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The (Real) Cost of Magic Part 1
You may have guessed this quite a while ago, but one of my favorite things in fantasy fiction is the magic. And I don't just mean I think magic is cool. I love to study the way magic is constructed and used in fiction, and I think I've learned a lot of useful things by doing so. One thing that I keep coming back to is the idea of a cost for magic.
Everything has a cost. You pay in calories to stay alive, you pay money to get things you want, and you pay in fuel to keep a fire going. The cost of most things is pretty clear. But the cost of magic is different. Because magic breaks the laws of the real world by definition, the cost for using it is only limited by the imagination of the writer who creates the system. I've seen almost everything used to pay for magic: blood, energy, sanity, physical objects, sacrifice… Another common cost is time spent in gaining knowledge and preparing spells.
All of these can be effective or ineffective costs for magic. And by effective, I mean that readers accept them as reasonable repayment for breaking the rules of our world. Before I get to my main point, I think it's a good idea to look at why these various things might be considered effective costs. For this post, we'll stick with the oft-used and well-accepted "magic makes you tired" magic system:
The costs of a great many things in the real world are paid in energy. Shoot a bow? It takes energy to draw and hold that bow before release. By a very simple process of transference, that energy is also what kills the poor creature that you're aiming at. Same is true for starting a fire, whether you strike a match or rub sticks together.
So why wouldn't this be an effective cost for magic? Well, it often is. But reasons why a reader might not find this form of magic attractive are many–we'll deal with two, for now:
1. It's often not at all clear how this energy is used to create the spells effect. Pulling back the bow string creates tension in the bow, which is resolved when the ends snap back into place upon release. This pulls the string forward, pushing the arrow away at a good clip. Makes perfect sense, right? This use of a tool is what allows us to get a projectile moving at a much greater speed than we could with our bare hands.
But what about with magic? How do we convert the energy in our muscles into a giant fireball? In reality, we can't. But let's say that we decide it takes as much energy to create a fireball as it does to shoot an arrow. That's quite a few fireballs, and since fireballs are generally portrayed as stronger than arrows, we're getting quite a bit more bang for our calorie. Which is fine; mages are often considered to be more powerful than your average person, so more efficient use of their energy is not a big leap.
But what about for bigger spells? Mages are often shown to have the power to level cities with a single word. No matter how efficient our fictitious conversion of energy, it's rather much to say destroying a city of 10,000 should be as easy for a mage as killing one man is for an archer. And, it's not even possible for one man to hit 10,000 targets with 10,000 arrows in the time it takes our mage hero to level a city (or a region). So now we're in a bit of trouble. Our energy example doesn't have a simple explanation for our city-busting protagonist.
Unless perhaps we decide that a mage can kill 100 men with his magic as easily as an archer kills one with his arrow(whichitself is not as easy as it would seem). Or, maybe magic is a much more efficient tool than a bow. Combine that with it's utility in the great many areas in which it is usually shown to be useful, we've got a fairly ridiculous tool on our hands. A bow is made for one thing, to hurl arrows at targets as fast as possible. Yes, it's much better at it than a human arm, but that arm can do a great many more things than just hurl an arrow. Jack of all trades and whatnot. So why should magic be so priviliged? Casting fireballs, healing wounds, calling lightning, bringing rain, telling the future… The list goes on forever.
At this point, we might add one of the other common hobbles on magic, a limit. Perhaps magic only has a few areas in which it can function: scrying, weather magic, calling fire. But right now we're talking about cost. There are magic systems that allow a mage to do all the things I've listed and more, so there should be a way to use costs to make such a system reasonable. Clearly, paying with physical energy cannot handle this task on its own. At least, not without a lot of contortions and outside limitations.
2. Now, there are still other reasons why physical energy is not always an effective cost for magic. One can do great things, and even if they become exhausted, why, all they need is a bite of food and a bit of rest, and they're ready to do it again. All it takes to level a city is an apple? I find it hard to countenence. What was the creator of this system thinking?
If we were making a trading card game or an rpg, that could be fine. Once the game–or even just the battle– is done, everything can be reset, both the energy paid and also the damage done with it. But every action in a story has consequences that last until the story is finished–or at least they should. Reseting after one battle destroys the point of that scene; the hero is no further along in the story. The consequence of a magical battle doesn't have to result from magic, but if it does, being tired for a day and nothing else doesn't cut it. Even suffering great pain means nothing if it goes away and never bothers the mage again. If the result of a scene is benefit to the characters, they need to have paid a fair price for it, and if the result is that they are hurt, it must be a hurt that can continue to affect their progress as the story moves forward. Every scene needs to have that effect (or those effects), and in a fantasy, magic has a very good chance of being the cause. So, it's important to consider how your magic system might be able to incorporate that purpose.
None of that is to say that a form of magic which is paid for in physical energy cannot generate the long-lasting effects a good story requires. If your character is bone-tired from hurling magical acid the day before, they may miss the signs of their pursuers, or not have the energy to save the peasant girl in the next village when she is captured by slavers.
But there is a difference between a direct cost that hits hard now, and an indirect cost that hits hard later. Depending on the story and its themes, it's possible to lean more toward one than the other. Perhaps that is the risk of using magic: you can do more now, but you don't know if that will be worth the suffering you will undergo later, because you are no longer capable of doing anything. You might gain twice as much money in the short term, but in the long run, you will end up with less than if you had been satisfied the first time. But in general you will need a combination of short-term and long-term costs.
Most mages who pay for their magic with physical energy are seem to be able to achieve a great deal before the cost becomes even close to endangering their overall position in the plot. Personally, I feel this is a bug rather than a feature. Does anyone have some ways in which magic based around physical energy could still be effective in the eyes of a reader?
Posted by atsiko on December 8, 2010 in atsiko, Con-worlding, Fantasy, Fantasy/Sci-fi, How To, Ideas, Magic, Magicology, Rants, World-building, Writing
Tags: atsiko, consequences, conworlding, cost of magic, Fantasy, Magic, magic sys, Magicology, physical energy
11 responses to "The (Real) Cost of Magic Part 1"
I think a good example of a place where this sort of cost works is the Wheel of Time series. Channeling the One Power doesn't drain or cost the channeler anything beyond the relatively small exertion required to control and hold on to the Source. This mainly ends up turning the cost of the magic system into a logistics cost: if you have channelers in your army, for instance, they're not a weapon that can be exercised freely, but must be spent carefully so as to not wear them out too quickly. Of course, the male half of the source does carry the kind of cost you're advocating for (progressive madness for the user) but since the female half doesn't have any such limitation I think it qualifies.
And you know what? I think it works, so long as the consequences of this minimal cost on the world are carefully considered. For instance, the later Wheel of Time books introduce "gateways" which allow instantaneous transit between two points, with the only real cost being that channelers will quickly tire holding one open. This is indeed a ridiculously powerful tool given to the protagonists and their enemies… but the book recognizes this and explores all the possibilities it opens up. Supplies, dignitaries, merchants, and armies all use the gateways, and their introduction basically rewrites the rules of warfare for the setting.
Ultimately, the magic, despite being cheap and powerful, is consistent and the world-wide consequences of that power are fully considered, and fuel conflict in their own way without having their cost be the source for that conflict. After all, if a magic user can level a city with minimal effort, mages are not going to be favourably looked upon by the inhabitants of cities! The mages might be hunted down and killed, heavily regulated, or perhaps people simply no longer build cities and spread themselves out in the countryside to make them harder to wipe out.
So, despite not having any real thematic cost to them, these systems can work just fine if they're woven into the worldbuilding intelligently. This is part of why I tend to think that fantasy and sci-fi are more similar than they are different… the kinds of powerful magic you describe as ridiculously powerful are equivalent to powerful sci-fi favourites like nanobots (or, hell, the INTERNET.) The interesting aspects of the stories aren't the costs and limitations of the magic system… those are just the parameters the writer has set. What's interesting is the exploration of the "what ifs". Okay, WHAT IF a mage can level a city and incur almost no cost to himself? WHAT IF being a magic user essentially made you a godlike, unstoppable force of nature? How would this effect the world you live in?
atsiko
Heh. Good argument. Wheel of time does reasonably well with a physical energy magic system. Partially becausse each battle is fairly risky in and of itself.
