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Flush season is here. Protein solids are up. Global milk production is up. So… Where's all the skim milk powder? In this episode of The Milk Check, host Ted Jacoby III and the Jacoby team sits down with Martijn Goedhart and Henk-Jan Bouwman of Cefetra Dairy for a European perspective on the volatility rippling through global dairy markets. We talk through how traders got caught short and why the spring flush might not loosen up the skim milk powder/nonfat dry milk market. Plus, are we pricing U.S. out of the export market? We'll get you up to speed on: Why skim solids are being pulled away from dryers and into protein streams How hand-to-mouth buying turned into a short squeeze What record-high butter stocks in Europe mean for upside potential Tune in to hear how Europe and the U.S. are navigating one of the most volatile stretches in recent memory. L If you're making sourcing or coverage decisions right now, don't miss The Milk Check episode 94: The Dryer's Getting Robbed. Got questions? We'd love to hear them. Submit below, and we might answer it on the show. Ask The Milk Check TMC-Intro-final Ted Jacoby III: [00:00:00] Coming up on The Milk Check. Martijn Goedhart: You have supply growing, and then you think, “Oh, we’re gonna build stocks.” But then, demand caught up. And quite viciously. Ted Jacoby III: Welcome to the Milk Check from T.C. Jacoby and Company, your complete guide to dairy markets, from the milking parlor to the supermarket shelf. I’m Ted Jacoby. Let’s dive in. This week we are excited to have two special guests, Martijnjn Goedhart and Henk-Jan Bouwman from Cefetra Dairy in the Netherlands. We’ve been working closely with these guys for some time and we thought it would be a great idea given all the craziness and dairy markets going on in the United States, to ask them to give us a little bit of perspective on what’s going on in Europe so we can get a feel for how the global markets are affecting our U.S. dairy markets. Martijn, Henk, thanks for joining us today. Martijn Goedhart: Thanks for having us, Ted. Henk-Jan Bouwman: Thank you, Ted. Ted Jacoby III: I feel like what’s going on in nonfat right now more has an origin in the U.S., but I also noticed that you guys started to feel that maybe this market was gonna be a little bit shorter than we expected over in Europe before we realized it in the U.S. [00:01:00] Tell us about the skim milk powder market in Europe and what’s been going on the last month. Martijn Goedhart: In Europe, we’ve been overwhelmed by milk production growth since the second half of 2025, due to bluetongue, late calving, second peak, as some of us call it. And that has resulted in good outputs, and that output needs to go to the commodities. So, we’ve seen butter stocks build up significantly, and everyone assumed that that would mean that the skimmed stocks were also building up because that’s basically the other product you’re gonna produce when you do butter, right? A few things we, I think, overlooked is like the general protein trend in the world and the demand for protein, both on the whey side as well as on the milk side nowadays. So a lot of protein has ended up in other products than your typical skimmed nonfat production bucket. Adding to that, Europe has been the most competitive source in the world market for a long time. Demand wasn’t great because buyers were buying hand-to-mouth because they would basically wait for that carry to come toward them and buy at the lowest price at the last moment. But [00:02:00] now we see that the exports out of Europe have been great. And that’s been keeping the market clean. I think some traders speculated on lower prices and got caught short, basically needed to cover. And that’s where we are at now. And I think more than ever, if you look at NZX (New Zealand Exchange), this all started with a firmer GDT (Global Dairy Trade), with China stocking up a bit. So, if you look at NZX, CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange) and EEX (European Energy Exchange), those markets are starting to correlate better than they did before because everyone’s looking at the developments of the other exchanges and then draw their conclusions for their own home base. And yeah, that cocktail, together with some U.S. developments that we’re gonna dive into, has caused record-high volatility over the last few weeks. Ted Jacoby III: So, Martijn, you’re telling a story that sounds very familiar ‘ cause that’s exactly what we’ve seen here in the U.S. We’re not making anywhere near as much nonfat dry milk as we expected because the protein demand is forcing those skim solids into other places. What are those other places in Europe? Where is that protein being used and what is it being made into in Europe right now? Martijn Goedhart: I think there’s two main [00:03:00] streams. Bear in mind that the milk pressure in Europe was so high that you need to burn milk, and the way to do that is to produce casein. So, I think casein production has increased by like double-digit numbers, that’s not because it was such a nice valorization, you can just dry more milk per hour. And considering the liquid markets over the last few months, during our low season, liquid milk was trading way below the commodity equivalent, proving that there’s a surplus of liquid milk that can’t be processed by drying it or churning it. So, that’s one part. The other part is, it’s the same in the U.S. We’ve been around here for a few days now, but in Europe, you see the same: everything is protein fortified, extra protein, in basically everything you can buy. So, a lot of protein that is processed in line before it even reaches the other class. So, like the dryers basically. Ted Jacoby III: Martijn and Henk, do you guys think that the skim milk powder market in Europe has tightened up primarily because everybody who was living hand-to-mouth saw the market started going up, and they decided they wanted to buy more now because they wanted to get the product at a lower price before the price [00:04:00] went higher, and then they just started chasing the market? Or do you think demand has shifted and there’s a true increase in the demand for the product? Henk-Jan Bouwman: There’s two things to touch upon here, Ted. One is, you’re absolutely right: people were buying hand-to-mouth, and they were actually rewarded for doing that because everybody believed that the price of tomorrow was better than the price of today. And for a fairly long period of time, they got rewarded for that. That also led to traders being short, as Martijn touched upon. From a demand perspective, yes, there’s actually quite some demand, and people also realize that they have to turn to Europe to find their cheapest skim. That also creates a bit of a demand pull towards European skim, which makes the price go up. And we’ve seen that, in particular, in low heat in comparison to medium heat. But in general, export markets for us are pretty strong, and, I would say, pretty much all the demand ends in European skim milk powder of origins. Josh White: Is anybody extending days in inventory? Do we think that there’s a short squeeze driving international clients to buy a couple extra weeks, a month, more than that of product? The nature of your question, Ted, [00:05:00] is what’s caused us to tighten up on that product? Is it truly demand for nonfat dry milk, or is it just reduced production overall? And I think maybe it’s both in a way. On the one hand, Martijn mentioned that the catalyst of this was actually a GDT event where China stepped in and bought more. And I think that we’ve been talking about the disappearance of China as a structural buyer of milk powder for quite some time. But their stocks to use ratio has been reported to be fairly low, and maybe they felt it was time to extend some days of inventory. At the same time, you evidenced what’s happening in the U.S., And Martijn alluded to it a little bit in Europe as well, that the pull for dairy protein in general is actually vacuuming some solids away from the dryer, and particularly the SMP or the nonfat dryer. So, is it both? Are we seeing people look to build a little bit more safety stock at the same time that our production is down a bit because protein demand overall is robbing our supply. Henk-Jan Bouwman: There’s a, there’s a couple of things to touch upon, Josh. One is in this whole upward movement, there were quite some international buyers [00:06:00] who still had demand open, for instance, for Q2 and Q3, and decided to step in and said, “Hey, this is a moment to buy, to cover that demand, because I am anticipating an upward movement.” So, in that sense, I’m completely with you. Producers did the same, as well. For them it was also attractive to lock some forward sales. And that has led to lesser availability of skim in EU. And that basically also caused the rally to continue. Martijn Goedhart: I think the difference with the U.S., as I understand it, is we have never not been able to buy product during this whole volatility. So, producers were always offering, customers would like step in, step out. If they really need it, they would book. They were also cautious. And we went up, then we went down, then we went up again. But in that down movement, customers were like, “Yeah, you see, so it’ll come off again.” So, that didn’t prompt them to build any length. I think producers did fairly well in putting a fundament below their sales book for the flush that’s upcoming. Traders are holding a fair bit of cash product right now for the next three, four months. It’s not tight as [00:07:00] such, but you see that certain buyers need certain origins that are scarce. So, it’s very much about the origin, the spec, and the product that you have, whether you can monetize on those higher prices. Ted Jacoby III: It seems to me, just listening to you guys talk about Europe, that the U.S. and Europe are both experiencing a very similar phenomenon in our supply chain. Demand for protein is pulling skim solids away from the dryer, first and foremost, which means on a skim milk powder / nonfat dry milk supply-demand balance, you’re reducing the supply even though we are both experiencing pretty significant increases in milk production. The traditional math is: more milk means more skim milk powder. It didn’t happen this time around, and it caught people by surprise. The demand for protein in Europe, just like in the U.S., is exceptional right now. But then that makes me ask the question: if we have less skim solids, in the form of skim milk powder and nonfat, in the global supply chain, is this increase in price directly proportional [00:08:00] to reduced supply, so we got more people buying because they want to get in the front of it. So, you got this bubble. But you also have had this slow decrease in overall skim milk powder demand going on. Like a slow creep every year. I’m not sure if it’s about 1%, but we’ve all kind of felt it that the global demand for skim milk powder has been just slowly weakening, but this sudden supply crunch was a bigger issue than the slow decrease in demand, and it caused this price bubble that’s just gonna take some time to work itself out. And if the protein continues to take the skim solids away from the dryers, it may be a really long time before it works itself out. Martijn Goedhart: Q4 of global SMP export has been very strong, but Q3 and Q2 were relatively weak. I’d have to look at how the balance looks at the end of the year. Also, the export figures have been more volatile than Ted Jacoby III: Yeah. Martijn Goedhart: Before. So, I think everyone thought like, “Okay, demand is sluggish. We have so much milk in the U.S. We have so much milk in Europe. [00:09:00] New Zealand’s season is looking good.” So, in your mind, you extrapolate that demand. Then, you have supply growing, and then you think, “Oh, we’re gonna build stocks.” But then, demand caught up. And quite viciously. So, that’s the thing I think people underestimated. We’re in a situation where we don’t see any old stocks or inventories building up. Josh White: So I wanna throw three thoughts out. On the first hand, we know our global milk supply is year over year up significantly. Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. Josh White: On a solids basis, protein and fat are up significantly. We’re talking about the overflow valve, the powder stocks not being very robust, and that on the end-user level, globally, people didn’t have a lot of additional days of inventory. So, that would suggest on one hand, maybe we need all this milk. Maybe we need it. Demand for protein and other products is up enough that we need all this milk. But then on the other hand, I think there’s probably two things that we need to be careful that we don’t overreact to. There’s seasonality in our products. We know that the northern hemisphere heavy milk production season is upon us. We’ve [00:10:00] started in California. We’re gonna continue to see our daily milk volumes increase seasonally in the U.S. as we get into the second quarter. Another thing that I’m wondering being, you guys with more international trade experience coming out of Europe is: buying seasonality. So, Ramadan every year moves up a little bit; Chinese New Year, there’s usually a surge leading up to it. And it’s gotten to the point where that was almost a collision with the traditional holiday season of December. Is it possible that we just robbed demand from the first quarter, and everyone tried to get in front of some of that demand in the late third and early fourth quarter, and that we’re about to go into a unique seasonal period where customers have now gotten scared. They’ve extended a few days in inventory, the structural demand won’t be there at the same time that the northern hemisphere flush is upon us. I mean, is it possible that we were just short squeezed based on seasonal issues in the first quarter, and we’re gonna resolve that with plenty of product in the second quarter? One final note I think that we [00:11:00] shouldn’t forget is that our year over year comparables are against a disease-infested 2024. We had bird flu in the U.S.; we had bluetongue to in Europe. How much are we actually over 2023 going into 2024. Ted Jacoby III: On 2023 versus 2024, I think Europe, you guys were down like a half a percent to 1% in 24. Does that sound about right? Martijn Goedhart: 23, 24 was pretty much flat. Ted Jacoby III: Mm-hmm. Martijn Goedhart: And 24, 25 we added like a hundred thousand metric tons. So, like, 6%, 7%. 24, 25. Ted Jacoby III: So you guys had a couple of flat years, followed by a year where you added quite a bit. Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. Ted Jacoby III: Which actually is pretty similar to what happened in the U.S. Yes. We had some disease like avian flu , and bird flu hit California ,and we were down in some places and up in others, but overall we were flat. But the solids were up a little bit. Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. Yeah. Ted Jacoby III: While dairy prices were decent, I didn’t feel like we were facing a massive supply scarcity in those two flat years, which is one of the [00:12:00] things that has me very perplexed about what’s going on now. Because it’s one thing to say, Hey, there’s all this new demand for protein. All the skim solids are going to protein, and that’s why there isn’t any skim milk powder in nonfat. Okay, let me phrase this a different way. That means that we are suddenly being faced with massive increases in demand for protein. The price of protein today is a lot higher than it was a year and a half ago when we were dealing with flat supply.  So, why is protein demand so much higher now compared to a year ago? Is it completely and solely demand driven? As amateur economists , like all traders are, that math doesn’t seem right. Martijn Goedhart: Last year, we had significant competition among our export customers from Iran and Belarus, in terms of SMP. The Iran exports were surging. I think it was like 150,000 tons of skim, something like that, that suddenly shows up. Europe is doing about 700. So, that has an impact when you’re talking to [00:13:00] buyers. But that disappeared just as quickly as it appeared. Which yeah, that 150,000 tons, or whatever it was, it will turn back to the next cheapest origin, which was Europe. So, demand didn’t grow, but shifted towards another origin being EU. Henk-Jan Bouwman: Yeah, I think in general, overall competitiveness of EU skim milk powder is a lot better than last year, even in comparison to a bigger skim producing regions. As Martijnn touched upon, being based in the Middle East, I saw a lot of competition coming out of origins, which were a bit more nontraditional. Iran was one of them. What happened is their overall competitiveness finished really, really quickly due to a couple of things. One of them being disease. So, they had foot-and-mouth disease in Iran. Two, their overall ability to import a sufficient amount of feed, and three, their competitiveness due to a currency standpoint, which quickly changed. That, indeed, meant that the material that was supplied by Iran is now being supplied by Europe. Diego Carvallo: It’s a fascinating situation. Some of those [00:14:00] solids that are going into MPCs are definitely reducing the demand for skim, unless it’s coming from a different end-user application. If we’re seeing the MPCs going into sports nutrition, it’s definitely new demand that is finding a new end-user. It’s a combination of a lot of the things that we have discussed in this call: the whole market being short and getting super used to being hand-to-mouth for years, where you could buy product cheaper a month from now, so, why would you buy it? Especially if you have high interest rates, right? So, that’s part of it. The other factor is definitely the whole market was shocked by the impact of the UF pull of the additional MPC production and the amount of solids that we’re not going into a dryer that everybody expected would go right. Also a few additional manufacturing productions, a few key plants in the U.S., this is starting to look like more of a fundamental shift than a short squeeze. [00:15:00] And three weeks ago, everybody was saying, “Yeah, short squeeze, it’s an amazing short squeeze. It’s gonna come down.” Right? And now that same rhetoric has been changing to, “Actually, this is not that much of a short squeeze, but it is more of a there are not that many solids.” There’s a new big plant in Texas. There’s a new big plant in New York. There’s a lot of solids that are being pulled, and nobody was taking that into account. Everybody was expecting after the bird flu in California, we’re simply gonna go back to producing the same amount of nonfat that we were producing two years ago. And if you look at the data, it’s not correct, you know, Josh White: We also gotta give credit to substitution and other things. And what I mean by that is like calf milk replacer industry in the U.S. Historically, we’ll toggle for the cheapest protein between whey and milk powders. For sure, we’re seeing that appetite pick up for nonfat dry milk right now. Whereas two years ago there was a lot of WPC 34 on the market. All of that’s gone [00:16:00] because of the whey movement. I think the utilization is shifting quite a bit. We’ve talked about where it’s more difficult to track where milk solids are being consumed into a lot of protein enhanced beverages and things along those lines. That’s becoming more difficult. We’re saying demand’s not great globally, but if you pick up feed demand because they can’t buy the whey products they bought before, that is more demand for milk powder. And by far the cheapest dairy protein right now is nonfat dry milk. The big question I have is seasonally in the second quarter, are we going to catch up? Are we gonna be able to catch up globally or not? I think the whole market’s really struggling to try to form an opinion on that. Mostly because we can’t really measure and put a finger on just how much new protein-related demand there is in that difficult to measure space that I alluded to earlier. Diego Carvallo: Particularly in the U.S. right? In Europe doesn’t seem like that situation is as strong as it is the U.S. It seems like in the U.S., you have all of these new [00:17:00] cheese plants and UF plants, Class I plants, et cetera. It seems like, at least in the U.S. that inventory building is gonna be more difficult than in other regions. Josh White: And the European dryers are full right now, correct? Martijn Goedhart: Yes. Josh White: And the California dryers are full right now. Midwest dryers are nowhere near full. The answer to that might be a little bit easier than we’re making this discussion. We’ve added a whole lot of cheese capacity. There’s plenty of milk, but a lot of it’s being processed into cheese. Ted Jacoby III: Are there many new dairy plants of any kind in Europe right now? Martijn Goedhart: Not coming online this flush as far as I know. Not surprisingly, but most of the investment obviously is in WPC and WPI, I think Friesland has a big plant coming up, but it’s 2027, am I right, Henk-Jan? Henk-Jan Bouwman: Their latest expansion is 27. Yes. Ted Jacoby III: So we’re not really seeing any milk solids going to new places in Europe. It’s all still within the traditional milk sheds going to the usual suspects. Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. Yeah. Ted Jacoby III: Okay. Let’s switch topics to butter. The [00:18:00] U.S., a year ago, a year and a half ago, we were around $3 butter. It came down into the 2s, $2.50ish, and then the bottom dropped out, and it went all the way down to, I think, $1.28 at one point in the U.S. Now it’s back up in the $1.70s. But Europe dropped even more from an even higher precipice. Where have we been over the last year and where’s the butter market now in Europe, and what’s it doing? Martijn Goedhart: Yeah, well, butter was the main driver of the volatility that we see right now because €7 butter prices, the fed and the milk would already pay an above break-even price to farmers. And then your skim return is just bonus, right? Friesland just released their yearly report and they’ve been paying like, I think 56¢ on average, which is, well it’s a bit debatable, but I would say at least 16¢ above break-even. And then they get even a bit more profit share. That has like sparked that extra milk output, because every liter you produce is making you money as a farmer. You wanna get your components up, you wanna squeeze the maximum out of the milk. That’s how we ended up in this situation and the vicious correction at the other end of it that [00:19:00] we’ve seen. We’ve seen inventories build up and anecdotally we’ll also hear that all the chilled storage is full. That’s still the case. Those stocks haven’t disappeared. And also we’ve imported quite a bit when the spread with the U.S. and before New Zealand was significant enough to do so. That product is arriving now. And that adds to the supply pressure. However, that market has been stable for the last few months. I would say it’s been volatile, but we’re at the same levels than one and a half, two months ago. So that also shows that price correction ultimately also triggers extra demand. It’s an elastic product, especially on the consumer side. However, it’s also capped in terms of upside because those stocks are there. The liquid equivalent, cream, if you would buy cream today, you’d make it into butter. You’d be like at €3.30–€3. 