I thought I was done talking about drone aircraft for a while, until I read a recent article in the Los Angeles Times. According to the article, the U.S. Navy is testing a new drone that will be able to take off, complete a mission, and land autonomously, that is, without any human pilot whatsoever.

If this report is true, then the Navy’s Northrop Grumman X-47B represents quite a technological step forward from the current crop of drones, which rely on ground-based pilots to fly them. It also introduces a new element into the military chain of command. Just who is accountable if this deadly robotic weapon with a computer mind of its own kills someone, friend or foe, whether by intention or by mistake?

Remotely piloted drone aircraft are now routinely employed against al-Qaeda terrorists in Afghanistan and other countries, and President Obama’s proposed defense budget suggests an even greater reliance on them in the future. I personally support the increased development and deployment of drone aircraft, though I am concerned that fully autonomous weapons introduce new political and moral issues that we as a nation will need to address before these weapons are introduced to the battlefield.

* * *

In a related article, I was interested to read that cutbacks in the defense budget may lead the Pentagon to shelve the high-tech Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk drone aircraft for the foreseeable future. The price for each Global Hawk drone is $176 million. Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter went on record last week, saying that the RQ-4 drone has “…priced itself out of the niche, in terms of taking pictures in the air. That’s a disappointment for us, but that’s the fate of things that become too expensive in a resource-constrained environment.”

The result is that the military will likely keep the Air Force’s fleet of 33 Lockheed U-2 spy planes flying through at least the next decade or longer. I wouldn’t be surprised to see other innovative new (and expensive) weapons systems shelved in favor of existing technology.

* * *

I was recently interviewed for an article that appeared in the January 23, 2012 issue of the San Diego Business Journal. In the article I discuss some of the things that made SAIC uniquely successful, including attracting and recruiting high-caliber talent by offering opportunities to become owners of the company.

* * *

Last Wednesday we made a field trip to Balboa Park here in San Diego. We visited museums and had a nice lunch at The Prado. I hope to go back soon to visit the Air and Space Museum. On Friday we went out on the boat and had lunch at Sally’s restaurant at the Manchester Hyatt on San Diego Bay. They have their own dock, which made our visit very pleasant.

– Bob

Bookmark to:
         

I’m somewhat surprised to see that President Obama has officially gone on record against the 1,700-mile Keystone XL pipeline — blaming his decision on the “rushed and arbitrary deadline” set by Republicans in Congress. The Canadian government is in favor of it, many of our elected representatives in Congress are in favor of it, but Obama is not.

I personally think there are many good reasons to build the pipeline, not the least of which includes the fact that our nation today needs access to more oil and petroleum products, not less. Increased supply in our own backyard will put downward pressure on prices, which will be a boost to our economy.

In addition, the $7 billion investment required to build the pipeline will provide a shot in the arm to the companies contracted to construct it — resulting in jobs, something we can definitely use more of right now. And of course the Iranian shenanigans in the Strait of Hormuz should concern us. I suspect that this issue is not dead, and that it will become even more heated as the election season wears on.

* * *

I have to say I’m not amazed that Kodak filed for bankruptcy this week. This legendary company was unable to compete in the market that it created — digital photography.

The outcome clearly demonstrates how difficult it can be for companies that are invested in a particular technology — in the case of Kodak, photographic film, paper, and chemicals — to leave behind old business models that served them well for many years. The company always seemed to be a step behind the competition, despite the fact that its leaders eventually realized that Kodak needed to embrace the digital world. Kodak has closed 13 factories and 130 photo laboratories since 2003, and let go 47,000 employees — all for naught.

* * *

As you know by now, on Thursday Rick Perry dropped out of the Republican Presidential race, endorsing Newt Gingrich on the way out. I think this will have an impact on Saturday’s South Carolina primary, potentially vaulting Gingrich into 1st place over Mitt Romney. Things are definitely getting interesting.

* * *

On Wednesday we made a field trip to the Mount Palomar Observatory. It was very cold at the top of the mountain, and there was some snow scattered about. Although we were unable to see the telescope, we picked up some literature that described the ordeal that the old timers went through to get the 200-inch mirror to the top of the mountain and installed in the telescope. It must have been something to see.

– Bob

Bookmark to:
         

It seems that the topic of the use of drone aircraft by our military has increasingly been in the news over the past few months. I have been collecting articles on this topic for some time, and I now have a file full of them. There are a number of good reasons why drones are becoming an important part of our nation’s arsenal:

• They are relatively inexpensive
• They are highly portable
• They can operate in environments that would be difficult or impossible for conventional aircraft to operate in
• They are often hard for the enemy to spot and even more difficult to shoot down
• They are effective
• They do not require onboard human pilots

I personally believe that drones are the best weapon we have against terrorism, and we should put great emphasis on their continued development and production.

President Obama has pushed to increase the U.S. inventory of drones during his time in office. According to a recent article in the Washington Post, the number of drone aircraft in the U.S. arsenal has sharply increased to 775 Predators, Reapers and other medium- and long-range drones, with many more currently in production.