Sevvy
I'm glad you did this post, because I'm working on a story now that uses a magic system like this. I'm taking a physics/chemistry sort of perspective on magic, where spells could be looked at in terms of their potential or kinetic energies. I'm still exploring it and working the kinks out, but I was worried about the cost of the magic, which really is a drain on the body. The affects on the body depend on the magic being used, but it can range from feeling little at all to going into cardiac arrest or stroking. For this reason, if something can be done without magic, it usually is. Hopefully I don't run into the "why don't they just eat some breakfast?" problem. Great post!
Glad you liked it. There are certainly physical costs besides energy that work beautifully. Heart-attacks and brain bleeds are two I've seen and enjoyed before.
Estraven
Just don't do what Christopher Paolini does in his Inheritance cycle, namely confusing different usages of converting potential to kinetic energy. At one point, for example, Eragon goes down a cliff face by floating in the open air from edge to edge – and the energy cost, he says, is the same as if he had walked down a path. This completely ignores the fact that keeping something suspended in midair would be a much different amount than walking down (opposing gravity vs. hiking down some switchbacks). And how much energy would be expended to bend light rays around oneself, as Eragon does later? Just be careful, and make sure you describe things as the magic users would describe them (not modern physicists, unless the magicians ARE physicists or modern students thereof 🙂 ).
Moridin
Finally, decent articles on magic. Well, one version of a physical energy cost I've come up with involves the user's body shriveling and decaying depending on how much energy they've used. Irreversible, or at least inefficient to do so, as fixing the decay would impose an equal amount of decay on the healer.
magicscholar
There's The Libriomancer by H.C. Hines. in his books there is a calorie cost plus a nauseous effect. So the more you use magic the less energy you will have for later. Because they can't recover it by eating.
Aaron Christiansen
I understand the idea behind having a cost to magic. It keeps the writer from simply using magic to get the protagonist out of every scrape. But think of magic as comparable to electricity – that is, a form of energy which can be controlled and directed to attain a specific result. That result (in terms of electricity) might be lighting a room, using a blender to make a smoothie, or killing someone using an electric chair. In all cases, the "cost" of using electricity is paying your power bill at the end of the month, Would it make sense to say the warden of a prison has to lose years of his life in order to pull the switch on the chair? Should a person be granted a migraine headache in return for making a delicious smoothie?
Magic is a stand-in for technology. It should not be expected to come with any more of a cost than equivalent technology would. Just as a good writer of science fiction uses futuristic technology as a tool, rather than a crutch, so should a good writer of fantasy be able to use magic.
I think a really good example is the Harry Potter world. Magic is a replacement for everyday muggle technology. There is no price for using magic, yet magic isn't used to conveniently solve every problem. If it were, then Dumbledore could have simply used the time turner to go back in time and prevent Tom Riddle from being conceived. What keeps Rowling's wizards and witches from using magic to solve every "problem" is not headaches or having to sacrifice something, it is simple morals.
Perhaps magic is nothing more than the science of using dark energy/dark matter. Rather than limit your wizards with a physical price they pay for using magic, set magic to its own laws, along the same lines as the laws of physics. Is there really a difference between a fireball spell and a molotov cocktail to those on the receiving end?
What is the difference between a mage who can level a city with a spell and a soldier who can level a city by pushing a button? What cost to the soldier for pushing the button? Is he fatigued? Does his body consume itself? I suppose, if he has a conscience, it may haunt him that, in pushing the button, he murdered tens of thousands of people. Or he may justify it as patriotism, survival or whatever. Of course, the soldier hasn't spent years of time accumulating the knowledge and ingredients necessary to construct the missile and launching system. He simply has to push the button.
My point being, if magic is to fantasy what technology is to science fiction, then treat magic as technology. Just don't paint your protagonist into a corner that requires a deus ex machina to survive. In short, if the idea of a wizard who can level a city without paying some huge personal price is abhorrent, then don't have magic capable of leveling a city. As a reader, magic becomes "real" to me when it operates under some sort of order, just as gravity, electro-magnetism, and the greater and lesser nuclear forces all operate according to specific principles that allow the universe to exist as it does.
Example: A fireball is a ball of super-heated gas. It emits a LOT of heat. The reason mages don't cast fireballs is that it tends to give them third degree burns. The reason a mage doesn't cast earthquake spells is that, as the caster, he is the epicenter. The reason your mage can't bring the fallen hero back to life is "Dammit Jim, I'm a mage, not a doctor." He simply has no clue how the body works because he's spent his academic career acquiring the knowledge to cast fireballs and had no time to devote to biology. If you work your magic system as another sort of science, there will automatically be limitations to what your magic using characters are capable of due to lack of expertise.
First, I disagree that magic is merely stand-in for technology. What magic is really depends on the goals of the author or the design of the world. Technology can function much the same way, and does in some areas, but it's certainly less explicitly merged with symbolism than magic in most appearances, for example.
Also, you have a very simplistic idea of the "cost" of technology, to my mind. In fact, that soldier pushing a button is backed up by scientists, engineers, and millions of dollars of technology to build the bomb or whatever that levels the city. The materials for that bomb themselves rely on a huge infrastructure that finds, collects, and processes those materials, which in turn rely on a societal structure and a society based on that structure that involves millions of people. So I would argue that the "cost" of lighting your house is far more than just a few bucks at the end of the month, and even just that currency relies on thousands of years of history, a complex economic system, and a host of other structures to support it. Those dollars seem small, but you're giving up a huge portion of your labor to support the government that can regulate that service, the workers who install the power lines to transport the electricity, etc.
Magic, on the other hand, is most often, if not most elegantly, portrayed as a much more personal use of resources, and in many cases, requires very little to no infrastructure to generate its effects, except perhaps a limited (or not so limited) system for passing down knowledge.
I love systems with some effects similar to the ones you are describing, but they're just one kind of system, and certainly not the only good one. A physical penalty system done well can be equally engaging, even if it's just migraines or whatever. And do consider that say, a headache or a loss of stamina is pretty consistent with the use of our own bodies to achieve change in the world. The cost of making it to the next town by tomorrow may be me staying up all night and having the father of all muscle soreness tomorrow.
The point of the style of cost of magic you are critiquing is not only to keep the character from engaging in deus ex machina, but also to force them to make a choice: the warden you describe has to decide, based on his character, goals, resources, etc, whether executing that prisoner is truly worth the cost. A mage in a direct cost magic system might have to decide whether achieving their goal is worth the cost. Perhaps they can save that village at the cost of their life. Or maybe, they can spread that cost among the villagers, including those who would have survived anyway. Seems like a pretty decent use of a moral cost to me.
This post covers one limited set of perspectives on the creation of magic systems that I was exploring at the time, and is by no means intended to be the end-all of thought on magic system construction.
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Exploring the Link Between Vitamin D and COVID-19
Marissa Pennino
Edited by Anvi Brahmbatt
Headlines are slammed daily about COVID-19: new dangers, breakthroughs, risks, long-term effects, and so on. A new development, however, has shown a link between vitamin D and the incidence of COVID-19 that proves to be hopeful for the future of this pandemic. Researchers have found that vitamin D potentially reduces the risk and severity of COVID-19 in various ways: it halts the virus through the production of antiviral antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), reduces proinflammatory cytokines in the immune system, and increases angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE2) activity that reduces the risk of developing acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS).
First, Vitamin D has been shown to effectively lower inflammation and benefit immune cells by generating antiviral molecules called antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). Cathelicidins and defensins are both types of AMPs that reduce the survival and replication of the virus. These two AMPs participate in antimicrobial and antiviral activity that guard against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Specifically, cathelicidins block the entry of viruses into cells to overall prevent infection.
COVID-19 has also been partially linked to what health professionals call a "cytokine storm," in which the body releases a large amount of inflammatory proteins called cytokines that generate a severe immune reaction. This cytokine surplus is caused by the inflammatory cytokine interleukin 6 (IL-6). Observational studies so far have found a higher amount of IL-6 in COVID-19 patients compared to healthy patients, though it isn't as elevated as in other diseases. Vitamin D has been shown to effectively reduce the production of inflammatory cytokines like IL-6 and increase the anti-inflammatory cytokines, which could greatly reduce the risk and severity of COVID-19.