40 cost price where the market is trading at €4.20–€4.30. So, there’s like a thousand euro. Ted Jacoby III: So the multiples in cream are low. Martijn Goedhart: It has been like this during our whole down season, which is very atypical. You could [00:20:00] argue that that multiple is only gonna weaken because milk starts flowing. Ted Jacoby III: Mm-hmm. Martijn Goedhart: The main discussion we have is like, is all that bearishness already priced in? And have we hit the bottom? Have we hit a level at which people are happy to buy? Or is there more to come? Ted Jacoby III: So you guys aren’t really seeing much upward-ness in the butter market in Europe right now? Martijn Goedhart: No. No. If you look from a, let’s say, traditional supply and demand theory, we have record-high stocks and record-high stocks, they basically kill any prolonged upside to a market, I would say, until you work through it. Ted Jacoby III: What about the cheese market in Europe? Is the cheese market high or low right now? And how’s it acting? Martijn Goedhart: It’s surprisingly tight. You would think that especially over the past few years, quite some capacity has been added to the European landscape. You would reckon that this extra milk would flow into the cheese plants, and you can’t find demand for it, so you’d have to move your cheese, and you’d see supply pressure from producers. But, the opposite is true actually. The cheese that’s supplied is very fresh. Within the range of what you can supply, it’s on the fresher side. That [00:21:00] indicates that there are no older stocks or backlog in terms of supply. I think producers have done a good job in capturing those moments when they were competitive on the world market by getting to make cheese disappear out of Europe. And then the last few weeks there were some production disruptions, some factory outages, and that even caused a bit more tightness in the cheese market. But it has stabilized ever since. It has been stable like butter. We’ve seen the bottom for now, and it went up a bit. The only thing is that in cheese there are no inventories. That makes you think that there’s more upside in cheese when milk growth starts to slow compared to butter because there’s no inventory holding it back. Ted Jacoby III: Why isn’t there any inventory? Was Europe doing some really good exporting for a while? Martijn Goedhart: Yeah, that’s the main reason. Big producers did big sales of gouda at some point or mozz when they were competitive, just to keep that supply chain clean. Butter, you can freeze, carry if the market pays for it. Ted Jacoby III: Mm-hmm. Martijn Goedhart: Cheese, you can only do it on paper, but not in reality. You need to get rid of it. Ted Jacoby III: Right. Josh White: How far out do we think the [00:22:00] international cheese buyer is covered right now? Because that was a big topic coming into the first quarter is how much of the cheese business, particularly in contestable markets, did Europe win away from the U.S. Ted correct me if I’m wrong, but our exports have been fine, haven’t they? Ted Jacoby III: Our exports have been fine. That’s actually a good way to put it. We experienced a real nice pop in exports last year. I would say this year, second half of Q4 into Q1, we’ve experienced exports that were relatively similar to last year. Maybe a hair behind. And I think we’ll start seeing those numbers soon, but I wouldn’t be surprised that when we finally see January export numbers, we’re down like 5% versus last year, when last year was a really, really, really good number. I’d almost say down 5% is unexpectedly good relative to how good it was last year. Martijn Goedhart: Josh, coming back to your coverage question, I think both our markets have seen massive carries right over the last few months. So, that’s not a very interesting structure for buyers to cover long. Our market was [00:23:00] trading like spot plus two months maximum. And producers would only make big sales if they have the product already, if they feel it already a little. So, I would suggest that cheese buyers in Europe, as well as around the world, are relatively shortly covered, just the same as with nonfat. Henk-Jan Bouwman: Yeah, I see the same in my export markets where basically all the inquiries we are getting for cheese, are relatively close to home, so maybe one maximum two months out from a shipment perspective. Ted Jacoby III: Mm-hmm. Josh White: So, Ted, are you interpreting this though, that the pressure’s gonna be on more so in the U.S. to win that business going into the second quarter? Based on what you just heard from our European friends? How are you digesting this discussion? Ted Jacoby III: That’s a great question. I would say yes, but price action makes me wonder if the U.S. is trying to price itself out of this market. Martijn Goedhart: Take cheddar for example. EU is about $300 per ton elevated over U.S. So, in certain applications, such as process cheese, I think, by default the U.S., will win that export business. Ted Jacoby III: Even [00:24:00] at current futures prices for April and May of a $1.80? Martijn Goedhart: Little bit of a different story. But that also depends on the outcome of European flush and the effect of that flush on cheddar pricing in Europe. Ted Jacoby III: I would agree with you that about three weeks ago, we were cheaper, but after this rally, I don’t know if that’s still true. Josh White: The point Ted’s driving home right now is the big carry in the Class III cheese markets in the U.S., you’re concern is pricing out the second quarter? Ted Jacoby III: That’s exactly right. I’m concerned we’re in the middle of pricing ourselves out of the market. Josh White: Are we putting ourselves in a spot where we’re the best priced cheese product. We know, out of the U.S., our daily milk volumes are gonna increase. We know that a lot of that milk’s gonna go into cheese. We know that we’re gonna have to compete for cheese business. But even despite the fact that Europe’s relatively balanced, it feels like on cheese, are we putting ourselves in the global market in a position where Europe may win? Martijn Goedhart: It’s gonna be a good fight, Josh.  None of the origins can afford to lose a lot of export business over the flush. We need to get those volumes [00:25:00] moving. So, the products where we compete, we will compete. Ted Jacoby III: Mm-hmm. And here’s what’s likely to happen. The U.S. having a little bit more mature and developed futures market means that as Europe goes out there and makes sure they get that business, the U.S. at some point will say, rather than going and exporting this cheese, I’m just gonna put it in a warehouse and hedge it out on the futures because there’s a carry in the futures market right now and I can make 10¢ just sitting on it for a month or two. If we are gonna have to go head to head with Europe, to get that export business, we might not get as much as we did last year in the second quarter, because in the second quarter we really did get a lot of that cheese export business. Martijn Goedhart: I agree. Only, to what extent can you actually carry it, physically, without refreshing, Ted? Because in Europe, that’s a bit of an issue. Ted Jacoby III: In the U.S., there’s a number of strategies, a lot of it being rolling your inventory. So, you take your working inventory and you just start rolling it because I don’t think there’s a huge difference between 30-day-old cheddar and 90-day-old cheddar to a lot of people. There are strategies to [00:26:00] manage through higher inventory levels. But at a certain point, even that working inventory carry, it starts to max out the warehouse, start to get full, and then they just gotta sell it. Martijn Goedhart: Right. Ted Jacoby III: What’s interesting is, I think that a lot of people went into 2026 thinking, “We’ve gotta make sure we’ve got a home for this cheese, because there’s a lot more cheese, and the U.S. market demand is not that great. It’s very flat. And so, if we’re gonna make 4% or 5% more cheese, we’re just gonna have to export it.” Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. Ted Jacoby III: And so, they weren’t even looking at that equation. But I think what’s happened in the last month with this volatility in the market, it’s gonna have the inverse effect of getting everybody to actually sit on that cheese and keep it at home, and you’d think it would be the opposite, but no, I think we’re gonna end up bringing more cheese home and letting you win some of those battles. Josh White: Ted, can we talk a minute about the milk production outlook in both regions and how that’s shifted a bit over the past month or two? I’ll start within the U.S. We generally believe that the margins have not been squeezed to a point where we’re gonna see a massive [00:27:00] supply response, a negative supply response in the U.S. for the foreseeable future. Ted Jacoby III: And the bounce off The bottom, if anything, we may be back into a place where we’re encouraging more production. Josh White: We’ve got some big comparables. There’s maybe some vulnerabilities in the market. We’ve obviously been surprised with disease and other things in the past, so it’s not imminent, of course, but the math says we should expect to continue to have a good amount of milk out of the U.S. going forward. How does that look out of Europe presently? Martijn Goedhart: I would say almost copy paste Josh. Skimmed has bounced back. Butter has stabilized. Cheese has stabilized up to a point where if I look at the valorization of gouda at €3,300/MT you’re well above the 40¢/kg mark, which is basically the pain point for European farmers. And then I’m taking into account sweet whey. Not even WPC, right? So, if you have your WPC return, that’ll add another few cents at least. So yeah, we didn’t go deep enough to encourage any decline in milk production. The big question is how that’s gonna turn out this year: if we see the same curve or more [00:28:00] corrected to normal seasonality. But from a margin perspective, I think, just like Ted said, we bounced off the bottom, and it didn’t hurt enough or long enough for anything structural to change in 2026. Josh White: Hey, Martijn, would you add a little bit of color to what you just mentioned a moment ago? The two flush situation coming from the bluetongue outbreak and issue. Martijn Goedhart: In early 2025 in Europe, there were cases of bluetongue and that spread quite quickly across Western Europe. Spring started, early temperatures went up, and mosquitoes that spread the virus sting cows and then they get infected. It has an effect on calving. A lot of calves are not born in the right way, and also the cows, the output goes down, and it’s harder to get them pregnant. So, some cows, they first have to get over the bluetongue disease before they would start to calve. Some cows would calve late and that means that the milk also starts flowing late. Where you’d typically see a peak, in March, April, and then in eastern Europe, it’s a bit later, but now you’ve seen a similar peak because margins were good, but a longer [00:29:00] plateau at that level as well. Those cows get dried off later as well. So, are they gonna calve later again or is it like maybe some like refreshing of cows in the system, and the new ones will be set up according to the normal season? It’s a big question mark. We don’t know. Even the co-ops are struggling with that. Ted Jacoby III: So, you could have a flush that does not hit the peak it usually does, but it’s just longer. Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. If it’s the same as last year, that’s what’s gonna happen. If we somehow move back to a normal seasonal pattern, then you’ll see a higher peak than last year, but a bigger decline in the second half of the year. Josh White: If we’re talking about demand being okay and large amounts of milk in both Europe and the U.S. likely to continue, is there anywhere in the world that is suffering on their milk production? Do any of us have an idea of what’s going on with milk production in China? Martijn Goedhart: I think margins there are low. It’s been flat until now, the output, but it’s hard to get consistent numbers from China. But margins are still very low. So, that would not incentivize [00:30:00] growth. Ted Jacoby III: Milk production in China popped over a two year period, about five, six years ago. Then held steady for a couple of years, then it pulled back. Now, after that pullback, it’s flatlining again. Josh White: What we’re basically concluding from this is that we’re gonna have a lot of milk still, but, with the exception of some risk maybe on the cheese side and maybe in the butter situation in Europe, the rest of the products don’t seem to have concerning inventory levels as of right now. Ted Jacoby III: I would agree. I think there’s enough supply, but there seems to be surprisingly good demand, especially for protein. All right guys, we’re wrapping up here. Lightning round question. Do you think what’s happening in the nonfat market is a result of increased demand or less supply? Josh, you go first. Josh White: I wanna say both. We’re experiencing more demand across the entire curve that is both pulling more nonfat supply and is also pulling away skim solids from the dryer. Ted Jacoby III: Martijn? Martijn Goedhart: I agree with Josh. Some of it is fundamental SMD but a big part of it is demand waiting too long and needing to deliver. Ted Jacoby III: Henk? Henk-Jan Bouwman: yeah, I’m with you [00:31:00] guys. Ted Jacoby III: I do not want a chicken out like you and say both, so I’m trying to decide which one. I think it’s very subtle, but this is actually demand driven more than supply driven. Martijn Goedhart: Yeah. Ted Jacoby III: Yeah. All right guys. Thanks for joining us again. We really appreciate all the time that you guys spent tuning in and listening to us.  Keep milking those cows, and we’ll keep showing up and telling you what we’re seeing out there. Ted Jacoby III: We’ll be back in two weeks for a market update with the Jacoby team. Looking forward to seeing you then. All right guys. Hey, Martijn. Henk, thank you so much for joining us today. Really appreciate the conversation. Martijn Goedhart: Thanks guys. Huge pleasure. Henk-Jan Bouwman: Thank you very much. Martijn Goedhart: Cheers.

What does a NASA authorization bill actually do, and why does it matter? In this episode of Space Policy Edition, we dig into one of the most misunderstood but powerful tools Congress uses to shape the future of U.S. space exploration. Host Casey Dreier, chief of space policy at The Planetary Society, is joined by Jack Kiraly, the Society’s director of government relations, for a deep dive into how NASA authorization bills work, how they differ from appropriations, and why they can have decades-long consequences for science missions, human spaceflight, and planetary defense. The discussion also reflects on a major recent win for space advocates: Congress’s bipartisan decision to protect NASA science funding. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/spe-what-is-a-nasa-authorization-billSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wie können wir das Leid in der Welt mit einem liebenden Gott vereinbaren? Auf diese und weitere Fragen geht Volker Roggenkamp in einem Hörsaalvortrag bei der SMD Würzburg ein!

Polarisierung durchdacht - Zwischen Gottesvergessenheit, Moralismus, Me-Time und Weltflucht! Diese Folge enthält ein Referat von Prof. Dr. Ralf Frisch zur christlichen Existenz heute.

In this powerful episode, we sit down with Daryl Dudley, representative of She's My Daughter (SMD)—an organization dedicated to empowering young women by enlisting men to be their advocates, protectors, and allies.SMD's mission is clear: to eradicate violence against women by engaging fathers, mentors, and community members in the fight for safety, respect, and empowerment.Daryl shares how the movement started, the impact it's having in communities, and why men play a critical role in protecting and uplifting young women. This is more than a conversation—it's a call to action.

In this powerful episode, we sit down with Daryl Dudley, representative of She's My Daughter (SMD)—an organization dedicated to empowering young women by enlisting men to be their advocates, protectors, and allies.SMD's mission is clear: to eradicate violence against women by engaging fathers, mentors, and community members in the fight for safety, respect, and empowerment.Daryl shares how the movement started, the impact it's having in communities, and why men play a critical role in protecting and uplifting young women. This is more than a conversation—it's a call to action.

Today’s Topics: 1, 2, 3, 4) Father Chad Ripperger, SMD, on “The Merits of the Mass”

18. November: “PrayDay” von SMD und Netzwerk “Gemeinsam für Schulen” der EAD. (Autor: Katja Völkl)

18. November: “PrayDay” von SMD und Netzwerk “Gemeinsam für Schulen” der EAD. (Autor: Katja Völkl)

In 1996, a controversial claim of fossilized life in a Martian meteorite ignited a golden age of Mars exploration. Nearly 30 years later, a potential biosignature detected by the Perseverance rover at Jezero Crater has sparked…nothing, not even a formal effort to revive the beleaguered robotic Mars Sample Return project. Why did the claims surrounding the Allan Hills meteorite (which were ultimately rejected) kick off 25 years of unprecedented robotic exploration of the Red Planet? And why did the discovery at Cheyava Falls fail to ignite the same level of interest? Lou Friedman, former Executive Director of The Planetary Society and longtime proponent of Mars Sample Return, joins the show to contrast these to tipping points of Mars exploration, and argues why space scientists should seize this discovery to push for a scientific future at the Red Planet. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/spe-lou-friedman-on-msr-and-tipping-point-eventsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At Crossroads, just three little letters — SMD — can spark some very big drama. This episode is all about conflict: watching it, responding to it, and getting it started. Keys fly, milk is thrown, and insults are hurled, while adults and kids figure out how to deal with it and keep the peace.This is the third episode of “The Loop,” Ear Hustle's six-part series about kids in New York City who are caught up, one way or another, in the criminal justice system. Ear Hustle would like to thank: Joanne Smith-Darden, Associate Professor, School of Social Work, Ruth T. Koehler Endowed Professor in Children's Services, Michigan State University and Co-Director, SPARK Lab; Heather McCauley, Associate Professor, School of Social Work, Michigan State University and Co-Director, SPARK Lab; and Adam Brown, Associate Professor, Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College, City University of New York, for their tremendous support of this project. Big thanks, too, to the Drama Club team — including Josie Whittlesey, Cesar Rosado, Tiffany “Tiny” Cruz, Abby Pierce, Sophie Jones, and Ashley Adams. You can find out more about their work here.And thanks to Nancy Ginsberg, Aylese Kanze, and Commissioner Danhauser at New York City's Administration for Children's Services for saying “yes” to this project.As always, thanks to Warden Andes and Lt. Berry at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center; Acting Warden Parker, Associate Warden Lewis, and Lt. Newborg at the California Institution for Women; and Warden De La Cruz and Lt. Williams at the Central California Women's Facility for their support of our work.Support our team and get even more Ear Hustle by subscribing to Ear Hustle Plus today. Sign up at earhustlesq.com/plus or directly in Apple Podcasts. Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX.  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As a host, I've met hundreds of shop owners, but every once in a while, I meet someone whose story stops me in my tracks. Ty Haguewood, General Manager and CFO of Manufacturing Technologies, Inc. (MTI) and Stone Mather Designs (SMD), is one of those people. Ty didn't grow up in manufacturing—he was a finance professional who took a random tour of a machine shop six years ago and walked out forever changed. What started as curiosity became a calling. Today, Ty helps lead two growing businesses north of Albuquerque, New Mexico—one serving precision aerospace customers and the other crafting custom lighting for major franchises like Planet Fitness and Dairy Queen. In our conversation, Ty shares how he built his career from the ground up, starting in shipping and ordering tools to eventually running operations and financials for both companies. We talk about leadership, retention, culture, and the power of humility and self-awareness in business. Ty's perspective on intentional leadership, work-life balance, and developing people is something every manufacturing leader can learn from. This isn't just a story about machining—it's about purpose, people, and personal transformation. Ty's passion and discipline prove that excellence isn't something you inherit. It's something you choose, build, and refine every day. You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in... (0:00) Why Ty Haguewood represents passion and excellence in machining (3:02) You'll get honesty and transparency when you work with Phoenix Heat Treating (4:09) Learn more about Manufacturing Technologies Inc. and Stone Mather Designs (9:16) Ty's unique background and what led him to MTI and SMD (16:25) Retaining talent: Creating a culture of humanity and intentional leadership (19:35) Implementing quarterly reviews and bonuses tied to performance metrics (20:53) The impact of shifting to four 10-hour workdays on morale and productivity (22:15) Guarding culture through selective hiring and investing in loyal employees (23:50) Balancing formal systems with organic leadership (25:00) Lessons learned from overcomplicating processes and simplifying systems (27:46) The "data or people" revelation that changed MTI's approach (29:47) Ty's hiring philosophy: Culture over credentials (34:10) Scaling leadership by developing leaders beneath you (35:31) Ty's favorite success story—a McDonald's employee turned machinist (38:04) Workholding Wisdom with SMW Autoblok: Setup Reduction (48:10) Paul's KFC story and discussion on unconventional manufacturing talent (50:50) Training at MTI: shadowing, job progression, and learning by doing (55:33) Standardization, tooling, and why transparency boosts performance (59:13) Balancing data and humanity in leadership (1:01:38) Ty's challenge to leaders: Take the time to become someone worth following (1:07:04) Facing failure, learning from hardship, and rebuilding with integrity (1:09:12) Company-level challenges: losing half the staff and rebuilding stronger (1:10:53) Growth, transparency, and leadership capacity limits (1:11:52) Why authentic leadership is manufacturing's future (1:17:05) Why you should use Hire MFG Leaders for your next hire Resources & People Mentioned You'll get honesty and transparency when you work with Phoenix Heat Treating Achieve setup reduction with SMW Autoblok workholding Why you should use Hire MFG Leaders for your next hire Connect with Ty Haguewood Connect on LinkedIn Manufacturing Technologies Inc. Stone Mather Designs Connect With Machine Shop Mastery The website LinkedIn YouTube Instagram Subscribe to Machine Shop Mastery on Apple, Spotify Audio Production and Show Notes by - PODCAST FAST TRACK

In this episode, we range from ice-cold mornings and sunny Colorado skies to a deep dive on home mining, heat reuse, open hardware, and sovereign home automation. We recap getting featured in Forbes on Heat Punk projects and how mainstream coverage is finally grokking mining-as-heat, Canon's heating-first designs, and Bitmain's market dominance risks. We share real-world progress: integrating Canaan home miners with Home Assistant via APIs and Node-RED, using Zigbee sensors for room-aware thermostatic control, solar and TOU-aware automations, and the vision for a sovereign “miner control hub” box built on Raspberry Pi 5. We get nerdy on RISC‑V vs ARM, open firmware, and the Libre Board + Mujina roadmap, with detours through customs-destroyed SMD parts, packaging HydroPool for Docker, and the power of public, self-hosted pools after a solo-Block win with a NerdQAX. We also cover privacy and the surveillance creep: doorbells, cars, app signing, and why self-hosted tools (Pi-hole, PFsense, Mullvad, Signal, Proton/Tutanota) matter. We discuss HPC pivots by large miners, grid vs. heat-reuse economics, Canaan's momentum in home heating, and the imminent Telehash on HydroPool with StartOS packaging on deck. Plus, the Stealth Miner enclosure, Bitaxe-powered heat projects, and shoutouts to the open-source crew making sovereignty practical at home, one sensor, miner, and Docker container at a time.

