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QTS went public today on the NYSE. On Nasdaq.com there is a press release that says the stock was below range.
QTS Realty Trust, a data center REIT operating 10 facilities across 7 states, raised $257 million by offering 12.3 million shares at $21, well below the range of $27 to $30. QTS Realty Trust plans to list on the NYSE under the symbol QTS. QTS Realty Trust initially filed confidentially on 5/31/2013. Goldman Sachs,
When you assess the risk to your data center power you think of most of the time weather related issues, accidents, and maintenance on high voltage transmission lines. Arstechnica reports on the FBI's news release.
Hackers in the electric grid? Meh—fear the dude with the stolen tractor
The power grid is under actual attack in one corner of Arkansas.
by Nate Anderson - Oct 9 2013, 5:00am PDT
Cyber security pundits and contractors can't seem to make it through a presentation without invoking the specter of hackers shutting down the US electric grid. That's certainly something to be concerned about, especially if we end up at war with a country like China, but at the moment, actual incidents are hard to come by. Indeed, serious electric grid vandalism remains comfortably old school—likeclimbing a 100-foot, high-voltage transmission tower and chopping through the cables with a saw, then removing a few bolts from the bottom of the metal tower, then attaching a half-inch thick cable to the tower with a 15-inch eyebolt, and then pulling the cable across the adjacent Union Pacific railroad track "in an apparent attempt to utilize a moving train to bring down the tower." You know, old school.
According to the FBI, this actually happened in Cabot, Arkansas, in the early morning on August 21. The vandalism closed state highway 321 for the entire day, and the FBI has offered a $20,000 reward for the arrest of a suspect.
Here is the FBI news release.
FBI Offers Up to $20,000 Reward for Information Regarding Downed Cabot Power Line
FBI Little RockAugust 22, 2013 LITTLE ROCK—Randall C. Coleman, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for the state of Arkansas, announced that the FBI is offering a reward up to $20,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person(s) responsible for the following incident:
As the Cabot community is aware, on Wednesday, August 21, 2013, a high-voltage transmission line in the Holland Bottoms area, on Arkansas Highway 321 near a Union Pacific railroad track, was intentionally downed. The FBI, Cabot Police Department, and Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office, in coordination with officials with Entergy Arkansas and Union Pacific Railroad, continue to investigate this incident. The investigation has determined that the person(s) responsible attached a cable to the framework of the 100foot tower and placed the cable across the railroad track in an apparent attempt to utilize a moving train to bring down the tower. Although no injuries resulted from this act, the placement of the line created a risk to the community and to the trains using the track.
We believe that someone may have seen a person(s) or vehicle(s) in the area during the early morning hours of August 21, 2013, or may have heard someone removing bolts from the base of the tower, as this act would have created substantial noise. We believe the person(s) responsible is/are familiar with the Holland Bottoms area. This person(s) may also possess above-average knowledge or skill in electrical matters.
We are asking for anyone who may have any information that might be related to this matter to contact us at FBI’s Little Rock Field Office at (501) 221-9100 or Little.Rock@ic.fbi.gov. We emphasize that regardless of how insignificant you think your information might be, or whether you think we already are aware of it, we want to hear your information. Sometimes, even the most minor detail can assist investigators and public safety officials. We encourage anyone who may have photographs or video of this area to share that information with us. We remind the public of the reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person(s) responsible for this incident.
Vanity Fair lists the top 50 Innovators.
The faster things change, the tougher it is to stay on top. In this year’s rankings, 50 leading innovators shake the foundations of their industries, while 25 members of the power elite demonstrate why they’re not going anywhere soon.
Guess who is top - Amazon, Google, Apple, and Facebook - all companies where data centers are a big deal.
Newsworks has a post on an upcoming public meeting to review plans for a 248 MW natural gas plant.
“Initially we received a lot of pushback from city officials that they were not going to have a public meeting until final plans had been submitted to the city. And clearly, if final plans are submitted where is there opportunity for the public, or neighbors, to have a voice in shaping those plans,” asked Amy Roe, an activist with the Sierra Club here in Delaware.
Roe says it's hard to say if plans for the data center are objectionable because very little information has been made publicly available, but "it’s the power plant that’s causing concern.”
The data center company and local government look like they were trying to sneak something by the public.
Those concerns were magnified, Roe says, by the city's seeming lack of transparency throughout this entire process.
“I’m worried about the silence from the city on this project," Roe said. “To learn that your town government has been negotiating for a year for this and none of the neighbors know is very worrisome.”
Newark's Community Affairs Officer Dana Johnston says the city has nothing to share since plans have not been officially submitted. Johnston says the city is simply providing publicity and a space for Tuesday's meeting, where TDC will provide more substantive answers.
Emails sent to TDC asking how much the proposed project will cost and when final plans will be submitted have yet to be returned.
I guess this is a big enough deal because on the web site http://www.cityofnewarkde.us is this notice.
For all the complaints about college costs rising which seems like no one can do anything about. I find it rare that anyone looks at the problem as a supply and demand problem. Demand from parents and students has been rising for college education. Colleges see an inelastic price curve. They raise prices and still have full enrollment. If the supply of students drop and colleges are competing for a limited supply of students, then prices should drop.
WSJ has an article on a student drought hitting smaller universities.
Student Drought Hits Smaller Universities
At Loyola, Freshman Class Size Plunges
As Loyola University New Orleans gears up for fall classes next month, the 101-year-old Jesuit University faces a crisis: There will be 25% fewer freshmen than the school had banked on.
"It was a pretty big hit," said Marc K. Manganaro, provost and vice president for academic affairs.
Getting a targeted number of accepted students to commit to a college's freshman class—known as the "yield"—has become more crucial for thousands of schools.
Enrollment rates for numerous smaller and lesser-known colleges and universities are falling this year, due to a decline in the U.S. college-age population, years of rising tuition, increasing popularity of Internet courses and a weak job market for recent graduates.
There is data to show the student enrollment is declining.
After decades of growth, college enrollment nationally dropped 2.3% this spring, compared with spring 2012, according to a report released by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. The decline is poised to continue. The number of U.S. high-school graduates peaked at 3.4 million in 2010-2011 and is projected to fall to 3.2 million by 2013-14, according to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. The dip in graduates has been particularly pronounced in the Midwest and South.
I have 7 more years before my first goes to college, and I am disappointed by the possibility of college costs retreating.