Vitamin D can be either consumed through a pill, pictured above, or through diet in foods like fish and dairy.
Image Source: Michele Blackwell
Additionally, vitamin D increases the concentration of expressed angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE2). Normally, ACE2 is a receptor protein on the surface of many cell types. SARS-Cov-2 binds to this receptor to enter and infect cells. Angiotensin-converting enzymes play a large role in regulating the body's blood pressure and maintaining homeostasis. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 1 (ACE1) produces hormones that increase our blood pressure, and the role of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is to consume them. The presence of SARS-CoV-2 interferes with this process; the virus binds to the ACE2 receptor and suppresses it, leading to an accumulation of these hormones that could increase the severity of COVID-19 by leading to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Reports show that approximately 70% of fatal COVID-19 cases are a result of ARDS. However, the presence of vitamin D increases the amount of free ACE2, which can act like a decoy, limiting the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into the body while also preventing lung injury and ARDS.
Observational studies of COVID-19 patients with vitamin D supplementation have promising results. A recent U.S study of COVID-19 patients showed that the SARS-CoV-2 positivity rate for those with a vitamin D concentration of 20 ng/mL was 11.3%, whereas the positivity rate for people with 40-50 ng/mL was 6.5%. Another study with four COVID-19 patients compared high-dose and low-dose vitamin D supplementation; patients receiving the high dose saw a great decrease in IL-6 and other markers of inflammation and had a shorter hospital stay. Another study in Spain showed that out of the 50 COVID-19 patients given vitamin D capsules, only one was admitted to the ICU, while 13 out of the 26 in the control group were admitted.
Yet, it's important to keep in mind that all of this evidence is primarily based on observational studies. Randomized and controlled studies are still underway in order to verify the effect of vitamin D on COVID-19 under experimental conditions. Therefore, no causality can be inferred; however, the evidence from these studies is uniformly promising.
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Practical English composition
от Richard Hiley
his father, but discountenanced those who had favoured his own unnatural conduct.
2. A cruel massacre of the Jews.
3. Richard takes upon him the cross.- - with difficulty raises the required funds - confers honours on his brother John.
4. Richard joins Philip King of France in the crusade they assemble their troops on the plains of Vezelay - Richard soon after marries Berengaria daughter of Sanchez King of Navarre.
5. Richard captures Acre - defeats the Sultan Saladin quarrels with the Christian leaders — quits the Holy Land travels in disguise — is detected and given up to the Duke of Austria — transferred to the Emperor — imprisoned, but released after fourteen months' confinement - story of Blondel the minstrel.
6. Richard received in London with great joy — the wealth of the citizens displayed on this occasion - he commences war with France - generously forgives his brother J.'
7. Richard's death occasion of it.
LESSON 56.
John began to reign 1199—died 1216.
100. From a perusal of English History give a connected account of John, in which the following heads are neatly and clearly developed :
1. John brother of Richard ascends the throne in 1199 to the prejudice of his nephew Arthur who had a nearer claim — why John preferred ? - - a war ensued — at length suppressed.
2. Arthur's fate – John implicated - consequence of this - contest with the king of France.
3. The pope's interference with John the pope's interdict John's humiliation.
4. The object of Magna Charta — on what occasion granted its benefits - how observed by John.
5. Louis, son of the French king called in — many nobles deserted to his standard – Louis's imprudence strengthens John's party – death of John- remarks.
Edward I. began to reign 1272 — died 1307. 101. From a perusal of English History give a connected account of Edward I., in which the following heads are neatly and clearly developed :
1. Edward I. son of Henry III. was on a crusade at the death of his father. When in the Holy Land he nearly lost his life by treachery — but was preserved.
2. After his return home he formed the plan of uniting the whole island of Britain under one sceptre. — He asserts his claim over Wales. summons Llewellyn to do homage who refuses a war ensues — result of this. 3. The Welsh revolt are subdued
- death of Llewellyn - cruelty towards prince David.
4. Edward's reasons for interfering with Scotland -- his claim as superior lord over Scotland.
5. Edward having been swindled out of Guienne declares war against France - appoints his brother general — result of the contest.
6. The affairs of Wales and Scotland again claim Edward's interference - the result of each.
7. Death of Edward 1307 — remarks,
Edward III. began to reign 1327 - died 1377. 102. From a perusal of English History give a
connected account of Edward III., in which the following heads are neatly and clearly developed :
1. At the death of the unfortunate Edward II. his son Edward was young - the kingdom under the control of Mortimer Earl of March, and the Queen. — In 1330, at the insti. gation of the young king, Mortimer was seized in Nottingham Castle accused before Parliament - tried condemned and hanged — the Queen confined to the manor of Risings.
2. Edward invades Scotland - battle of Halidon Hill – result. 3. Edward lays claim to the throne of France
-the grounds of this the measures which he adopts to secure his claim who interposes ?
4. Battle of Cressy — the arrangements of both parties – the result.
5. Siege of Calais — noble conduct of Eustace de St. Pierre - Queen Philippa's interposition.
6. Battle of Poictiers - numbers of each the conflict result.
7. The close of Edward the Third's days. 3. Improvements in his reign -- remarks.
Henry V. began to reign 1413 - died 1422.
103. From a perusal of English History give a connected account of Henry V., in which the following heads are neatly and clearly developed :
1. The accession of Henry V. received with joy by the nation - his youthful companions dismissed — his own conduct changed — his father's honest ministers retained.
2. The Lollards, why persecuted - the principal men of this party.
3. Henry sets up a claim for the throne of France. result of his proposals.
4. Battle of Agincourt - its arrangements - loss to each party.
5. Distracted state of France Armagnacs Burgundians.
6. Henry's marriage — successes in France. 7. Henry's death.
Henry VIII, began to reign 1509 died 1547. 104. From a perusal of English History give a connected account of Henry VIII., in which the following heads are neatly and clearly developed :
1. Henry VIII. son of Henry VII. ascended the throne at the age of 18 — his accession received with great joy by the people, he excelled in martial exercises. 2. He retained his late father's ministers
but brought Empson and Dudley to trial — who were condemned cuted.
3. Henry induced by Ferdinand of Spain to enter upon a war with France ; equips a fleet - assembles an army enters France - battle of Spurs.
4. About the same time, war commences between England and Scotland battle of Flodden Field.
5. Wolsey whose son of what talents possessed to what honours raised - his influence - defects - fall.
6. Peace with France — meeting of Henry and Francis field of the cloth of gold.
7. 'Leo X. in order to complete the building of St. Peter's at Rome commences the sale of Indulgences — the iniquity of this exposed by Martin Luther - commencement of the Reformation.
8. Henry divorces his Queen Catherine — marries Anne Boleyn - consequence of this to the nation.
9. Cranmer appointed Archbishop of Canterbury — his scruples – protest — remarks on this.
10. Suppression of the monasteries causes which led to this.
11. War with France and Scotland against England. 12. Death of Henry VIII. — remarks.
Elizabeth began to reign 1558 — died 1603. 105. From a perusal of English History give a connected account of Elizabeth, in which the fol. lowing heads are neatly and clearly developed :
1. Elizabeth, daughter of Henry VIII, ascended the throne in 1558 her accession received with great joy by the people.
2. Philip of Spain proposes marriage — his proposal re. jected.
3. Elizabeth's coronation.
4. Elizabeth, acting under the advice of Cecil, proceeds with caution in the work of reform— the Reformation finally established - debates upon.
5. Elizabeth's prudence and moderation with regard to foreign affairs at this time.
6. The Reformation in Scotland.
7. Flight of Mary Queen of Scots to England - the cause of this.
8. Massacre of St. Bartholomew - its consequences. 9. Elizabeth aids the Dutch.
10. Philip of Spain disappointed prepares to invade England
-preparations for defence. 11. The Invincible Armada -object of — number of ships conflict with — fate. 12. Elizabeth's last illness - death-remarks.


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Faith Communities are Dumping Their Fossil Fuel Investments
Lauren Markoe Religious persecution, missions, Christianity around the world
Worried about global warming, a growing number of churches and other faith groups are divesting their holdings in fossil fuel companies, which release large amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
"The warning in Scripture that 'the wages of sin is death' could not be more literally true than it is in the case of fossil fuels," said Serene Jones, president of New York's Union Theological Seminary, whose board voted in June to divest its $108.4 million endowment from fossil fuel companies.