Stub Me Down Podcast is back for Season 7! SMD was the official podcast of Oktoberfest at The Vortex, a new venue in Catonsville, MD, and we kick things off with a really cool conversation with Ricky James and Rob Compa from Neighbor, a Boston band making a lot of noise in the jam scene! Skinny and JW chatted with Ricky and Rob about their complimentary playing style, creating setlists, and choosing covers. Their music is entertaining and they bring an upbeat vibe to the stage, and we were so grateful for a few minutes of their time! Check out Neighbortunes.com for their fall tour, and get yourself into the Neighborhood! 

Stub Me Down Podcast live on location! SMD was the official podcast of Oktoberfest at The Vortex, a new outdoor venue in Catonsville, Maryland! SMD Cargo Shorts will feature conversations with each of the bands over the course of the day! First up: The Reality Check Experiment, a jamband out of Philly, drawing inspiration for their live performances from Phish, Zappa, the Grateful Dead, and Ween. Their set featured a cover of Ween's Chocolate & Cheese and Josh, Martin, Quinn, and Matt absolutely crushed it! Check them out on the socials or at therealitycheckexperiment.com. 

Another viewer question, can we identify this SMD component? https://x.com/Joostnietsmeer/status/1967941676061823401 Forum: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/blog/eevblog-1708-whats-this-smd-part/

NASA, the crown jewel of 20th-century technocratic liberalism, was the first to land humans on the Moon but now depends on SpaceX for its access to space. Atlantic writer Franklin Foer believes this reflects a diminishment of national capability and that NASA was inadvertently responsible for its own decline. He traces this transformation from a collective pursuit of higher values to a more individualistic — and idiosyncratic — motivation based on utility and extraction, and ties it to a larger trend in American politics over the past 50 years. Along the way, Frank and host Casey Dreier discuss if Elon Musk is the antithesis of Carl Sagan, the tensions between individualism and collectivism in American politics, and the role of the romantic ideal in the symbolism of space exploration. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/franklin-foer-on-nasas-declineSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join the boys this week for another episode of The Onion Bag. Some big news, we bid farewell to SMD and welcome our new signing.......Also discussed:United's loss to Grimsby Anthony Gordon red cardAus cup semi finals Regional champions league finals ATG (top 4's)World according to James Story time with BobAll this and more on episode 86 of The Onion Bag!

The 2020s will be a decisive decade for in-space nuclear power. So argues Dr. Bhavya Lal, whose new report reframes the conversation around a simple idea: power, not propulsion, is nuclear's most immediate and disruptive capability. Power is what enables humans to stay and build on distant locales; without an abundance of it, she warns, we will never be more than visitors. But in an era of super heavy-lift capability, does this vision still require a nuclear solution, or can we simply brute-force our future in space with cheaper alternatives? Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/bhavya-lal-space-nuclear-powerSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why does this Uni-T UDP6731 PSU use different brand LM358 opamps on the same PCB? All about Bill Of Materials, SMD pick and place machines, suppliers and specifications. Links: Jellybean Opamps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq1DMWtjL2U NESS Factory tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTij7Juj5qE http://www.artschip.com/pdf/LM358.pdf https://www.st.com/content/ccc/resource/technical/document/datasheet/61/46/87/01/98/ed/44/c5/CD00000464.pdf/files/CD00000464.pdf/jcr:content/translations/en.CD00000464.pdf Forum: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/blog/eevblog-1697-whats-up-with-different-brand-op-amps/

Have Democrats ceded leadership in space policy? That’s what Mary Guenther believes. She’s the Director of Space Policy at the Progressive Policy Institute and the author of an editorial that claims Democrats have ceded their leadership. She traces the party’s arc from Obama-era reforms to recent data showing that Democrats introduced a third fewer space bills than Republicans in recent years, and proposes ways that the party should embrace this forward-looking field while tying it to their core issues of job creation, supply chains, and climate science.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alicia Brown from the Commercial Space Federation and Brittany Webster from the American Geophysical Union join the show to discuss NASA’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposal, which aims to slash the agency’s funding by nearly 25%, cut science by 47%, and reduce staffing to levels not seen since 1960. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/fy2026-nasa-budget-discussionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former NASA Chief Economist Akhil Rao explains why NASA needs economic expertise to navigate the complex—and often misunderstood—market forces that will determine the success or failure of its private partnerships. As NASA relies ever more on commercial companies to enable its own exploration efforts, it is imperative, Rao believes, to provide clear-eyed perspectives that highlight the challenges and solutions required to reach success. And why NASA puts itself at risk for pursuing faith-based program investments after dissolving the strategy and economics team at the agency a few months ago. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/space-economy-akhil-raoSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our choice of hacks included a fond look at embedded systems and the classic fashion sense of Cornell's Bruce Land, risky open CRT surgery, a very strange but very cool way to make music, and the ultimate backyard astronomer's observatory. We talked about Stamp collecting for SMD prototyping, crushing aluminum with a boatload of current, a PC that heats your seat, and bringing HDMI to the Commodore 64. We also took a look at flight tracking IRL, a Flipper-based POV, the ultimate internet toaster, and printing SVGs for fun and profit. Finally, we wrapped things up with a look at the tech behind real-time river flow tracking and a peek inside the surprisingly energetic world of fuel cells. Check out all the links over at Hackaday!

Our choice of hacks included a fond look at embedded systems and the classic fashion sense of Cornell's Bruce Land, risky open CRT surgery, a very strange but very cool way to make music, and the ultimate backyard astronomer's observatory. We talked about Stamp collecting for SMD prototyping, crushing aluminum with a boatload of current, a PC that heats your seat, and bringing HDMI to the Commodore 64. We also took a look at flight tracking IRL, a Flipper-based POV, the ultimate internet toaster, and printing SVGs for fun and profit. Finally, we wrapped things up with a look at the tech behind real-time river flow tracking and a peek inside the surprisingly energetic world of fuel cells. Check out all the links over at Hackaday!

Dr. Nicky Fox joined NASA in 2018 as the director of the Heliophysics Division in the Science Mission Directorate (SMD) and is now the associate administrator for NASA's SMD. 