The article points out that these drones — which have been used very effectively to monitor and execute suspected terrorists, including a number of al-Qaeda’s top leadership — are supported by a network of dozens of secret facilities and bases in the U.S. and overseas. Just this past week, Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud was likely killed by a U.S. drone aircraft attack in the North Waziristan region of Pakistan.

One of the posters on this blog — Larry Janning, a fellow SAIC alumnus in Dayton, Ohio — recently sent me a note about his new company. The company goes by the name of IonVentus, and it was founded to develop innovative small, disposable drone aircraft.

I visited his website and found the information on the IonVentus drones to be interesting. If this is a sign of where the future of drone aircraft is headed, then I believe we have only seen the tip of the iceberg.

* * *

The Republican primary continues to entertain me. I personally am not impressed by any of the candidates — I don’t view any of the field as Presidential timber. With the economy slowly on the mend, I think it will be difficult to beat Obama. I personally don’t think he has done a bad job.

* * *

Last Wednesday I went on another field trip, this time to the old mission at San Juan Capistrano. The old adobe church and buildings were well kept and I enjoyed our tour of the grounds.

– Bob

Bookmark to:
         

The big news this week was President Obama’s decision to shift U.S. military strategy in the face of continued pressure on Defense budgets, and changes in the global threat. According to a report in the Washington Post, this shift will ultimately reduce the size of both the U.S. Army and Marine Corps, cut the size of our nuclear arsenal, and reduce the number of U.S. troops stationed in Europe.

While spending will be cut in these areas, additional resources will be allocated to Special Operations forces, drone aircraft, and cybersecurity. And while there will be an overall shift in the military’s focus from Europe and Russia to Asia, China, and North Korea, the Middle East will still retain a large U.S. military presence.

With our ongoing deficit problems, it’s clear to me that we will have to tighten our belt and the military will have to take part in this exercise. In addition, the nature of the threats to our nation are changing dramatically. While Russia will always be a great potential adversary, the rise of China is something we cannot ignore. I would like to hear what you think about this change in our military strategy.

* * *

Last week I took a trip up to Julian, a mountain community about an hour east of San Diego. Although there was no snow, it was a beautiful day and the apple pie was delicious.

– Bob

Bookmark to:
         

2011 has been quite an eventful year for me. I spent the first few weeks of January in and out of hospitals, but my health improved significantly as the year progressed. I launched my Facebook page in January, and in February Professor Joseph Blasi was named the inaugural holder of the J. Robert Beyster Professorship of Employee Ownership at Rutgers’ School of Management and Labor Relations.

I was proud to play a role in the opening of the new UC San Diego Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center in March — the same month I was joined in the CONNECT Hall of Fame by my good friend Gene Ray, founder of Titan Corporation.

In April the FED conducted a national student essay contest on the topic of Creating Wealth by Sharing Wealth, and more than 430 graduate and undergraduate students participated from across the nation. In April I learned that the ocean sampling work we have been conducting from my boat Solutions led to the publication of an article in Nature titled “Evolution and metabolic significance of the urea cycle in photosynthetic diatoms.”

The 2011 Beyster Fellowship Symposium took place in June, and in August I visited the Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. I met with Craig Venter and his team at Cave Street in September to discuss their progress on the 2009-2010 Research Voyage of the Sorcerer II Expedition, and at the end of October I made a memorable trip to the University of Michigan to visit the College of Engineering and attend the homecoming football game.

In November I had the great honor of being inducted into the Greater Washington Government Contractor Hall of Fame, and I visited the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. In December we submitted the manuscript for my book with Mike Daniels on Network Solutions to our publisher, and I had a relaxing and warm Christmas here in La Jolla. I hope your year was as eventful and enjoyable as mine was.

* * *

For those of you interested in the topic of employee ownership, the Proceedings of the 2011 Beyster Fellowship Symposium are now available [PDF]. I was impressed by the large group of talented people who attended the Symposium, and I am looking forward to attending the next one.

* * *

I will probably have a very quiet New Year’s Eve. However you choose to celebrate the event, I hope you have a successful New Year.

– Bob

Bookmark to:
         

We continue to make good progress on the Network Solutions book. The manuscript has been delivered to the publisher and they are beginning the editing process. I expect this process will take several weeks and will most likely not begin in earnest until after the holidays.

I hope you can help me out by sending along any photos that you think might be properly included in the book. If you have something of interest, please post a response to this blog, and we will get in touch with you.

* * *

Last week we went on a tour of Universal Studios in Los Angeles. We visited some sound stages and saw how they make feature films. We even had the opportunity to participate in some scenes. It was quite an interesting trip. I have included a photo of us taken with Shrek and Fiona.

On Wednesday we made a trip to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. We took the tram around the property and saw all sorts of wild animals, including giraffes, elephants, lions, and more.

* * *

The weatherman says that we will not have a white Christmas this year. It will instead be sunny and about 70 degrees, with the Santa Ana winds blowing from the desert.

We will enjoy Christmas festivities at the Beach and Tennis Club again this year, and I would not be surprised to see the surfers out in force. I hope that wherever you are, you and your families have a very Merry Christmas.

– Bob

Bookmark to: