About Luis Guillermo

I am a Junior who is currently attending Penn State University Park majoring in Management Information Systems. My focus with my major is primarily tailored to a supply chain focused career. I would like to create databases and utilize data to transform supply chain processes in both procurement procedures and manufacturing methods as well. I hope to use these practices to eventually work into a human capital focused career that will allow a much more in depth profile of individuals' skills using similar analytics methods to find best fit positions for the employees and company alike. I currently have a position with Johnson and Johnson for the Spring semester of 2019. I will be focusing on the consumer division of the company and will specifically be working on Franchise Integration. This position focuses mostly on the manufacturing aspect of supply chain, but also has some exposure to both procurement and project based work in a cross matrix style system of product development and enhancement.

Anheuser-Busch Purchases 40 Tesla Trucks

CNN announced last week that there has been a purchase of 40 Tesla trucks by the beverage giant, Anheuser-Busch. This marks a radical difference in the way that transportation in the United States might be viewed in the coming years. If there are findings that there are better efficiencies and practices with these new vehicles, there might be a tremendous change in the single largest distribution industry in the United States. Since this is a market leader making this move there might be a following afterwards if there are key indications of success in this venture. Imagine the hundreds of thousand big rigs on the road today and the pollution that these different vehicles add to our environment. As mentioned before, this is by far the most channel of distribution used in the United States for freighting materials around, so this could save us in environmental costs while also producing benefit for the companies that use these new vehicles. All of this could lead to yet another case of disruptive innovation (or disintermediation) in what is known as a pretty standardized industry. This could change the way rest stops and stations function because of the nature of how these vehicles operate. Who knows what steps could happen afterwards if this becomes a standard. Would this allow for a more accessible commercial view for electric vehicles? Could this perhaps allow us to move forward with the idea of mainstream sustainability in parts of industry that are notorious for pollution? This is all speculation for sure, but the capabilities for this change in industry could lead to benefits for both companies and individuals alike. These cell designs could power our homes, schools, and even major office buildings. It takes steps to adopt technologies like this, but this is definitely a step in the right direction.

 

http://money.cnn.com/2017/12/07/technology/anheuser-busch-tesla/index.html

Reports Show Magnesium Batteries Are Safer and More Efficient Than Lithium Ion Batteries

Researchers have concluded that using magnesium in place of lithium in battery designs has increased in efficiency and safety in tests. This marks a pretty important mark in the world of technology today because it could totally reclassify the very batteries that run our laptops, phones, and a plethora of other technology we use each and every day. Not only would this change a completely stable and efficient supply chain in the production of lithium ion batteries, but it will also create perhaps better and more consistent environments in our products. Increased battery capacity (research has shown that a magnesium battery that holds 3,830 Ah vs 2,062 Ah for lithium in the same charge time) will allow for better on screen usage time for devices across the board, and with increased safety, design limitations will also be less restrictive. Companies can now continue to seek slimmer and slimmer profiles in their designs and with this new technology, the issue of battery safety will be less of a liability. If further research is done to optimize the cell design of these batteries, who knows what could come of the new developments from just changing what powers the device.

https://www.engadget.com/2017/12/01/magnesium-batteries-safer-more-efficient-than-lithium/

How Net Neutrality Will Affect Education

The impact that net neutrality has in the world today is only spoken in terms of what will happen to households and individuals that are paying for internet access, but there is much more to focus on when speaking of this issue. Institutions and individuals alike will have to face the reality of the unrestricted control of the content that we can access on the web if the House and the Senate decide to vote for the repeal of neutrality on December 15th. The main focus of this issue is the cost that will be associated with the access of the sites and content that have become an integral part of classrooms in the 21st century. If these already complex and costly networks of internet have increased cost, not only will students suffer, but so will institutions. Restrictions on bandwidth, browsing, and a number of other limitations will limit the availability and use of these technologies within classrooms. If students and professors alike have to alter their classes and habits because of the greed of the FCC, how would that reflect on the United States ideal of always improving and looking for better solutions to our problems? Perhaps the greatest affect seen by institutions would be in the numerous efforts put forth with regards to research that is done in these institutions. If universities have to limit one of the greatest financial contributors to the institution because of these laws, how would that reflect on the numerous calls to reduce state spending on these efforts? Net neutrality has effects outside of how much Netflix you can watch or how many times a day you can check your email. These efforts could set back the great work that is being done in universities for no other reason other than for the increased profitability of these already overblown telecommunication companies.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/leadership_360/2017/11/how_losing_net_neutrality_will_change_teaching_and_learning.html

TSA Wants to Implement Facial Recognition Software in Airports

The latest release in the ever changing security protocol that the TSA employs is calling for the use of bio-metric systems in airports that would allow the TSA to use facial recognition software to track where people are going. The numerous issues that come with this idea only scrape the surface of what this ever changing community of technology is coming to face: privacy. Now a days, it seems that the limits of technology do not coincide with the sort of responsibility to focus on ethical behavior. Allowing the TSA to track any American through basically the entirety of the airport is not something that should settle travelers. Sure, the safety might be improved, but the fact of the matter is that the information isn’t only being given to the FBI or Homeland Security. This information can be given to any single third party that is willing to pay, and given that this is something that is impeding basic rights (the right to travel Shapiro v. Thompson) this should not be something that should be considered further. On top of this notion, it would be surveying non-US citizens, which blurs the line of may surveillance protocols that exist in other countries. And even if these people are citizens, people of color are statistically mis-recognized more-so than any other group. If there are inconsistencies with a system that already works against the people in this group, what benefit is there to adopt this policy?  To sum it all up, this idea might be something that could help the TSA with its duties, but there are far too many inconsistencies and red flags for this to be something that should be adopted with open arms.

 

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2017/11/tsa-plans-use-face-recognition-track-americans-through-airports

3D Printing Strengthens Steel in New Tests

Scientists in the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California are experimenting with methods in the production of steel to incorporate 3D printing into strengthening the material. The process focuses to improve steel that, while strong, still has small pores that make the structure more fragile when bent due to the microscopic pores in the steel. What scientists found is that there are methods to create the steel with methods derived from 3D printing that create steel that is up to double the strength of normal steel, while still being ductile. The new process functions a lot like a conventional 3D printer, but one that uses materials that are not limited to just plastic. This new and improved method of producing steel will allow for cheaper methods of producing items out of said steel. But alongside the benefit of stronger steel, the article also states since the group that initially did the experiment did it with conventional tools, that it is more likely that other companies continue to improve the process itself. Just goes to show that the maker culture really is as community based as described in class

 

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/10/3d-printing-doubles-strength-stainless-steel