No one person knows how to build a spaceship. Dr. Janet Vertesi has seen this firsthand. She’s spent years embedded in NASA science teams, not as a participant, but as an observer. She’s a sociologist who studies the team dynamics of NASA missions. She is alarmed at the prospect of indiscriminate firings at the agency, and at the potential loss of institutional knowledge that won’t easily be rebuilt. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/spe-janet-vertesi-on-threats-to-nasas-group-brainSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The 16:9 PODCAST IS SPONSORED BY SCREENFEED – DIGITAL SIGNAGE CONTENT If you go to big outdoor sports events, concerts in parks or even political rallies, there's a reasonable chance that what's happening is going to be relayed on a portable LED display that was wheeled into place by   trailer. My local footy team uses one and it is old and looks terrible. But that's not the norm, and certainly not for a Des Moines, Iowa company that is very specifically in the business of making and selling great-looking and bulletproof on-the-go LED trailers. Insane Impact has been at it for eight years and now has almost 500 units operating, mostly but not only in the United States. The flagship product is 17 feet wide by 10 feet tall, using 4mm LED and pushing as much as 7,500 nits. It's been designed to roll into place and be up and running in 10 minutes or less - even if a doofus like me was told to get it lit up. I had a really good chat with Tod Puetz, who started the company after first being a user, when he was in the golf equipment business. In this podcast, we get into a lot of things - including how he had the foresight to get ahead of the tariffs turmoil and pre-ordered enough electronics and hardware to hopefully ride out these uncertain months. We also talk about use-cases and probably the most curious application to date - drive-in funerals when COVID was raging. Subscribe from wherever you pick up new podcasts. TRANSCRIPT Tod, thank you for joining me. Can you tell me what Insane Impact does, where you're based, those kinds of nuts and bolts questions?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, appreciate it Dave. Insane Impact, primarily focused on LED as a business, but we are an audio video integration company based out of Des Moines, Iowa.  Des Moines. So you're in flyover country? Tod Puetz: Absolutely.  It's actually very handy there because you're like two hours away from the East Coast and two hours away from the West coast, right?  Tod Puetz: It really is. Just in proximity here in the central part of the US, where our corporate office and warehouse location is about 65 seconds from the airport Des Moines International, so very easy to get in. All the major interstate throwaways between I-29 North and South and I-35 North and South, and then I-80 West. We're pretty much within minutes of getting anywhere we need to go east, west, north, or south.  Nice. How long has the company been around?  Tod Puetz: We started up in 2015, flipped the switch basically late December, 2015 and have been going rock and roll. So we're coming up on our 10 year anniversary here in December.  You are a founder?  Tod Puetz: I am, yeah. Founder and CEO.  So what compelled you to do this? What did you see in the marketplace that said, okay, this is what I should do?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, really the CliffNotes version, my former life was in the golf business. I was a manufacturer sales rep for TaylorMade Golf, and I was introduced to a gentleman here locally in Des Moines that had an older video truck and basically saw an opportunity to utilize that as a sales tool to help me sell more golf clubs.  So we took this video truck out on the driving range here locally in Des Moines, hooked it up to the launch monitor and, gosh, that was almost 18 years ago. Back then it was a big deal. Not a lot of people in your run of the mill average daily golfer really ever had an op opportunity to do that. They'd seen it on tour. But we brought the bigs out to the little team here in some of these country clubs, and again, larger than life. They were able to see their stats up on the screen and really fell in love with the technology back then, and were able to utilize that for a number of years after that initial introduction. What was it back then? What was the technology back then, early LED?  Tod Puetz: It was an SMD, It was an early 8x8 millimeter SMD back then. I refer to it as antiquated, but back then, it was pretty fresh and new. But yeah, just the idea of being able to drive this thing up to the driving range, the wings folded open on this thing and, within minutes we're plug and play and just really, fell in love with that concept. ,  Yeah. So did you buy the business from him or just get something going on your own? Tod Puetz: Did not. We utilized them. It was a kind of a one man show there. It was more of a hobby for individuals, and they used it for four or five years. But they weren't interested in scaling this thing. As my career with TaylorMade progressed more and more, I ended up working with other companies, just trying to understand the LED business. So I branched out and helped a few other smaller LED niche companies to try to generate some business in the sports space. We just had a lot of relationships with the golf business and yeah, really just took the concept and I knew there was a different mouse trap here with that type of opportunity to scale it, that's where we started things in late 2015. So the idea is just at its bare essentials, and I think most people understand this anyways, but just in case, is you've got a foldable all in one LED display that's on a trailer and your customers are rolling it out to different locations, whether they're entertainment events, sports events or something else, and finding power, plugging it in, open it, and driving a signal to it, and you've got a big display where it needs to be for three days or three weeks or whatever it is, right?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, absolutely. By no means, does Insane Impact claim to be the inventor of mobile LED. Obviously, that has been one man for a very long time. Our business, Insane Impact, started up on the rental side. We designed, fabricated and engineered a handful of units, just to service what we thought was gonna be a Midwest boutique rental business and very quickly became a national presence. And what we found was that the same people were renting products two, three and four times a year, and really, our thought process was, why don't we just own one of these things, and we can use it 365 days a year, if we want? And again, there were already customers out there, there were common trucks that were selling trailers, but it wasn't popular and we really started working back in 2016 to develop a plan where if you own the product, we can certainly start to feed your business as well, you can be part of our rental network and that's really what kind of, put the fuel on the fire. Each year, more and more units in the field, more and more customers from parks and municipalities, armed forces, college, university, all of the usual suspects out there that use these things on a regular basis, really became the traction for rapid growth in this endeavor.  So your company, it's an interesting kind of mashup of different competencies, so to speak, in that if you are manufacturing rolling stock with lots of heavy-duty metals and wheels and everything else, that's one thing. And then at the polar opposite, you've got fairly sensitive electronics. So you're doing both sides of that, right?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, absolutely. We take a fully engineered and manufactured trailer. These trailers weigh anywhere from 3,500 pounds on our smallest unit up to 18,000 pounds on a triple axle gooseneck. And they've got real high end LEDs permanently. We've approached it a little bit differently. We're putting a fixed product on it. So something that's used to and withstands the elements pretty much anywhere, including the road, and then obviously everything else on the unit is fully protected from shock, from absorption of weather. Everything's IP67 through the components side of things, and IP65 on the trailer, fully powder coated system.  So we've really built, tried, and tested a product that's gonna last and withstand the elements going up and down the road at 75 miles an hour in any extreme environment.  I'm guessing that you, in your early years, had some lessons, whether they were hard ones or whatever.  Tod Puetz: Yeah, absolutely. It wouldn't be any fun if we didn't. Our first major lesson that we learned, Dave and I think this is really what sets us apart is that we did the hang and bang modular cabinets on our product for the first, probably two and a half years and we learned the lesson real quick that those just aren't designed to withstand the long-lasting road and weather, wear and tear. At the time, that's what everybody was using it and that's kind of where we were at. It took a lot of headaches, blood and sweat, for those first two years to figure out what product really made sense. For the last four and a half years, we've really been rock and rolling on a specific product, chassis, and stuff that just really outperformed, in a big way. So that was a very painful lesson because you're a year into this thing, and you've got issues, and those are hard to come by as a startup, but we were able to weather the storm and find what really worked for us and I think that really separate us from most right now is we just, we're putting some of the best products out there on the market on these trailers. And you not only have to make it bulletproof, but I suspect you have to do it down like crazy, because this can not be something that takes 45 minutes and has a checklist, like launching a rocket or something. It's gotta roll into place and find power and open the hinges, lock them down, and get a signal in, right? Tod Puetz: Yeah, you nailed it. I think one of the things as we built this thing out, Dave, is that the single most important part was customer focus and customer friendly, and I will tell you that you yourself, or even my 18-year-old daughter, can get this thing up and running in less than 10 minutes. We pride ourselves on delivering a turnkey functional unit to our flagship product, which is our Max 1710. You can pull in, and it'll take you longer to unhook it than it will to turn it on and set it up in some respects. We offer a generator-powered option or a battery-powered option. We've got a fully self-sustained, lithium-ion pack that is performing at an incredible level right now, which we're really excited about.  So we worked with a major organization probably about 18 months ago, in the Armed Forces space, and we worked with them to design a fully self-sustainable battery pack solution and were really excited about that. We can talk about that a little bit more here, but at the end of the day, our electronics cabinet is an IP67 rated rack that basically opens it up, and as you know, with everything, we run Nova Star. So everything is just a straight playback video. So just hit the breakers, hit the power switch, and you're off and running. So we really did wanna make this thing turnkey. They come fully self-sustained with audio as well. We wanted to make sure that anybody and everybody could operate this thing very quickly.  Is there a media playout box in there, or do you use an external feed and then just plug it into an HDMI or whatever it may be? Tod Puetz: Plenty of different options. Most often our customers, like your Park and Rec municipality, the people that are using this thing to play movies and stuff, they're just streaming it off the laptop. But we got an IO box that they can drop in, SDI, fiber, anything else if you're running or whatever it might be. But yeah, anybody can bring us any signal within, within a minute, and we're up and running. So really trying to get in that turnkey facet of this thing to make sure that we're in a good spot.  Okay, so you're sourcing the trailer from a third-party manufacturer as opposed to bending metal and doing all that yourself and you're sourcing the electronics, and you're basically doing final assembly, right?  Tod Puetz: Correct. Yep.  Doing it the other way would be very complicated.  Tod Petz: We did that when we first started this little venture, we hired engineers, we bought the welders, we were buying cut parts and building them ourselves, and we realized very quickly that in a 4,000 square foot facility that when this thing takes up, it'd be impossible to keep up. So we were very fortunate to find a local vendor that was in the trailer business already but they took a liking to what we were doing, and it really has just been a wonderful partnership and relationship with them. They build a fantastic product, best-in-class warranty around it, and it's really the fit and the finish from premium laser cut, premium powder coat finishes, all the details that are there, and certainly, we work with some of the best engineers out there in the marketplace to create the best product so really exciting to have that partnership. On the LED side and the electronics side, we're taking the trailer and we're taking the electronics and we're putting the fit and finish on it and making it function and delivering a finished product.  I assume you have some sort of a contract manufacturer or a finished goods supplier in, whether it's China, Taiwan, or somewhere else you're sourcing from. Tod Puetz: On the electronic side, yeah, we do. So we actually just made an announcement here yesterday. We are partnered with DVS (Dynamic Visual Solutions). We've been working with them for almost six years now.  Obviously, Chinese based, but we got in touch with the owner and the CEO of the US business almost six years ago and kind of started to understand what it meant for us and what it meant for them to be a partner and really have our hands on the technology, help them with some of the design elements that we needed within the product to make sure that it was gonna pass the buck and make sure that it lasted and, almost six years later. But, yeah, we just had a nice press release announcing the partnership. We got a huge opportunity with them with the craziness that's going on out there in the space. But great company, wonderful products, best-in-class warranties, and we've had the ability to shape what that product needs to be on our trailers.  I suspect that was a bit of a journey too, finding the right supplier because we've all heard the stories about different companies who make a lot of promises, but what shows up isn't what you thought you were getting. Tod Puetz: Yeah, it was. So we had gone through probably three to five different manufacturers, three to four at least prior to getting with DVS and it's very painful on that side of it because you are dealing with somebody over in China, and sleepless nights and figuring stuff out and a startup and all of the fun things that happen around that. When we were able to locate, DVS was based out of Florida. They really just took a liking to what we were doing and threw all the chips on the table and said, we've got a great modular rental business going, but we're really intrigued about this mobile solution. How can we help? And we really started to dig cautiously optimistic out of the gate because there are thousands of people out there trying to get the business in some respects.  