"While we realize that our endowment alone will hardly cause the fossil fuel giants to miss even half a heartbeat, as a seminary dedicated to social justice we have a critical call to live out our values in the world. Climate change poses a catastrophic threat, and as stewards of God's creation we simply must act."
Other religious institutions that have recently voted to divest from fossil fuels include: the World Council of Churches (July 10), the Unitarian Universalists (June 28) and the United Church of Christ (July 2013). Many smaller and regional groups — such as the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, the Shalom Center and the Oregon Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America — have also approved fossil fuel divestment.
And the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) last month voted to study the possibility.
Motivating these moves among the faithful is the concern that their investments ally them with companies identified as among the most damaging to the environment.
Many religious supporters of fossil fuel divestment were further spurred by the National Climate Assessment, a federal report released in May — written with the help of 300 experts and the National Academy of Sciences — that concluded that climate change is proceeding at a faster pace than previously thought. It also lay blame at the feet of the fossil fuels.
"While scientists continue to refine projections of the future, observations unequivocally show that climate is changing and that the warming of the past 50 years is primarily due to human-induced emissions of heat-trapping gases," the report reads. "These emissions come mainly from burning coal, oil, and gas, with additional contributions from forest clearing and some agricultural practices."
The American Petroleum Institute offers a more sanguine view at odds with the Obama administration and the scientific community.
"The oil and natural gas industry is leading the way in lowering carbon emissions," said American Petroleum Institute spokesman Carlton Carroll. "Government experts say that because of plentiful and clean burning natural gas brought by technological advances, the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere in the U.S. has fallen dramatically and is near 20-year lows."
Many divestment advocates say that only Congress (the U.S. is one of the largest producers of greenhouse gases) and the international community can enact the limitations needed to stave off the worst environmental disasters that climate change promises, including extreme weather and the eradication of species.
But momentum is still building for smaller scale action in churches and other religious institutions, said Susan Stephenson, executive director of Interfaith Power & Light, a multifaith group fighting global warming.
"People are starting to hear and read about it and they are getting inspired," Stephenson said of the movement, which has also been embraced by colleges and universities, including Stanford University, which divested from coal companies in May. "They see that this is a way that they can express their values, and really put their money where their hearts are."
That Unitarian Universalist investment in fossil fuels — less than three percent of its $175 million endowment — is typical of religious institutions that have or are considering fossil fuel divestment in that the sum divested is relatively small and unlikely to hurt energy companies' bottom lines.
Jones talks about her seminary's fossil fuel divestment as an act of repentance that may resonate well beyond the school.
"It is on moral grounds that we pursue divestment, and on theological grounds that we trust it matters," she said. "The Christian term for this reckless hope in the power of God to use our decisions of conscience to transform the world is resurrection, and I have faith in the power of resurrection."
But critics of fossil fuel divestment, including coal state politicians who have charged the Obama administration with waging a "war on coal," call it a blunt tool that will damage the economy and hurt the job market.
Worries about the economic impact of their divestment vote don't seem to dissuade many congregants presented with a fossil fuel divestment option. Stephenson said those calling for fossil fuel divestment are mindful that the industry is a big employer, and are encouraging investment in so-called clean energy, such as solar and wind power.
"These are jobs that are going to be changing the economy, that are on the economy's leading edge," she said. "And it's very important to help folks who are working in fossil fuel industries to get retrained."
Courtesy: Religion News Service
Americans View Jews, Christians Warmly; Atheists, Muslims Get Cold Shoulder
Americans View Jews, Christians Warmly; Atheists, Muslims Get Cold Shoulder Thursday, July 17, 2014


Entry filed under: - Langlois -, Austrian Economics, Evolutionary Economics, History of Economic and Management Thought, Methods/Methodology/Theory of Science, Nothing New under the Sun.
It reminds me the lost period that I followed Sante Fe Institute by reading COMPLEXITY: THE EMERGING SCIENCE AT THE EDGE OF ORDER AND CHAOS at the corner of train.
I was sympathetic to his project until he mentioned sensemaking. Even I have my limits.
It sounds as though Arthur has read Vernon Smith's Rationality in Economics and seen a new trend.
He is probably only trying to be helpful. It is just a pity that nobody told him about the Austrians. Perhaps he can't read German?
Bob Wayland, Sorry, but Krugman's critique was not remotely "devastating" and ended up being a major public embarrassment. Krugman has had a major track record of failing to cite others who did things before he did, such as his Nobel Prize winning application of the Dixit-Stiglitz model to economic geography, which was done earlier by Fujita. OTOH, Arthur was always scrupulous about citing his predecessors on increasing returns, with Krugman only ticked off that Arthur did not cite his work on the D-S model, which was irrelevant. In fact, after Krugman issued his public blast, Kenneth Arrow of all people wrote a letter defending Arthur and very sharply taking Krugman to task for his completely out of line behavior. On this matter, as usual, Arrow was right.
Barkley Rosser, thanks for the information and correction. I will revisit the issue.
Krugman's main paper applying Dixit-Stiglitz to econ geography appeared in the JPE in 1991. Fujita's paper that did so appeared in Regional Science and Urban Economics (RSUE) in 1988. Krugman's failed to cite Fujita's. Fujita and Dixit deserved to share Krugman's Nobel.
As Barry Smith said, if Austrian economics did not exist, it would have to be invented.
What about Krugman's 1979 and 1980 papers on increasing returns, monopolistic competition, and international trade? That latter one also uses a Dixit-Stiglitz model.


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The GLOBAL IDEAS Blog
Thinking for a cooler world
ClimateChamps
Reporter's Log
Global Ideas Reporter | COP18
1:0 for Bottom Up versus Top Down
Text and fotos by Kerstin Schnatz from Doha, Qatar
Being a monarchy with no elected national parliament up to date, Qatar does not have a history of civil society movements. Despite this lack of democratic history, the emirate currently welcomes civil society delegates from around the world to the 18th United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP18) – among them many young people. At Youth Day, youngsters from the Arab world demanded a stronger stance on tackling climate change – in very different ways.
Top down: Qatar's youth ambassadors
"When I was 18 years old, there was only one flight out of London a week. Now there are seven." The Quatari Chairman of the Organizing Committee for COP18, his Excellency Fahad Bin Mohammed Al-Attiya, highlights new study opportunities for young Qataris – like the young Nasser Bin Marzook, sitting next to him on the panel. Nasser and his three fellow "youth ambassadors", appointed by the government, look down into an almost deserted audience with a mixture of shyness and pride.
17 year old Nasser is still at school. During his exchange year in the USA, he learned about the problems of acid oceans as a result of CO2 emissions. As Qatar heavily depends on sea water for their freshwater supply coming from desalination plants, Nasser wants to spread the word about this problem in his own country. His fellow youth ambassador's approach, 18-year old Mariam Al-Nesf, is a different one: "Here in Qatar we have no rainforest – but we have mangrove forests that we need to protect." Sahar Al Ansari, 18, a Freshman at Qatar University, visited a village entirely powered by solar energy in Brazil and wishes to bring renewable energies to his home country. In Qatar, electricity is still 100% derived from fossil fuels, despite the sun shining almost every day.
Each of the young ambassadors speaks for about one minute, their statements sound wooden, studied for a long time. Questions from the audience are answered by his Excellency first – afterwards the youngsters are invited to add an aftertought. When asked how exactly the Qatari government is hoping to cut down CO2 emissions he becomes evasive and hints to new research funds for climate change issues.
Bottom up: The Arab Youth Climate Movement
At the same time, downstairs, a joyful, colourfoul crowd of young people have come together for what looks like a soccer game. The Arab Youth Climate Movement (AYCM) is holding their own version of a press conference – a much noisier and more chaotic one. AYCM is the first climate movement the Arab world has seen in history. Hundreds of young activists from Qatar and other Arab countries have joined together in the forerun to COP 18.
