The Seasteading Institute

The timescale of ocean engineering

A friend of mine from college, a mechanical engineer (and one of the most brilliant engineers I know), has been researching ocean wind energy systems. We’ve been discussing his ideas, and some of his thoughts on the industry are worth sharing (emphasis added):

At the DC offshore renewable energy (electricity from waves, tides and currents) conference, I found that only a COUPLE outfits (namely OpenHydro and Pelamis) were actaully getting anywhere besides just talking and burning up grant money. They had real hardware being demonstrated and ordered by utilities.

The Seasteading Institute Announces The Winners Of The Seastead Design Contest

The Seasteading Institute has crowned the winners in its first Seasteading Architectural Design Contest. The Contest, which ran from February 1st to May 1st, invited participants to design the floating city of their dreams. The winning design was awarded a $1000 grand prize, and there were four additional $250 prizes for specific categories.

Seasteads are permanent, stationary structures specifically designed for long-term ocean living.

Internships at TSI

The Seasteading Institute is now accepting internship applications.

We’re looking for brilliant young people with a passion for seasteading, political autonomy, and this, our twenty-first century experiment in government. The positions available are excellent opportunities for students or recent graduates in search of real-world job experience with flexible schedules, close working relationships with TSI employees, and, ultimately, a shot at transforming the way the world thinks of society, culture, and what it means to be a nation.

Help Us Plan Our Strategy!

Here at TSI, we’ve been thinking a lot about how to improve our strategy. We recently published a strategy document and a vision timeline, but these are only the beginning, covering things at a very high level.

We also want results sooner. Our current timeline & strategy describe modest achievements — a prototype seastead built, a successful ocean-based business operating — by the end of 2010. We’ve been thinking in recent weeks that we can, and want to, do better.

Defense Science Board Task Force Report on Sea Basing

August 2003, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics. An unclassified report, which begins:

The geography of the United States, as an island power with the need to project military power across two great oceans, has made amphibious warfare a core competence in the American way of war – one that will continue to be critical in protecting U.S. national interests.

Future warfighting concepts of operations call for light, rapidly deployable, maneuver forces supported by remote fires.

Going Galt (humor)

Cute parody post from Sadly, No!, a “liberal/progressive humor site”:

I’ve had enough. Dr. Helen is right. The Chrysler debacle was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Unless it was the Dijon mustard. Whatever. I’m not going to play along anymore. I will no longer be blogging just to enrich Google or BlogAds or somebody else who just siphons our money and redirects it towards a usurper who wants to destroy capitalism. Blogging is not a suicide pact.

I quit.