Utility Bill -- July, 2023 -- Hot, Hot, Texas -- ERCOT

Locator: 45258TX.

Everyone has heard:

• how hot it's been in Texas;
• how the grid may not hold;
• how expensive Texas electricity is.

This month I did not make much of an effort to conserve electricity, and let my wife turn on the a/c as needed, and even wash and dry clothes as she wanted.

My wife is like her Japanese mother: doing laundry seems to be her favorite pastime, especially towels. She could do towels all day long if we had that many.

This was our electricity bill, our entire utility bill except water which we pay with our rent. We do not have natural gas.

Note the average high temperature last year (103°F) compare to this year (100°F), and compare it to the previous month (June, 2023): 91°F.

Average daily usage: 16 kWh vs 18 kWH.

Okay.

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The Book Club

The Premonition: A Pandemic Story: Michael Lewis, c. 2021.

I might make it a requirement: to access the blog one must have this book in your personal library.

I could require a password to access the blog and the password would be the "nth" word on the "nth" page of the book and the password would change weekly.

The book is that good.

I've read the first chapter and the first half of the second chapter. I have no idea where Michael Lewis is going with this but it is absolutely fascinating. 

But no, I won't require a password to access the blog. LOL.

I don't read books like these, as a rule, and to the best of knowledge, I've never read any of the twelve books or so that Michale Lewis has already written, including Moneyball. 

103 -- July 31, 2023

Locator: 45257OILDEMAND.

Link here.

In round numbers: 100.

Last time, IIRC, peak global oil demand was around 99 million bopd back in 2019, prior to Covid-19.

Also, speaking of records, as of April, 2023, or thereabouts, perhaps a month earlier or a month later, the population of India officially exceeded that of China. The country of India will gain two US senators and six new congressional representatives. China will, respectively, lose four and twelve. The latter, not to be confused with "four and twenty." 

By the way, speaking of "four and twenty" -- if folks recall, the English language (think Old English) derives from the German. And that's how the Germans counted: "vierundzwanzig."

From the blog earlier:

SAFK -- Going Out To Buy Sophia A New Pair Of Shoes -- July 31, 2023

Locator: 45256INV.

This pretty much says it all:

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And, Thank You Very Much

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Microsoft

As expected, of those who replied, none could answer the pop quiz question: name Microsoft's spatial computing headset.

 

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The Book Club

 

Covid-19

Apollo's Arrow: The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live, Nicholas A. Christakis, c. 2020.

Notes.

Re-reading what was going on in real-time, in 2019 - 2020, makes me question whether "experts" in microbiology opining today on this whole issue even remember what was happening then. It's easy now to ignore "facts" and opine politically.

This is a very, very important book to have in one's "Covid library."

Apollo's Arrow: wiki.

 

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My Covid-19 Library

The Genetics Of Corona Virus, link here. 

Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus, David Quammen, 2022. Link here.

Spike: The Virus vs. The People - the Inside Story – Sage Scientist’s Revelatory Covid Memoir -- Jeremy Farrar -- October 15, 2022. Link here.

Apollo's Arrow: The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live, Nicholas A. Christakis, c. 2020. 614.5924CHR. Link here.

Wuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City, Fang Fang, translated by Michael Berry, c. 2020. 614.5924FAN.

Covid-19: The Pandemic That Never Should Have Happened And How To Stop The Next One, Debora MacKenzie, c. 2020.  614.5924MAC. Credentials: a journalist, with history of "working as a biomedical researcher. Book jacket does not say what her degree was in and where she got her degree.

The Premonition: A Pandemic Story, Michael Lewis, c. 2021. 614.5924LEW. Credentials: best-selling author, to include: The Fifth Risk; Moneyball; Liar's Poker; The Big Short.

Fifth Risk: written during the first half of the Trump administration, The Fifth Risk framed the federal government as a manager of a portfolio of existential risks; natural disasters, nuclear weapons, financial panics, hostile foreigners, energy security, food security, and on and on and on. [He could have included other risks: loss of free speech; loss of rights to own guns; loss of right to privacy and on and on and on.]

This may be one of the most interesting of the lot. Told by a great story-teller. No index. Will have to find out for myself his thoughts on Fauci and gain-of-function.

Evolution

I've read so many books on evolution, I cannot remember if I've seen this book before. 

But, wow, even if I have, it's great to re-visit it.

Evolution: The First Four Billion Years, edited by Michael Ruse and Joseph Travis, foreword by Edward O. Wilson, c. 2009. 979 pages.

Notes.

Rivian: Darling Of Wall Street -- Benzinga -- July 31, 2023

Locator: 45255EVS.

Link here. 

From the linked article: 

Rivian Automotive, Inc‘s RIVN standing among sell-side firms has improved notably, particularly after the company reported its second-quarter deliveries. A slew of analysts upped their price target for the shares of the electric vehicle startup. An analyst, who announced back-to-back price target revisions, said Rivian confers all the advantages of Tesla, Inc.

Ford EV Update - 2Q23

Locator: 45254EVS.

Link here.

And more:

As we first noted last week, Ford is slated to lose $4.5 billion from its EV segment this year, a $1.5 billion larger loss than the company had expected. 

So far this year, the division has lost $1.8 billion and this year's $4.5 billion loss figure blows away last year's $2.1 billion loss. Ford also announced that its electric F-150 pickup trucks will undergo a price cut.

But reality has sunk in about the company's comments regarding its EV production schedule and spending plans. Price cuts in the industry, led by Elon Musk and Tesla, have thrown Ford's production targets into a tailspin and Morgan Stanley noted on Friday morning that "major changes to the EV strategy" could be necessary, according to a wrap up by Bloomberg. 

Ford now says it is "throttling back" on plans to ramp up EV production, the wrap up said. It blamed the price war for EVs as part of the cause and told shareholders it would need another year to meet its target of 600,000 EVs produced annually. 

Ford CEO Jim Farley said late last week: "The shift to powerful digital experiences and breakthrough EVs is underway and going to be volatile, so being able to guide customers through and adapt to the pace of adoption are big advantages for us. Ford+ is making us more resilient, efficient and profitable, which you can see in Ford Pro's breakout second-quarter revenue improvement (22%) and EBIT margin (15%)."

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Earlier

Earlier this year.

From the linked article:

Ford Motor Company has sold a majority of its Rivian shares, according to regulatory filings. 

Ford’s stake in the electric vehicle maker, which has been dropping steadily since May 2022, is now at 1.15%, or 10.5 million shares. 

The sell comes a week after Ford reported a $7.3 billion write-down on its Rivian investment last year. Since February 2022, Rivian’s stock has plummeted almost 70%. 

Ford has followed this playbook with Rivian before: Report a write-down, then sell to recuperate some of the losses. 

Last April, Ford reported a $5.4 billion “mark-to-market loss” on its investment in Rivian. The following month, Ford sold 15 million shares in two separate transactions, bringing its stake in the EV maker below 10%. Ford’s relationship with Rivian began with a $500 million investment in the precocious EV startup back in 2019. At the time, Ford also said it would build a vehicle on Rivian’s “skateboard” platform. The legacy automaker canceled those plans in November 2021, citing a shift in direction toward building its own lineup of EVs. Four months later, Ford increased its in-house electrification investment to $50 billion through 2026, up from the previous $30 billion by 2025. The automaker also said it would run its EV unit as a separate business from its combustion engine business. 

Other companies, like Amazon, have reported several losses from their investment in Rivian. 

Last week, Amazon reported a $2.3 billion valuation loss in its Rivian stock, which caused a hit to its income. Why are companies paying the price for investing in the promising, if not troubled, EV company? Recall that Rivian’s stock hit a high of $179.47 per share before falling to the $19.62 it is at today.

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Amazon

Has reduced its Rivian holdings, from around a 30% stake in the company to 17% at last report.  Archived.