Topics in this post: Oil, Energy
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When I was young, I read encyclopedias for fun. Later, I maintained aircraft while in the United States Air Force. Now I’m a graphic designer by trade. Somewhere in all of that, I became obsessed with how the world actually works — and oil turns out to be a thread that runs through almost everything in my daily life. The price of gas is just a symptom-level thing that doesn’t tell much of a story.
I’m always curious about things around me. Everything from a dragonfly to a turbine (as an aircraft maintainer in the USAF, I understand the marvel of the invention) to why ammonia is such an important ingredient in modern civilization. When I was a kid, I read encyclopedias, National Geographic, and car magazines for fun. I can still picture the diagrams in books that used transparent vellum as overlays to show structures. Curiosity is a thread that runs through who I am as a person and how I think about life… which informs and influences how I design.
Note: I have never done design-related work that relates to teaching about oil, but I have some experience working with engineers when I worked for the Omaha-based Engineering firm, HDR, Inc., and a good understanding of mechanical principles from my experience as an aircraft maintenance technician and utilities & fuels apprentice during my time in the USAF.
I’m using this as a project to level up in skills related to teaching, animation, storytelling, design, video, data analytics, and illustration. This marks the beginning of putting into practice / sharing what I’ve read, learned, and reflected on for some time. Below is a breakdown of what to expect in the timeline for this project related to energy, and more specifically, oil.
- Part 1: Intro to the Why. This post.
- Part 2: What is oil and why is it so special?
- Part 3: The Oil and Work Relationship, One Barrel vs One Human
- Part 4: One barrel of oil, many outcomes
- Part 5: Branching out the impacts of each byproduct.
- Part 6: Case study, My Milwaukee power tool. This will be a breakdown of a tool I use often in my garage. It will not be an exhaustive breakdown of parts, but it will be a breakdown of how oil influences some of the things that allow me to have and use the tool.
- Part 7: Case Study, Green energy and oil (Can’t quit, won’t quit): Why green energy can’t go it alone in the foreseeable future.
- Some issues with energy transportation, transmission, storage, and stability.
- Part 8: Case Study, One AI prompt: You might be surprised what it takes to ask a question.
- Part 9: Case Study, Lettuce: an analysis of how it gets to my fridge.
Some outcomes (touch points) for this project will include the following:
- Bubble charts, these will be used from time to time to help show the connections I make in my thought processes.
- Information graphics (digital media). These can highlight a specific informational point just for interest. Example, 1 barrel of oil = kWh vs a human’s daily average kWh output.
- Animations (YouTube/Instagram)
- Video (YouTube/Instagram), these will include me talking about something relating back to this project. Promotional in nature.
Some of the influences/people that sparked this:
Authors / YouTube channel influences
- Vaclav Smil. I love reading his books. The first book of many I’ve read, Numbers Don’t Lie, was really the start for me to dive in beyond just reading and start sharing what I’ve learned.
- Nate Hagens. His first principles approach to understanding energy and especially the guest speakers he interviews on his YouTube channel, are diverse in expertise, with conversations that go deep.
- Matt Randolph, known online as Mr. Global. I like the way he breaks down systems from his own experience in the oil industry. As an example, what hooked me was a post he did on understanding production sustainability in the Permian Basin in Texas.
Designer influences
- James Victore. I love this guy’s way of thinking; he is all about having the courage to walk your own walk.
- Austin Kleon. The first book I ever read was Steal Like an Artist, but his most influential for me was his book, Share Your Work.
- Rick Ruben. The Creative Act book just helped me see the value of doing something because you are interested in it.