Roger Dougal: The History of Our Energy Grid, The Argument for a DC Energy Renaissance, and Sailing

09/09/19 • 22 min

Host Abe Danaher is joined by UofSC Electrical Engineering Department Chair Roger Dougal to talk about the state of America's energy grid and the benefits of switching to direct current power. First, Abe tells a story about the history of DC and AC energy, providing the framework for the rest of their discussion (1:02). Then, Roger explains why now is the time to change to DC energy (4:23) and why the change should occur (6:58). Next, Roger explains why DC energy would make renewable energy production more efficient (11:52) before giving a prediction about when we could expect to see a change to DC energy (18:08). Then, Abe does the first "Beyond the CV" segment and asks Roger about his past as a nationally ranked sailor (19:14).
The music for this episode was graciously provided by Columbia's own, "No Way Jose!"

Previous Episode

Ramy Harik: Composite Manufacturing, Automated Fiber Placement, and the Pressure of Excellence

Host Abe Danaher is joined by UofSC Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor Ramy Harik to talk about automated fiber placement and the transformative effect it is having on the aerospace and automative industries. First, Ramy explains what composite manufacturing is (2:15) and what AFP machines produce (8:20) before addressing the newness of the field and the potential that it has to grow (11:56). Next, Abe asks Ramy about the pressure of trying to always stay at the forefront of the ever-changing field (16:05). Then, the episode ends with a bold prediction from Ramy regarding what the future of AFP will look like (23:10).
The music for this episode was graciously provided by Columbia's own, "No Way Jose!"

Next Episode

Mike Sutton: Starting a Company, Digital Image Correlation, and the Power of Perseverance

UofSC Mechanical Engineering Distinguished Professor Mike Sutton joins Host Abe Danaher to tell the story of how the now international company Correlated Solutions Incorporated began and about the digital image correlation technology that he helped create. Mike begins with how NASA and UofSC didn't want to patent his technology (2:45), which forced him to start Correlated Solutions in 1997 (4:03). Then, Mike explains what it was like to start the company in Columbia, South Carolina (10:47). Next, Mike explains where the digital image correlation technology is going (19:10) before emphasizing the importance of perseverance in all aspects of life (21:04). Lastly, Abe does the "Beyond the CV" segment and gets a really interesting answer from Mike about his favorite hobby, terrascaping (24:04).
The music for this episode was graciously provided by Columbia's own, "No Way Jose!"