Picture: Anne Allmeling (DW)
These young, energetic people also want to influence the climate negotiations – starting with the host nation Qatar: "Now that they have gotten the world's attention by hosting this COP, they need to demonstrate that they are about more than beautiful venues and a wealthy gas exporting economy." Ali Fakhry from IndyACT who helped launching AYCM says. It is a pity that the youth ambassadors appointed by the Qatari government can not hear this pledge. They are still inside the conference room taking a group picture with his Excellency.
Climate March: On Saturday, December 1st, the AYCM organises an historic march for climate action in Doha. The Qatari government, who never in the country's history allowed any similar kind of action before, expreses solidarity with the activists. GLOBAL IDEAS will be at the march to report for you.
Qatar's new closeness to civil society: During COP18, the emirate is very eager to stress that it has learnt a lesson from COP18. Media events stating "Qatar's Commitment to Civil Society Engagement on Climate Change Issues" – being the official title of one press conference – are held almost on a daily basis. The Sunday climate march will prove, how eager the Qatari government really is to support a critical civil society in their own country and the Arab region in general.
Follow our GLOBAL IDEAS Facebook page for recent updates from this year's UN climate conference and the climate march this Saturday.
action, Arab, civil society, climate change, climate movement, cop18, doha, monarchy, qatar, YCMA, youth
Young climate enthusiasts sharpen skills at '2° Campus'
For the past two years, the German chapter of the World Fund for Nature (WWF) has organized a project called "2° Campus" or "Two degrees Celsius Campus." It's targeted at young students in Germany between the ages of 15 and 19.
Study says livestock emissions can be cut by 30 percent
We've all heard about how cows and other grass-eating cattle release methane, a powerful greenhouse gas (GHG), when they belch and fart. The United Nations has suggested in the past that the environmental impact of cattle might be even more damaging than the emissions of cars and trucks combined.
Scientists more certain humans cause global warming
A much-awaited United Nations report on the science behind climate change says scientists are 95 percent sure that humans are the "dominant cause" of global warming since the 1950s. The document, which is meant to serve as a guideline for policymakers to shift towards greener energies, warns that the impact of greenhouse gas emissions could linger for centuries.
#speciesoftheweek: The luscious lobster
35,000 walrus – our #numberoftheweek
WWF: We just halved the world's vertebrate population
#speciesoftheweek: The Rhinoceros Beetle and its Battle Styles
Deforestation in Brazil jumps about 29% – our #numberoftheweek
recycling food biodiversity Cancun water british council science India climate environment berlin coal united states global ideas deutsche welle climate change power Germany UN Durban Brazil green United Nations species electricity cop18 sustainable doha energy solar power emissions global warming deforestation Arctic solar animals oil forests CO2 conservation
GLOBAL IDEAS Photos
Ice Blog


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MainJudaismLove the Stranger Because You Were Once Strangers
Love the Stranger Because You Were Once Strangers
That commandment calls upon Europe now.
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, 06/09/15 23:16
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks
Rabbi Dr. Sacks was Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth 199-2013 and a member of the House of Lords since 2009. He has authored many books on Judaic thought, appears regularly in the British media and has kindly allowed us to post his essay on the Sabbath Torah reading each week as well as other sermons.
More from the author ►
The following article on the European refugee crisis by Rabbi Sacks was published today in The Observer (a UK national newspaper).
You would have to be less than human not to be moved by images we have seen of the refugee crisis threatening to overwhelm Europe: the desperate scenes at the station in Budapest, the seventy one bodies found in the abandoned lorry in Austria, the two hundred people drowned when their boat capsized off the coast in Libya, and most heartbreaking of all, the body of three year old Aylan Kurdi, lifeless on a Turkish shore: an image that will linger long in the mind as a symbol of a world gone mad.
This is the greatest humanitarian challenge faced by Europe in many decades. Angela Merkel was not wrong when she said, "If Europe fails on the question of refugees, its close connection with universal civil rights will be destroyed."
The influx of refugees overwhelming parts of Europe is a massive crisis, but it is at just such times that it is worth remembering that the Chinese ideogram for 'crisis' also means 'opportunity.' Now is a unique opportunity to show that the ideals for which the European Union and other international bodies such as the United Nations were formed are still compelling, compassionate and humane.
Many of the conventions and protocols establishing legal rights for refugees emerged in the aftermath of the Second World War, as did the Universal Declaration of Human Rights itself. One of the dark moments in that history occurred in July 1938, when representatives of thirty two countries gathered in the French spa town of Evian to discuss the humanitarian disaster that everyone knew was about to overtake the Jews of Europe wherever Hitler's Germany held sway. Jews were desperate to leave. They knew their lives were at risk and so did the politicians and aid agencies at the conference. Yet country after country shut its doors. Nation after nation in effect said, it wasn't their problem.
At such times even small humanitarian gestures can pierce the darkness and light a flame of hope. That is what happened in Kindertransport, the initiative spearheaded, among others, by the late Sir Nicholas Winton that rescued ten thousand Jewish children from Nazi Germany. Half a century later I came to know many of those who had been rescued. They loved Britain and sought richly to contribute to it. I and many other Jews of my generation grew up with that love, knowing that without Britain's willingness to provide our parents and grandparents with refuge, they would have died and we would not have been born. As long as human history is told, these acts of humanitarianism will stand as a triumph of the spirit over political expediency and moral indifference.
Sixty years after Kindertransport a gathering took place in London of more than a thousand of those who had been rescued. It was a highly emotional day as one after another told their stories. But the speech that had us all in tears was not from one of the rescued children but from the late Lord Attenborough, whose family were among the rescuers.
He spoke of how his parents summoned their three boys and told them they wanted to adopt two young Jewish girls from Germany, Helga and Irene. They explained the sacrifices they would all have to make. They would now be a family of seven rather than five, which meant that they would have to share more widely, and that, they said, included their love, because "You have us, but they have nobody." The boys agreed, and the two girls became part of their family. As he told this story, Lord Attenborough wept, and said that was the most important day of his life. Suddenly we realized that it is the sacrifices we make for the sake of high ideals that make us great, and that applies to nations as well as individuals.
Even in the best-case scenario, Europe alone cannot solve the problems of which the refugees are the victims. The conflicts that have brought chaos to the Middle East continue to defy any obvious solution. Every option that has been tried has seemed to fail: military intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq, no-fly zones in Libya, and non-intervention in Syria. None has put out the smoldering fires of unrest, religious and ethnic discord and civil war. It is all too easy to say, this is not our problem, and besides, it is happening a long way away.
Yet nothing in our interconnected world is a long way away. Everything that could go global does go global, from terror to religious extremism to websites preaching paranoia and hate. Never before have John Donne's words rung more true: "Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind." Therefore, "never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee."
A strong humanitarian response on the part of Europe and the international community could achieve what military intervention and political negotiation have thus far failed to achieve. They would constitute the clearest possible evidence that the European experience of two World Wars and the Holocaust have taught that free societies, where people of all faiths and ethnicities make space for one another, are the only way to honour our shared humanity, whether we conceive that humanity in secular or religious terms. Fail this and we will have failed one of the fundamental tests of humanity.
I used to think that the most important line in the Bible was, "Love your neighbour as yourself." Then I realised that it is easy to love your neighbour because he or she is usually quite like yourself. What is hard is to love the stranger, one whose colour, culture or creed is different from yours. That is why the command, "Love the stranger because you were once strangers," resonates so often throughout the Bible.
It is summoning us now. A bold act of collective generosity will show that the world, particularly Europe, really has learned the lesson of its own dark past and is willing to take a global lead in building a more hopeful future. Wars that cannot be won by weapons can sometimes be won by the sheer power of acts of humanitarian generosity to inspire the young to choose the way of peace instead of holy war.
Tags:Budapest, refugee, infiltrators.


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The roots of Heidt Design can be traced back to a makeshift office in the Tampa garage of Dick Merrin in 1943. Merrin Engineering Company was the proving ground for Dick Merrin, Alan Primm, Bob Heidt, and James Burney, the original members of Heidt-Burney that operated until the late 1960s.
In 1971, Heidt and Associates was incorporated by Bob Heidt and E. T. "Buddy" Henry. They were joined by Art Andrews (Hillsborough County Engineer) in 1972 and by James Lucas in 1980. These leaders of development consulting dominated the Tampa engineering and surveying market for private land developers and homebuilders.