Could we go to one of the major five or six? Yeah, we certainly could have, but we felt like there was a little bit more of an intimate approach to this. We were a newer company. We took our time getting into what we really wanted, and we felt like we had a little more leverage working with a decent-sized company. And with somebody who's got an office in Florida as opposed to Shenzhen or Beijing. Tod Puetz: Correct.  I don't want to get too deep into what's going on right now, but how are you navigating the tariff situation right now?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, that's the million dollar question and in some cases, multi millions. When I started this company, Dave, I had two stances that I wanted to live by. One, I was gonna over-index on our employees and make sure that we had the right people in the right seats, and take very good care of them. The other one that came later on, probably after we had established and it was I'm never gonna run out of products. I just know that if we have products, we'll sell them.  So after those first three, four years, we put ourselves in a position where we've rubber stamped our products, we know who we're selling to, we know what our core markets are, and we've got the right people in the right seats and I just knew that if I would run out of product, then I just make sure that we are collectively chasing the business. That's a really hard thing to do. But fortunately, we've got the right vendors to do this with.  So back in November, after the current administration was elected or they won the nomination, knowing that this discussion of tariffs was on the horizon, we took a very calculated and risky approach, but we went out and bought a slew of equipment. So we bought basically upwards of almost a year of supply in LEDs out front. We went to our trailer manufacturer. They bought a year's worth of supply of our top three SKUs and hedged the bet with us. So we're in a little different position than most, again, there are a lot of people out there who probably did the same thing. I'm not the only one out there who took that risk, but we did take the risk, and it's certainly paying off. That kind of gets you an idea of where we're at and how we've run our business. We just don't wanna run out of products. So fast forward to today in reality, I think there's a blinking that's happening, there's a stance, and this isn't a political statement by any means. This is just our gut feeling on this is, I feel like it's gotta loosen up a little bit here. It can only go so hard and so fast. But we've been able to weather the tariff storm, internally at Insane, impacted by some of the stuff we did on the front end. We have not been significantly impacted by LEDs. If we're to place orders today on LEDs. Honestly, it's been fairly minimal in the impact. We're seeing some of the expensive shipping surcharges that are happening. But I think there's just buying power that's come with some of the things that we've done with our manufacturer to keep them rocking and rolling, that have helped us mitigate a little bit of this. But you're not like some of these companies where they're wringing their hands, okay, in order to get something out of a container in Long Beach, California, I need to write a check for an extra million dollars that I had not anticipated.  Tod Puetz: Yeah, we're not dealing with that. I think where this thing's really impacted, the hundreds of, I'm just gonna call them mom and pop manufacturers over there, whether they're manufacturers or just the days of them just shipping, 12x7s into the States by air is probably coming to an end or they're pricing themselves out of the market a little bit. Either that or they just don't care. But I think a lot of this is the consolidation in the short-term impact that we've seen in real life. The long-term impact, in my opinion, is gonna weed some of them out, and then obviously you've got all the Chinese entity companies, the larger players in the game that are having to come to market with distribution here in the US, where it impacts us the most. So they're adding additional layers of cost and it's really gonna open the door from what we're seeing, it's gonna open the door for us to other markets by virtue of that since we're already and established US distributor. When you first got in touch, I didn't know that much about you and thought, you're a rental company, but I was intrigued that, sure, you do rentals, but really, you're a manufacturer and you're selling to companies who are more regional rental companies. That's accurate, correct?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, it's interesting. So we've really got three business units, Dave. But we started off as a rental company with a primary focus on the mobile solution. We did have modular hanging bangs as well that we took care of some specific customers, but when we kinda uncovered the opportunity, evolved is a great word into the more offside of the business selling video trailers, that opened up a whole other segment of opportunity for us to then really start to take a look at the fixed install stuff.  Our three business units are really, primarily led by the mobile video solution on the trailers, and other new innovative products coming. Now, by the way, we do the marquees and the scoreboards and the highway signs, the airport conference room takeover stuff. We do all of that as well, and oh, by the way, customers that have video trailers, they become part of our cross-rental network. So this nucleus business unit feeds that we have, one feeds the other and that feeds another. It's really that we create a really cool situation here that allows us to have return business from our customers in all of those different facets. Because if you can't afford it, you can rent it. If you rent it too many times, then you can afford to buy it, and oh, by the way, we can replace your scoreboard or we can replace your, your, your classroom or your theater, modular wall, whatever it might be.  We do all three of them, and we do, we feel like we do them pretty well, and again, we're very lucky to have those three business units that fill the pipeline on a regular basis.  Is there a rule of thumb as to that point where, okay, we can rent this five times a year and that makes financial sense, but there's a certain break point where it makes more sense just to buy it? Tod Puetz: Yeah, that's a wonderful question because it really comes down to there's such a tremendous education process. Again, up until maybe, really when we started, at least here in the US, there was nobody else that was mass producing or really proactively selling to the end customer, and when we started doing that, we were very fortunate just to have some relationships where they actually saw the light. “Oh, this makes sense.”  Yeah, it's a high school or a college, and they're using it for their game day stuff. But what's been more fun for me in this company is to see just the evolution of the education that's had that's happened. Going to a city administrator and telling them, hey, it's not just the three movie nights a year, it's all of your chamber events. It's the community support events, it's the fundraiser stuff. So when they start to understand the use case of these items, these trailers, and that they can turn and burn and have these things up and running, whether it's just mass notification, you've got storms coming, or just any and all of those things.  Once they understand the full use case of applications that these products can offer, then the light comes on, and then it becomes a much easier conversation for them to take to the stakeholders and say, alright, we really need this. Here are all the reasons why. So our sales team is incredibly focused on the educational side of the business on how this can impact the community, campus, etc.  I realize you have a number of different sizes and everything else, but, for your primary selling unit, what would that cost?  And if I wanted to rent it for a weekend, if I'm in Ames, Iowa, what would that cost to rent it for a weekend?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, great question. So our flagship product is our Max 1710. So 17 wide, 10 foot tall, 3.9 millimeters on their turnkey generator operation, delivery, and tech. To rent that thing for a day, in this market, it does vary a little bit based on coast to coast. You get a three-day festival and you're spending $7,500 to 8,000 bucks for a screen that's operated that comes turnkey, that has power if needed. That's gonna turn the lights on and be reliable. So that's a pretty good snapshot of what we offer from a rate card on that specific product. If somebody wants to buy it, I'm gonna say turnkey trailer screen electronics, generator, audio. If you want the Mac Daddy package delivered to your doorstep, you're in that $150-160k range, which is gonna get you, 10-year parts, five-year labor on LED screen warranty, five-year parts, five-year labor on the trailer warranty, and then obviously an electronics warranty. So you're really protecting the investment there, Dave.  We're not the most expensive in the marketplace. We're definitely not the least. We feel like we're in a really good slot, and I think our adoption within the marketplace probably supports that. But that gives you a quick snapshot of where we're at from the pricing structure. So if you're a company that's on the rental side of it, you could see an ROI in a year if you're in a busy market.  Tod Puetz: Absolutely. Yeah. I think, 1710, and this doesn't factor in your cogs, your travel, your truck, your tech, etc. Sure. But if you get 20 to 25 really strong rental events within your market on a single day's use, you're right there certainly, being able to pay it back.  And it goes back to that education process. When we sell a customer a unit, we don't guarantee them any business, in terms of what we can bring to them from the cross-rental network. We're very forthright about that. But what does happen is if you're a proven, vetted, rental partner out there in the marketplace, you can bet, you're gonna get some help with monetizing this thing. That's the unique part about this business relationship with our customers on the trailer side is: we're gonna help you guys monetize the unit over time.  I have season tickets to the local Canadian Premier League soccer team that does very well here. They pull 6,500 people to games, but it's at a somewhat temporary stadium, and they have an LED display, it looks like maybe a 17x10 on a truck.  I severely doubt it's yours because it's a piece of crap. It's not very bright, it's not very crisp or anything, but it's something, so I gather that this can be all over the map in terms of what you rent. If you're an end user, you have to pay attention to the specs.  Tod Puetz: Absolutely. We prided ourselves on being the leader when it comes to what products are out there on mobile products, in and of itself. But it really comes down to the screen at the end of the day. I guess we will probably take it a step further. We do take a lot of pride in the physical trailer itself, the metal that this thing rides on, because that's as important to me as it's the LED.  But at the end of the day, having something that you can put up in direct sunlight and have the most quality, crisp image, is what we've over-indexed on that in a good way. So what we come to market with is a 7500 nit, 3.9 product, competitively in the marketplace. 3.9 from our core competitors are in that 4500-5500 nit and it just overpowers everything.  So again, if you're rolling up to the game for a little pre-game watch party, you're gonna get the best viewing experience possible, with some of the product. But we do pay a lot of attention to the spec, the physical components, the quality, and that's very close to our chest, so we don't take that for granted. So you're doing lots of sports and entertainment events, probably some corporate events. I'm curious, what's the most unusual one that you're aware of?  Tod Puetz: It was interesting. You look at Covid and the impact that it had on the industry, and all of these companies out there that have stages and rigging and modular and everything else, they took a little bit of a bath at the onset of Covid, and really, what allowed us to squeeze in and continue to, I would say, entertain, but take care of customers that had to continue to engage, whether it was employees or crowds or whatever.  So we did everything. But this leads up to your question, doing drive-in funerals was probably one of the most unique things that we've done. They couldn't get into the churches, so we were pulling up to large parking lots and they were streaming the funeral from inside the church out to the streets. It was really wild, but I bet we did anywhere from 50 to 60 funerals in late 2020 and in early 2021 until the restrictions relaxed a little bit. So we had funeral homes. We probably have three or four customers that actually own these, as a result of Covid, and they continue to use them for different settings in the church and funeral space. That would be the one that comes to mind, honestly, is that kind of the most bizarre one that you never really think about? Yeah.  How many units do you have out there, roughly?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, so we shipped the first unit in January of 2017 to a gasoline company in Texas. By the end of this month, the end of April, we delivered right around 495 units into the marketplace all around the US. We've got some army bases and navy bases over in Japan. We've got a handful of units over in Europe, a good chunk over in Hawaii, obviously I know that's US, but largely, 95 to 97% of what we've got is here in the lower 48. We do have a few up in your neck of the woods as well, but, yeah, we've been very to lead the charge there as it relates to the go to product in the marketplace. Super interesting. If people wanna know more, they just find you at insaneimpact.com?  Tod Puetz: Yeah, InsaneImpact.com. They can learn a little bit more about everything we do, but it's an exciting time for us. I know there's a little bit of uncertainty and doom and gloom, but we're just keeping our heads down. We've got customers that want the product. They may want it, but how do we get them to realize that they need the product to continue to advance their business, regardless of the sector, and I think if they get in touch with our folks, we're putting ourselves in a good spot to provide really good information and provide a great solid starting base for our conversation. I'm impressed with the advanced planning that you did. I don't have a lot of sympathy for people who were sitting around this week and saying, I didn't see that coming.  Tod Puetz: Head on a swivel constantly, there's no question.  Alright, Todd, thanks very much for taking the time.  Tod Puetz: Dave, I appreciate you. Take care now!

