s foray into broadcasting in the form of DigiTV in Jamaica.

This service was already successfully launched in Vanatu, Tonga and other Polynesian islands also possibly to be launched a little before the launch of their WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Network. This can be possibly at the start of Rising Stars, as strongly hinted in the article “DigiTV Launch for 2009 - Mobile Provider branches into TV”, published Friday November 14^th 2009 by Ross Shiel, Online co-Ordinator, The Jamaica Observer.

Telecom Provider LIME  is launching a competitor to DigiTV, namely LIME TV, with exclusive all-island Wireless Subscriber Television license to rebroadcast Direct TV.  The summer is looking to be very hot this year, making Telecom Provider CLARO look rather impotent as they are yet to announce any impending WebTV or Wireless Digital Broadcast plans.

With no public news on their possible acquisition of FLOW, one can only speculate that they might do on this front as their current rival Telecom Provider Digicel is launching DigiTV.

Change is even evident in the legal space, both locally and abroad with Apple now going actively after HTC of Taiwan as it relates to patent infringements with regards to its Apple iPhone as stated in the article “Is Apple launching a patent war?”, published March 4, 2010 4:00 AM PST by Marguerite Reardon,  CNET News - Signal Strength.

Telecom Provider CLARO is suing Telecom Provider Digicel with regards to already filed legal proceedings against Telecom Provider Digicel and a complaint to the FTC (Fair Trading Commission). They claim that the Cross-Network calling rate contract into with Telecom Provider Digicel, albeit legally binding, in light of the Privy Council ruling is now null and void.

This may be an example of anti-competitive action on the part of Telecom Provider Digicel.

In the United States of America, Telecom Provider Verizon and Telecom Provider AT&T are building out their 4G Networks with plans to use LTE, Telecom Provider Sprint has already rolled out its WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) and owns a majority stake in CEO Bill Morrow’s Clearwire.

Clearwire has plans to roll out in ten (10) markets with ambition to be in eighty (80) markets by 2010 as stated in the article “Clearwire to bring WiMaX to 10 more Markets” published August 3, 2009 11:30 AM PDT by Marguerite Reardon, CNET News – Wireless and Telecom Provider T-Mobile is as yet undecided at the time of writing this article.

So what is now new in 2010?

All of the above is based on news that has been heard before, for the learned John Public that lives on the Internet. What is new is how all of the above are interconnected to the deployment of high speed 4G Networks.

In the LTE camp, the Telecoms Providers and Vendors recently came up with a platform that allows LTE to handle both voice an SMS (Short Messaging Service) over the all data infrastructure of LTE named One Voice, as LTE is great for data services, but has little backward compatibility with the traditional circuit switching Networks of most Telecom Providers as stated in the article “Telecom providers announce LTE Standards”, published November 5, 2009 1:02 PM PST by Lance Whitney CNET News.

One Voice, which is a consortium of Telecoms Providers and Vendors, namely Orange, Telefonica, TeliaSonera, Vodafone, Alcatel-Lucent, Nokia Siemens Networks and Sony Ericsson within 3GPP (3^rd Generation Partnership Project) that supports the integration of  IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) and lays out the exact technical specification as to how this is to be achieved.

More positive signs are coming from the Telecom Vendor Qualcomm, which had released a 3G-4G chipset that will make the data Network provided pointless, allowing the Handset Manufacturers to focus on making phones as the chipset guarantees interoperability on both 3G and LTE provided by Telecom Providers as stated in the article “Qualcomm readies 3G/4G mobile Chipsets”, published November 12, 2009 4:07 PM PST by Marguerite Reardon CNET News.

Meanwhile in the WiMaX camp, they have Telecom Provider Sprint and Intel as its major backers, Telecom Provider Sprint not only has its own WiMaX 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Network but is an investor in Clearwire along with Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks, Google and Intel.

Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Telecom Provider Sprint would be resellers of Clearwire’s service i.e. they are not only selling the modems, but operate over Clearwire’s infrastructure much in the same way a MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) would operate.

Clearwire has been growing from strength to strength, with surging usage from customers for its all data services that mimics wired Broadband usage despite prior speculation to the contrary as stated in the article  “Will 4G Wireless Really Threaten Wires?”, published August 13, 2009, 8:22PM EST By Stacey Higginbotham, BusinessWeek - GigaOM, indicating a future in which customers may use it as their sole Broadband connection.

This despite having sold very few data handsets and having very few handsets that support WiMaX 4g Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) as stated in the article “Clearwire adds more subscribers, cuts losses”, published February 24, 2010 8:57 AM PST by Marguerite Reardon CNET News - Signal Strength.

There has been an increase in the deployment of WiMaX worldwide, inclusive of Jamaica and with the exception of the United States of America as announced by the Wimax Forum in the article “WiMaX deployments ramp globally, but U.S. lags”, published February 16, 2010 7:53 AM PST by Larry Dignan, CNET News – Wireless.

With calls by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski for increased deployment of higher speed Broadband access as stated in the article “FCC chairman wants faster Broadband”, published February 17, 2010 10:05 AM PST by Lance Whitney, CNET News.

There is also the noted gradual decreases by the ITU (International Telecommunications Union) in Broadband prices and corresponding increases in educational performances and gender equality as stated in the article “Mobile, Broadband prices dropping worldwide”, published February 24, 2010 9:43 AM PST by Lance Whitney CNET News.

Ditto too the declaration of persons involved in a BBC survey that indicate that 78% believe that access to Broadband Internet should be a fundamental right, as suggested in the article “BBC survey: Net access is basic right”, published March 8, 2010 8:04 AM PST by Andrew Nusca, CNET News, things can only improve as the Telecoms Networks ramp up their deployments.

The main problems for Telecoms Providers such as Telecom Provider AT&T in anticipation of the transition to 4G appears to be issues relating to the increased Network traffic. This is due to high bandwidth services and devices, such as the Apple iPhone as stated in the article “AT&T considers incentives to curb heavy data usage”, published December 9, 2009 3:08 PM PST by Marguerite Reardon, CNET News.

Poor signal coverage issues are being addressed by Telecom Provider AT&T deploying a 850 MHz Network as well as Network upgrades by Telecom Provider AT&T, Telecom Provider Verizon, Telecom Provider Sprint, Telecom Provider T-Mobile and Clearwire in anticipation of increased traffic as stated in the article “Wireless operators accelerate upgrade plans”, published January 26, 2010 4:00 AM PST by Marguerite Reardon, CNET News.

Telecom Provider AT&T recently resolved issues with VoIP.

Especially as it relates to the most recently publicized conclusion of the case involving the rejection of Google Voice from the Apple Apps Store on the Apple iPhone, which in the United States of America on the Telecom Provider AT&T Network as stated in the article “AT&T to allow VOIP IPhone apps on 3G Network”, published October 6, 2009 4:46 PM PDT by Jim Dalrymple, CNET News.

There are also worries by Telecom Provider AT&T, most likely shared by all Telecoms Providers, that some of the new devices being developed, such as the Apple iPad, will increase the data traffic levels on their Network as stated in the article “FCC: iPad use could further strain AT&T 3G”, published February 6, 2010 4:56 PM PST by Jim Dalrymple, CNET News.

Despite these concerns, 4G deployments are under way as already official intermap sharing has already begun, as suggested in the article “Telco companies to provide Data for Broadband Map” published Fri Aug 7, 2009 4:58PM EDT by JOELLE TESSLER, Technology Writer, AP. PhysOrg

Jamaica is fully on the path with the rest of the world as our Telecom Provider Digicel have already begun the process to transition to 4G. Telecom Provider LIME and Telecom Provider CLARO having no choice but to follow suit or be left behind, a situation which is definitely nothing new under the Sun.