The 1980s ushered in a boom for Hillsborough County and Heidt & Associates was there to provide engineering and surveying services for projects like Bloomingdale, Avila, Tampa Palms, Hunters Green and Westchase. Heidt continued to have success in the 1990s with projects such as Harbour Island, Meadow Pointe, Cheval, West Meadows, the Westshore Mall, the St. Pete Times Forum and FishHawk Ranch.
From 1999 to 2005, Heidt and Associates continued to expand to over 300 employees by adding offices in Fort Myers, Sarasota and Brooksville under new leadership who purchased ownership of Heidt & Associates in 2005. Unfortunately, the economic recession that crippled the residential homebuilding industry proved to be more than the owners of Heidt and Associates could withstand. The owners decided to close the doors of Heidt and Associates on September 15, 2009 after yielding to overwhelming financial pressure.
2009 - Present Day
Pat Gassaway, Tim Plate, Mike Tucker, and Brian Cale, four senior executives of the former firm, purchased the assets of Heidt and Associates from the Bank of Tampa and started the current firm of Heidt Design to continue to serve our loyal clients. Operations commenced at Heidt Design on September 16, 2009 with a total of 16 employees from the former firm to avoid any interruption of service to our loyal clients. Brian Cale's interest in Heidt Design was redeemed in 2011 by Gassaway, Plate and Tucker to allow him to begin his current career with a national homebuilding company where he continues to be a loyal client.
Today, Heidt Design's team includes almost 60 employees in our Tampa office and continues to grow both in size and geographic diversity with the opening of our new Orlando office.
What We're Doing Today
From left to right: Buddy Henry, Michael Tucker, Tim Plate, Patrick Gassaway, and Art Andrews


text:
search filter All ContentAll ProceedingsSociety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and Exhibition
VISIT SPE
Completion Monitoring Systems/Intelligent Wells (1)
Downhole tools and equipment (1)
Drill Bits (1)
Drilling Measurement, Data Acquisition and Automation (1)
Measurement while drilling (1)
Drilling Operations (6)
Directional drilling (1)
Drillstring Design (1)
Drillstring dynamics (1)
HSSE & Social Responsibility Management (1)
Contingency planning and emergency response (1)
Information Management and Systems (4)
Production String Design and Installation (1)
John Macpherson
Advisory System for Drilling: Automatic Procedures Acting on Real-time Data
Dmitriy Dashevskiy, John Macpherson, Ralf Mieting, Ingolf Wassermann
Publisher: Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)
Paper presented at the IADC/SPE International Drilling Conference and Exhibition, March 3–5, 2020
Paper Number: SPE-199657-MS
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/199657-MS
Thorough planning of drilling operations includes capturing best practices and expert knowledge as operational procedures to provide guidance during execution. However, due to the high level of uncertainty in drilling, and because conventional field procedures are generic and not context sensitive, they are open to interpretation. The resulting performance depends on the user's experience. In challenging situations, when crews are under time pressure and stress, any assistance with monitoring drilling conditions, identifying causes, and carrying out mitigation activities, is of value. This paper describes an advisory system to capture operational knowledge in the form of context sensitive procedures and rules. The system uses real-time measurements and connections to other systems to gather information and data on current operational conditions. Automatic execution of the procedures and rules is possible within the current level of process automation, but the manual use of the system can guide field users through complex tasks. This is particularly useful in handling manually complex operations within an automation scenario, and helps with maintaining situational awareness for operators. As an essential piece of the drilling automation package, the system monitors events created by various specialized processing and alarm-generating components, and triggers execution of required workflows. The deployment of the advisory system in the North Sea has focused on several aspects: drilling with RSS systems, automated trajectory drilling, borehole cleaning, vibration management, MWD/LWD tools troubleshooting, and drilling through stringers. For example, hard formation stringers recognized by the stringer-detection application, trigger execution of mitigation procedures, giving precise instructions depending on the wellbore inclination. The system easily integrates with, and controls, these application libraries allowing consistent execution promoting the reduction of NPT. Further, the advisory system allows autonomous monitoring of drilling events, and execution of best operating practices facilitates multi-well remote operations. Situational awareness is critical in situations where human operators and automated systems play inter-related roles. In such cases, it is important for users to know the state of each task and understand how activities they perform affect other users. The use of context sensitive procedures and rules, executed with connectivity to instrumentation, measurements and real-time applications, allows the user to maintain situational awareness while automating the drilling process.
Creating Open Source Models, Test Cases, and Data for Oilfield Drilling Challenges
Paul Pastusek, Greg Payette, Roman Shor, Eric Cayeux, Ulf Jakob Aarsnes, John Hedengren, Stéphane Menand, John Macpherson, Raju Gandikota, Michael Behounek, Richard Harmer, Emmanuel Detournay, Roland Illerhaus, Yu Liu
Paper presented at the SPE/IADC International Drilling Conference and Exhibition, March 5–7, 2019
The drilling industry has substantially improved performance based on knowledge from physics-based, statistical, and empirical models of components and systems. However, most models and source code have been recreated multiple times, which requires significant effort and energy with little additional benefit or step-wise improvements. The authors propose that it is time to form a coalition of industry and academic leaders to support an open source effort for drilling, to encourage the reuse of continuously improving models and coding efforts. The vision for this guiding coalition is to 1) set up a repository for source code, data, benchmarks, and documentation, 2) encourage good coding practices, 3) review and comment on the models and data submitted, 4) test, use and improve the code, 5) propose and collect anonymized real data, 6) attract talent and support to the effort, and 7) mentor those getting started. Those interested to add their time and talent to the cause may publish their results through peer-reviewed literature. Several online meetings are planned to create this coalition, establish a charter, and layout the guiding principles. Multiple support avenues are proposed to sustain the effort such as: annual user group meetings, create a SPE Technical Section, and initiating a Joint Industry Program (JIP). The Open Porous Media Initiative is just one example of how this could be organized and maintained. As a starting point, this paper reviews existing published drilling models and highlights the similarities and differences for commonly used drillstring hydraulics, dynamics, directional, and bit-rock interaction models. The key requirements for re-usability of the models and code are: 1) The model itself must be available as open source, well documented with the objective and expected outcomes, include commented code, and shared in a publicly available repository which can be updated, 2) A user's guide must include how to run the core software, how to extend software capabilities, i.e., plug in new features or elements, 3) Include a "theory" manual to explain the fundamental principles, the base equations, any assumptions, and the known limitations, 4) Data examples and formatting requirements to cover a diversity of drilling operations, and 5) Test cases to benchmark the performance and output of different proposed models. In May 2018 at "The 4th International Colloquium on Non-linear dynamics and control of deep drilling systems," the keynote question was, "Is it time to start using open source models?" The answer is "yes". Modeling the drilling process is done to help drill a round, ledge free hole, without patterns, with minimum vibration, minimum unplanned dog legs, that reaches all geological targets, in one run per section, and in the least time possible. An open source repository for drilling will speed up the rate of learning and automation efforts to achieve this goal throughout the entire well execution workflow, including planning, BHA design, real-time operations, and post well analysis.
Smart Wired Pipe: Drilling Field Trials
John Macpherson, Ingo Roders, Kai Schoenborn, Ralf Mieting, Fernando Lopez
Drilling systems automation requires a downhole digital backbone for closed-loop control, as do many other real-time drilling, completion and production operations. The absence of a reliable, high data bandwidth, bi-directional communication method between surface and downhole is a barrier to digitalization and automation of the oil field. This paper describes the development and successful drilling field trial of a micro-repeater wired pipe – effectively "smart pipe" – that removes this barrier. The developed system uses battery-powered micro-repeaters (a fail-safe signal booster) placed within the box of each tubular and fully encapsulated dual RF-resonant antennas to transmit data between tubulars. The current system delivers 1-Mbps backbone data rate with a maximum payload of 720 kbps, and with a very low latency of 15 μsec/km, making it ideal for control-loop applications. The system design focusses on reliability: failure of multiple components will not affect telemetry. The prototype system has been rigorously field tested during drilling in Oklahoma. Testing occurred on a drilling rig in Beggs, Oklahoma. The first trial (2016) covered drilling operations, the second (2017) covered controlling downhole technology; both were successful. The drilling trial demonstrated fitting the system to pipe with conventional API connections, standard rig-floor pipe handling, reliable wireless transmission between surface receivers and wired pipe network, the use of multiple along-string measurements of temperature and vibration, and simulated component failure. Of particular note was the surface system: it is wireless and no modification to the drilling rig was required. Conventional tubulars can be refit with the system, which removes a barrier to the use of wired pipe for automation and LWD/MWD measurements in lower cost onshore operations. There is a benefit for drilling operations: all pipe joints contain a micro-repeater and are addressable for "smart pipe" applications such as an electronic pipe tally, and pipe condition monitoring. Drilling operations are the first users of the system, but it serves other operations, for example tubing conveyed wireline operations. The smart wired pipe concept is truly innovative. It enables drilling systems automation and logging-while-drilling applications, such as seismic-while-drilling with along-string sensors, by providing a fully open acquisition and control platform to the industry.
