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More than a collection of numbers or an alphanumeric code, data is power. Data powers power itself, which is to say data is essential to increases in safe and renewable power. How engineers interpret and apply data is also essential to a renaissance in wind power.
Regarding the latter, data translates into an increase in the transmission of energy — without the need to add transmission capacity to wind farms. This achievement is important for reasons of engineering, economics, and protection of the environment.
These achievements (plural) are the result of data, of the design and construction of innovative wind turbines that are models of efficiency and longevity, of lower power costs through the power of economies of scale, and of green policies that increase revenues and greenbacks for cities and municipalities.
According to Kevin Wolf, President and Co-Founder of Wind Harvester, whose Wind Harvester turbines are a potential solution to mitigating climate change, data is invaluable. He says:
“The number of Wind Harvesters that can be added into existing wind farms depends on data. With good wind speed and data, the energy of a wind farm can be maximized while reducing repair costs and not increasing battery storage. Good Data Management and analysis are, therefore, a good foundation for clean and reliable power.”
As a scientist, I would be remiss if I did not stress the point of good Data Management. The point is relevant to all industries and, too often, a source of mismanagement by many industries since how an organization manages data influences what an organization does in the name of data.
When people misinterpret or try to distort data, when a company tries to conceal data, when data does not support what someone does, the fault lies with bad management of data. Put another way — good outcomes are not sustainable without consistently good management of data.
Also, the more the public knows about data — the more conversant the public is about the use of data — the sooner the public will respect the power of data. Which is why data is more than an abstraction. There is, after all, nothing abstract about climate change or rising sea levels or higher temperatures or more expensive utility bills.
If we are to reverse this crisis, if we are to avoid catastrophe altogether, then we have a duty to recognize the necessity of data.
If we look to what is not only possible but practical, if we look to what is not only a matter of good data but the safe and reliable delivery of a specific good, renewable energy, then we have cause for optimism.
I am optimistic about the above, not because I choose to hope for the best, but because I see and know that the hope is real. The promise of innovation through data, for the application of data, by those experts who can manage data — this is a promise to keep.
In keeping this promise, we elevate data to its rightful place as a social good. In doing good works, we do right with data.