Dick Mills is a retired analytical power engineer. Power plant training simulators, power system analysis software, fault-tree analysis, nuclear fuel management, process optimization, power grid operations, and the integration of energy markets into operation software, were his fields. All those things were analytical. None of them were hands-on.
Dick has also been an exterminator, a fire fighter, an airplane and glider pilot, a carney, and an active toastmaster.
During the years 2005-2017. Dick lived and cruised full-time aboard the sailing vessel Tarwathie (see my avatar picture). That was very hands on. During that time, Dick became a student of Leonard Susskind and a physics buff. Dick's blog (no longer active) is at dickandlibby.blogspot.com, there are more than 2700 articles on that blog relating the the cruising life.
Like many others, I have been seeking new and fun things to do during a pandemic. I decided on the new Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, but the Condor 2 Soaring Simulator is my intermediate step. I am certified as a pilot, including gliders, but I have not flown for many years because of the expense. …
The electric power industry faces much turmoil in the coming decades. The business model of the electric utility company (public or private) may not survive. In addition, the power needs of high-density cities may diverge significantly from non-urban areas causing political turmoil and technical hurdles. The increasing share of renewable energy will be a major…
When I ask questions about the conservation of information I frequently get the reply, “It depends on what you mean by information.” So, I researched how to better define information. What I found is almost more interesting than the conservation question. That sounds like the makings of a fun PF Insight article, so here goes….
Civil discussion and debate are critical to Physics Forums. But it is also important in everyday life. When arguments get overheated, people may avoid engaging with friends and family, and the relationships could wither and die. If the only safe topic you can discuss with your friend is the weather, your relationship is in…
Probably everyone reading this article already has education on elementary circuit analysis (CA) and many of us are much more advanced. Typically, the basic course covers both circuits covers simple devices like R, L, and C, it mentions electric or magnetic fields and then moves on to Ohm’s Law and CA… However, few such courses…
If you don’t plan to become a scientist or an engineer, is there a good reason to study physics? I say, “Yes,” because knowing just a little bit can be quite rewarding in ordinary life. For example, I have been enjoying just one little bit of physics for more than 55 years. I even earned…
At first, I wanted this title to say “Ohm’s law is not a Law.” But someone else used that phrase in a recent PF thread, and a storm of protest followed. We are talking about the relationship between the Voltage between two points in a circuit and the current between those same two points. ##R=V/I##,…
Power system security is much too big a topic for this article. But I can squeeze in a few points about vulnerability to cyber attacks. First, this topic follows naturally from Part 2’s discussion of grid control (remember that flyball governor?). Second, I feel that’s apropos in an era where the public believes that…
Let me use the terms “power grid” and “network” interchangeably. What is the Power Grid Required to Do? Deliver energy to customers, and thereby earn money so that the utilities can profit. Deliver power wherever and whenever the customers demand it. That implies maintaining the dynamic balance between energy produced, energy lost, and energy…
Instantaneous Power The formula for power is: ##P=V\cdot I## , power= voltage*current. We call that, instantaneous power. Even when ##V## and ##I## are changing in time, ##P=V\cdot I## applies for each instant. It matters not if the ##V## or ##I## changes are `sinusoidal, what their frequency is, or even if they are aperiodic. ##P=V\cdot…
Resistance to complex math seems to never die out. I see it frequently in PF posts. Often it takes the form of challenges rather than questions. First challenge: Complex is just a mathematical trick that has nothing to do with physics. Second challenge: Everything that complex does can be accomplished by ordinary real numbers. My…
For several years, I have been contemplating this beautiful picture by photographer Brian McPhee. I have a personal interest in the photograph because that boat is my year-round home. I also have a scientific interest in the photograph because of what it teaches me about rainbow physics. The simplest explanation of rainbow physics is based…
Introduction Few people know what happens when a customer does something like flipping a light switch. The full explanation requires descriptions of topics that span nanosecond to decade-long time scales. Think of it as scales measured with a high-speed chronograph, a stopwatch, an hourglass, or a calendar. At the earliest and briefest instants, pure physics…