Measurement of Dynamics Phenomena in Downhole Tools - Requirements, Theory and Interpretation
Andreas Hohl, Christian Herbig, Pedro Arevalo, Hanno Reckmann, John Macpherson
Paper presented at the IADC/SPE Drilling Conference and Exhibition, March 6–8, 2018
Downhole tools in bottom-hole assemblies are subject to high dynamic loads during drilling operations. The negative impacts of these dynamic loads can be inefficient drilling with low rate of penetration (ROP), reduced downhole directional and formation measurement service quality, and downhole tool failures with associated non-productive time. The dynamic phenomena can be categorized by direction into axial, torsional and lateral vibrations, and by excitation mechanism into forced excitation, self-excitation, and parameter excitation. Forced vibrations are mainly caused by imbalances in the drilling system or by the working principles of downhole tools such as the mud motor. Self-excitation mechanisms are mostly driven by the interaction of the bit, reamer or drilling system with the formation, and can cause detrimental dynamic behavior such as torsional stick-slip, bit bounce, and backward whirl. These diverse vibration phenomena require tailored mitigation strategies. To a certain extent, these mitigation strategies are contradictory. Misinterpretation of downhole measurements can lead to even worse vibration levels with severe consequences for reliability, ROP, and measurement quality. As a consequence, downhole measurement devices should differentiate vibration phenomena. This distinct differentiation could then be used to choose appropriate mitigation strategies. This paper analyses and defines the requirements for dynamics measurement devices. The specification, number, and placement of sensors and their associated sampling rates are examined to distinguish vibration directions and phenomena. The usefulness of these requirements is demonstrated using examples of torsional stick-slip and high-frequency torsional oscillations, lateral vibrations, and backward whirl. The results of kinematic modeling are analyzed and compared to high-speed vibration data from field runs measured with the latest generation of vibration measurement tools. Possible misinterpretation of vibration conditions in the case of inappropriate measurements is shown. The results are discussed by comparing theoretical modeling with field data. The defined requirements and guidelines enable a flawless interpretation of downhole vibration measurements and unveil drilling optimization opportunities. Different vibration phenomena can be identified reliably and appropriate mitigation strategies applied in real time at the wellsite by the driller or automation systems. This finally reduces the vibration load on the drilling system, increasing its reliability and performance.
A 300 Degree Celsius Directional Drilling System
Ari Stefánsson, Ralf Duerholt, Jon Schroder, John Macpherson, Carsten Hohl, Thomas Kruspe, Tor-Jan Eriksen
The typical rating for downhole measurement-while-drilling equipment for oil and gas drilling is between 150°C and 175°C. There are currently few available drilling systems rated for operation at temperatures above 200°C. This paper describes the development, testing and field deployment of a drilling system comprised of drill bits, positive displacement motors and drilling fluids capable of drilling at operating temperatures up to 300°C. It also describes the development and testing of a 300°C capable measurement-while-drilling platform. The development of 300°C technologies for geothermal drilling also extends tool capabilities, longevity and reliability at lower oilfield temperatures. New technologies developed in this project include 300°C drill bits, metal-to-metal motors, and drilling fluid, and an advanced hybrid electronics and downhole cooling system for a measurement-while-drilling platform. The overall approach was to remove elastomers from the drilling system and to provide a robust "drilling-ready" downhole cooling system for electronics. The project included laboratory testing, field testing and full field deployment of the drilling system. The US Department of Energy Geothermal Technologies Office partially funded the project. The use of a sub-optimal drilling system due to the limited availability of very high temperature technology can result in unnecessarily high overall wellbore construction costs. It can lead to short runs, downhole tool failures and poor drilling rates. The paper presents results from the testing and deployment of the 300°C drilling system. It describes successful laboratory testing of individual bottom-hole-assembly components, and full-scale integration tests on an in-house research rig. The paper also describes the successful deployment of the 300°C drilling system in the exploratory geothermal well IDDP-2 as part of the Iceland Deep Drilling Project. The well reached a measured depth of 4659m, by far the deepest in Iceland. The paper includes drilling performance data and the results of post-run analysis of bits and motors used in this well, which confirm the encouraging results obtained during laboratory tests. The paper also discusses testing and performance of the 300°C rated measurement-while-drilling components – hybrid electronics, power and telemetry - and the performance of the drilling tolerant cooling system. This is the industry's first 300°C capable drilling system, comprising metal-to-metal motors, drill bits, drilling fluid and accompanying measurement-while-drilling system. These new technologies provide opportunities for drilling oil and gas wells in previously undrillable ultra-high temperature environments.
Data Ownership for Drilling Automation – Managing the Impact
John Macpherson, John de Wardt, Moray Laing, Nathan Zenero
Drilling systems automation depends on timely flow of accurate and relevant data from multiple sources to control equipment, machines and processes. The fragmented nature of the drilling operations business means that data must usually be shared among companies contracted to perform services, and the operator, and all companies must trust that data. This paper describes the issue of data ownership in terms of the application of drilling systems automation, and proposes solutions. Various parties in a drilling operation measure, collect, analyze and report data gathered during the drilling operation. They take actions to control the drilling process, avoid problems and improve performance, using information derived from the data. Data is used in pre-job planning, in real-time by those operating the drilling rig and various drilling tools, as well as periodically to advise the onsite drilling team. Data flow ranges from high-frequency, low-latency response loops at the wellsite to low-frequency, high-latency response loops in remote centers. The SPE Drilling Systems Automation Technical Section (DSATS) has identified OPC UA as the most suited communications protocol for multidirectional fast-loop control systems. In these environments, there is high likelihood that a controller from one supplier will access and use data created by another supplier. Drilling systems automation requires structured and organized data sharing between parties. This data sharing adds value to the drilling process. A conceptual data model describes at least three classes of data generated while drilling, and all lie within the confidentiality envelope of the operator or government agency. There is data that is the property of the data generator (such as equipment condition monitoring data), data that is restricted (such as formation evaluation data), and data that is shared in an "open data pool" for the purposes of drilling systems automation. Because ownership or control means responsibility for data quality, it is important that each data generator own its contribution to the shared data pool. The data aggregator – the party managing the shared data pool – is therefore not necessarily the owner of all data in the pool, but a caretaker of that data. This paper describes the history of data measurement, data flow and data ownership in the drilling industry. It will address data ownership issues pertaining to drilling systems automation and drilling performance improvement. A brief review of examples of data from academia and from within our own industry will assist in understanding the relationship between data ownership and intellectual property. The paper presents a data ownership and data sharing solution that provides an environment for drilling systems automation.
MWD Failure Rates Due to Drilling Dynamics
Hanno Reckmann, Pushkar Jogi, Franck Kpetehoto, Sridharan Chandrasekaran, John Macpherson
Paper presented at the IADC/SPE Drilling Conference and Exhibition, February 2–4, 2010
Rig downtime due to MWD tool failure is expensive, particularly on offshore rigs with extremely high operating costs. There are different reasons for tool failures, one being the high vibration loads on MWD tools under extreme drilling conditions. MWD and LWD tools are usually equipped with sensors to measure and record vibrations for drilling efficiency and optimization. The goal of the study described in this paper is to establish the link between MWD or LWD tool failure, and drilling dynamics. With this knowledge, it is possible to reduce failure rates and costs with real-time monitoring of downhole drilling dynamics. To analyze the effect of drilling dynamics on MWD tool failures, a unique database of MWD runs in challenging environments was created. This database includes vibration data recorded at 5-second intervals from more than 12,000 drilling and reaming hours, over a total footage of 425,000 feet. In addition to unique dynamics data such as weight, torque, bending moments and axial, lateral and tangential RMS and peak accelerations, the database included detailed run and failure reports, and environmental information such as well profiles and drilling operations. A statistical study using the logistic regression indicates the types of dynamic behavior most statistically significant in MWD/LWD tool failures. These are cumulative lateral vibrations and backward whirl. Cumulative axial or tangential acceleration appears not to be significant in current MWD/LWD tool failures. A study on the correlation between recorded MWD tool dynamics and tool failure rates established the link between time spent operating above a level of vibration and the probability of tool failure. This paper contains charts describing this relationship between dynamics, operating hours, and MWD/LWD tool failure rates. These charts are valuable in operational risk management and in developing procedures for optimal drilling practices that reduce the dynamic loads on the MWD system, resulting in prolonged tool life and reduced cost.


Lots of pictures, yes. Conclusion: Getty, good, MOCA bad.
Wow – what a difference between the two – at least that I can see in the photos. I was at the SD Musuem of Photographic Arts a few months ago. Got all excited that I was going to see some incredible stuff….. wrongo! Was just crap. Well, not all of it, but easily 80-90% was totally worthless.
Now Getty – that's a place I would love to go to. What a dream to play with a camera there! Thanks for sharing the photos!


I like this piece. Online popularity still seems to get a bad rap. This writer argues that it has come to stay as part of civilization and it is even upending conventional metrics of popularity.
"So that means that online, everyone is in the same pool. Whether you are a big company or just a little guy with a camera-equipped smartphone, you're fighting the same fight. To me, that means that if you can become popular online, you're actually doing something significantly more difficult.
Because online, everyone has access to the tools and everyone is fighting for the same attention. If you're watching television, the news will be there at 7 every night. But Facebook, you don't know what the hell you're going to see day to day. It's much harder to cut through that noise.
The internet is the new New York — if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere."


text:
America's own Don Quixote
Gabriel Niforatos | Monday, September 25, 2017
Can you imagine what the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia would have looked like if the founding fathers refused to listen to what the other members had to say? Can you imagine what would have happened if James Madison made pronouncements without any foundation and anticipated the potential arguments of those who might disagree with him, registering his opinion ahead of time and denying debate with them? What would the Constitution have looked like? Could there even have been one? Without discourse nothing can get accomplished; leaders aren't accountable or responsible and America falters globally and domestically. President Donald Trump's use of Twitter is, in effect, such an egregious affront to the principles upon which America was built.
Of course, the use of Twitter isn't itself the problem. In an increasingly digital world, finding new ways of keeping in touch and facilitating debate is only natural. Democracy entails politicians and leaders being accountable to the people who put them in office and the use of social media can be seen as an abstract sense of that idea. President Obama was the first president to have a Twitter account and his ethical utilization of social media bolstered both of his campaign successes. Today, many politicians, business leaders and others employ Twitter and other forms of social media. Although one could argue that tweeting may be one of the least "democratic" means of communicating with the people because it is, in effect, talking "at" people and not "with" them, when used properly it encourages debate and conversation about the topics being discussed.
But facilitating debate is exactly what @realDonaldTrump is not doing. For Trump, Twitter is the 140-character venting of often unreasoned, incendiary opinion intended to preempt discourse. It's the shield he uses to deflect negative press and transfer the blame and attention onto someone else, whether political opponents, such as Hillary Clinton, or even members of his own party, such as Sen. John McCain, who courageously once again announced that he would not support the latest effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Health Care Act.
Via Twitter, Trump has escalated the tensions with North Korea, blatantly lied about reports involving the investigation with Russia, shamed his own party and condemned the mayor of London while investigation was still pending concerning another armed attack. The point isn't that our president should delete his account. The point is that there is no point in trolling straw men and, like Don Quixote, fighting fictitious enemies on battlefronts that either do not exist or that continuously change.
Trump's use of Twitter goes against the cores of political responsibility and accountability that the founding fathers envisioned. They set the framework for the development of a government that is open in its dealings, where the leaders of the government would be expected to listen to the will of the people. Of course, this is not to say that the voice of the "dissenter" should be prohibited. Dissent is welcome and protected as a civil liberty in our Constitution. Yet, at the core of our nation's ideals, it is argument and counterargument which contribute to the debate and constructive discourse toward making America the very best it can be. One-hundred-forty–character retaliatory barbs against those with whom the president disagrees, many of which incite distress and discord and, one cannot help but believe, are intended to create division instead of unity, isn't the way to conduct policy.
Americans need to make Donald Trump accountable for throwing out opinions that don't allow debate and many of which are attacks on other people. The issue isn't one of grand, sweeping societal reforms to upend a system and it is not one as dramatic as any sort of revolt. It certainly don't mean foisting opinions onto others or requiring others to change. This is, in fact, the root of the problem that needs addressing. Americans need to take small steps that add up to big ones, and, ignoring the intentionally and often times adolescent rhetoric from a president who more resembles a child-king who retaliates against anyone who doesn't affirm his immense and immensely fragile ego than the leader of the world's greatest democracy, facilitate discussion that leads us to solutions.
Donald Trump has almost 36,000 tweets on his personal account and over 1,200 on the presidential account. But what is being said? In the Quixotic battles that are being waged, the only victor, the only speaker, the only voice in a debate that is shut down before it ever gets off the ground is that of Donald Trump. It is time to realize that the windmills against which America's current president is waging an offensive war of words aren't giants and focus on the conversations that matter. As the campaign of Bernie Sanders powerfully demonstrated, college students and young adults are the ones who have the ability to swing and determine the outcome of elections and the future of America. If America's current leaders across both sides of the aisle will not reign in a president who effortlessly hurls unsubstantiated epithets at those whom he feels might upstage him, most recently professional football players and basketball players, then college students and young adults need to demonstrate, at the polls and in writing campaigns, town hall meetings that they convene and through all forms of social media, like Twitter, that they will no longer vote for or support elected officials who refuse to take a stand against the offenses against fellow Americans and the principles upon which this country was established by a president who is best caricatured as Twitter Man.
Tags: Donald Trump, POTUS, Twitter
About Gabriel Niforatos
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Electing Trump, Bernie or a cat
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It doesn't matter who wins


As part of our maypole celebration, I decided to make a little liquid sunshine to share with the group. Following GardenMama's lead, we made a treat out of our homemade lemonade by freezing it in the hollowed out lemon halves. A mini-muffin tin was the perfect vehicle for holding these lemons upright so the lemonade could freeze in them.
The violets in some of the lemon treats added a little bit of fancy to an already fun treat!
Everyone at the maypole celebration enjoyed them immensely. I even saw a few adults enjoying them. :) But watching the littles with their yummy lemon treat was priceless.
A few lemon treats even made a whirl or two around the maypole.
The kids are already asking when we can make lemon treats again so I have a feeling they will be a spring and summer staple around here.
Really cute idea! I love using the lemon "shells" to serve the dessert in!
Those are so beautiful! And I bet very tasty.
Oh, we'll be doing this very soon!
Yum!!!!!!! And they turned out so pretty too!
what a yummy and beautiful treat!! can't wait for some sunshine so we can make some ourselves!
Beautiful and they look delicious!
How beautiful! I need to try these!
Wow! Just looks too good to eat but I bet was so refreshing!


In that spirit, many pet owners are using a free app called Cymera to artificially manipulate photos of cats, dogs, rabbits, and other critters so that their ears are perfectly round, like those of Mickey Mouse. Is that what Cymera was intended to do? No, not at all, but that's what people are using it for anyway, according to Lori Dorn of Laughing Squid. Dorn reports that the fad started in Japan before becoming so popular that Cymera eventually caved to public pressure and just posted ear-rounding instructions to its official Instagram account. If you can't beat 'em, make their ears perfectly round. Or something like that.
There could be something to this round-ears thing. It's certainly kept Mickey popular since 1928. Not to mention all those cartoon mice, from Mighty to Jerry to Danger. Even Deadmau5 has had the look going for some time. The technique is so effective, it could improve just about anyone's image.