Season 6 of Stub Me Down Podcast trucks along! Episode 5 features a visit from the Great Wendt- Wook Plus's own Kevin Hogan. Kev joins Skinny and JW to talk podcasting, interviewing musicians, and pulls a stub from a diverse and interesting (according to JW about a 420 times) Grateful Dead show in 1990. Setlist choices, the role and demise of Brent Mydland, and an extended Dark Star highlight the conversation as SMD finally gets the last of the Wooks to stub us down. Thanks for listening! 

The space sector is data-rich but insight-poor. Jack Kuhr, head of research at Payload Space, joins the show to unpack how business, budgeting, and performance data—not spacecraft science—can shape investments, drive growth, and influence policy. Is there a data crisis in the space industry? What gets measured, what gets missed, and how does that shape the decisions we make about space? Kuhr shares his approach to surfacing the real story behind the numbers—and why clarity, context, and narratives matter. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/lies-and-space-dataSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join Sarah Al-Ahmed and Casey Dreier for a special live recording of Planetary Radio at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C., immediately following The Planetary Society’s Day of Action. In this episode, we explore the complex geopolitical landscape NASA faces as it works toward returning humans to the Moon and exploring other worlds. With growing influence from commercial space companies, potential budget cuts, and changes in committee leadership, this pivotal moment in space exploration is shaping NASA’s future. We’re joined by Bill Nye (CEO, The Planetary Society), Nancy Chabot (Chief Scientist, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory), Rep. George Whitesides (Representative, CA-27), Rep. Judy Chu (Co-chair, Congressional Planetary Science Caucus, Representative, CA-28), and Antonio Peronace (Chief Executive, Space for Humanity). Together, we explore how evolving national priorities, key lawmakers, and the rapid growth of the commercial space sector could reshape U.S. space policy, potentially redefining the motivations that have driven space exploration since the Apollo era. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2025-live-from-dcSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NASA's science missions have transformed our understanding of the Universe, from breathtaking images of deep space to robotic explorers on Mars. But now, a reported 50% cut to NASA's science budget threatens to shut down missions, halt discoveries, and devastate the future of space exploration. This week, Casey Dreier and Jack Kiraly from The Planetary Society's space policy team break down the fight ahead, explain why these cuts would be catastrophic, and explain how you can take action before they become part of the official presidential budget request. Then, Science Editor Asa Stahl joins us to discuss the power of grassroots advocacy and Planetary Society members' impact in defending space science over the past 45 years. Plus, Bruce Betts returns for What's Up with a celebration of Lunar PlanetVac and a look ahead to this week's lunar eclipse. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2025-extinction-level-event-for-nasa-scienceSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Philosopher Rebecca Lowe joins us to explore how the ideas of classical liberalism can provide fresh insight into humanity’s activities in space. Our conversation explores the philosophical tensions between individual freedom and societal good, the instrumental and intrinsic value of space activities, and the uniquely accessible nature of space science and exploration. From a novel approach to lunar property rights and the opportunities to support human flourishing, Lowe offers a thought-provoking vision of how philosophical traditions can inform our cosmic ambitions. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/classical-liberalism-in-spaceSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck joins the show to unpack his company’s bold, $4-billion fixed-price plan to bring Martian samples home, why he believes commercial partnerships can unlock new frontiers in planetary science, and his “soft spot” for interplanetary exploration. Then, Richard French — former JPL engineer and now VP of Business & Strategy at Rocket Lab — provides deeper insight into their proposed Mars Sample Return architecture, explaining how a single, vertically integrated team could cut costs and secure mission success. And yes, we get an update on the status of their Venus mission, too. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/can-rocketlab-save-msrSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's find out what this blown SMD part is, sent in by a viewer. Forum: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/blog/eevblog-1666-blown-smd-component-identification/ Component Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvOlSehNtuHtdQF-m5UFZ5GEjABadI3kI

How does change happen within NASA, and what prevents it? Marcia Smith, founder of Space Policy Online, joins the show to discuss the opportunities and pitfalls faced by incoming presidential administrations and how NASA has—and hasn’t—changed over the decades. Will Artemis be reimagined? Will public-private partnerships introduce more risk than reward? And is change even the right default attitude to take? Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/change-and-continuity-at-nasa-with-marcia-smith See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For over half a century, space advocates and presidents alike have tried to recreate the JFK moment of calling on the country to send a man to Moon — but is this a mistake? The classic book Spaceflight and the Myth of Presidential Leadership argued that it is, and by focusing on presidential power alone advocates set up these initiatives to fail. However, in the decades since its publication, presidential authority has dramatically expanded. In this episode, we examine this tension: Did the success of Apollo create a false expectation about the role of presidential leadership in spaceflight? How can a president most effectively set new long-term goals for NASA? Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/myth-of-presidential-leadership See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're joined by special guest Cole Alexander TV, the rising artist and comedic content creator better known as Mr. SMD (#IYKYK), bringing his unique energy to the studio! Watch Ape challenge the crew with some deep reflection, demanding motivational speeches and horror stories about their worst jobs ever.The music scene is heating up: ASAP Ferg returns with "DAROLD," Ella Mai drops a triple threat with her "3 EP," BABYTRON chronicles the game with "Tronicles," and Ab Soul serves up the "Soul Burger" Album.The news keeps us on our toes: Denzel drops a double bombshell about retirement and Black Panther, DDG stirs drama by bringing Halo to Kai's stream without Halle's blessing, Kodak's wild antics on stream get everyone talking, and Trump's gun legislation proposal sparks heated debate.Things get WILD in relationships when the squad tackles some mind-bending questions: Is getting intimate with an AI android crossing the line? Would you marry your girl against her family's wishes (and vice versa)? Can that early relationship fire keep burning years later? And when your natural beauty queen wants body mods, do you get a vote?In true JSC fashion, we wrap with some soul-searching as the crew drops gems they wish they could tell their younger selves.With only 10 episodes left until our historic 100th episode, and Mr. SMD himself in the building, this installment brings the perfect mix of humor, controversy, and real talk that's made the Jungle Squad Cast your weekly must-listen! Don't miss Cole Alexander TV bringing that signature energy and fresh perspective to all the hot topics!

Norm Augustine, the distinguished aerospace industry veteran behind numerous influential studies, joins the show to discuss “NASA at a Crossroads,” the new report that raises alarm bells for NASA's workforce, infrastructure, and technology capabilities. Augustine, who chaired an expert committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, came to the conclusion that NASA is on an unsustainable path, and has underinvested in its enabling workforce and physical infrastructure for decades.  The solutions put forth by this report committee will require years of effort from NASA, Congress, and subsequent presidential administrations. Which path NASA decides to take, however, may not be known for years to come. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/spe-nasa-at-a-crossroadsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the 2024 Hackaday Supercon looming large on the horizon, Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi start this episode off by talking about this year's badge and its focus on modular add-ons. From there they'll go over the results of a particularly challenging installment of What's that Sound?, discuss a promising DIY lathe that utilizes 3D printed parts filled with concrete, and ponder what the implosion of Redbox means for all of their disc-dispensing machines that are still out in the wild. You'll also hear about custom macropads, lifting SMD pins, and how one hacker is making music with vintage electronics  learning kits. Finally, they'll reassure listeners that the shifting geopolitical landscape probably won't mean the end of Hackaday.io anytime soon, and how some strategically placed pin headers can completely change how you approach designing your own PCBs. Check out the links over at Hackaday, and tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

A journey through 35 years of house from the godfather of UK rave. In popular mythology, the '90s are without question, the halcyon days of dance music—an era of free raves and unadulterated hedonism. It's a myth that Matthew Nelson, AKA Slipmatt, knows better than most–he was there. During the late '80s, as the rave scene in the UK began to boom, Nelson began moonlighting as a DJ. He would land his first residency at Raindance, the East London rave that launched in September 1989 and would become the UK's first legal rave. By 1991 , he'd reach number two in the UK charts with "On A Ragga Tip" as one-half of SL2 and two years later, sell over 10,000 copies of SMD#1. Nelson has got a lot to share (as you'll see in his interview) so we'll let him do the talking. He's been variously called the godfather of rave and happy hardcore, but what you'll hear on RA.958 is as "a journey through my 35 years of house." A DJ with this much pedigree brings much more than that, of course: touching on the breakbeat, jungle and acid house that soundtracked that golden age, as well as nods to the rich cross-pollination with scenes beyond the UK, from Joey Beltram's "Energy Flash" to Stardust's "Music Sounds Better With You." Read more at ra.co/podcast/958

Lori Garver, former NASA Deputy Administrator and participant in two democratic NASA presidential transition teams, joins the show to discuss the potential space policy priorities of a Harris Administration. We explore Harris' interests in her role as head of the National Space Council, the major issues facing NASA, and Garver's thoughts on the evolution of Elon Musk, whom she championed during her tenure at NASA in an effort to kickstart the commercial space industry. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/harris-admin-space-policy-preview See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Greg Autry, who served on Trump's NASA transition team in 2016 and was nominated for the position of NASA CFO in 2020, joins the show to discuss the space policy issues facing a potential second Trump administration in 2025. We discuss the role of competition versus cooperation in space exploration, how space politics have changed since Trump's first term, and what major issues at NASA must be faced by the next presidential administration. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/space-policy-issues-second-trump-termSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why do we explore space? This is not an easy question to answer. Yet policy expert G. Ryan Faith believes there is value to be had in communal engagement with this question. While easy answers may elude us, the act of defining our values and goals in space can help avoid common pitfalls and dead ends in our exploration efforts, ensuring a continued commitment to space for generations to come. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/spe-philosophy-of-space-exploration-ryan-faithSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Holy texts and salvation ideology. Saints and martyrs. True believers and apostates. This isn't a religion — this is human spaceflight. So says Roger Launius, NASA's former Chief Historian, in his 2013 paper Escaping Earth: Human Spaceflight as Religion. For the start of our ninth year of the Space Policy Edition, Dr. Launius joins the show to discuss the ways in which human spaceflight exhibits characteristics commonly seen in modern religions, how his thesis has evolved in the past decade with the rise of Elon Musk and his view of Mars as humanity's salvation, and how exploring secular activities through a religious lens can be instructive in understanding their adherents and support. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/spe-human-spaceflight-as-religionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today's Topics: 1, 2, 3, 4) Father Chad Ripperger, SMD, on "The Merits of the Mass"

Join the HG101 gang as they discuss and rank SNK's 1987 arcade game about magical kids who shoot through rubble. This weekend's Patreon Bonus Get episode will be HOME ALONE! (SMD!) Donate at Patreon to get this bonus content and much, much more! Follow the show on Bluesky to get the latest and straightest dope. Check out what games we've already ranked on the Big Damn List, then nominate a game of your own via five-star review on Apple Podcasts! Take a screenshot and show it to us on our Discord server! Intro music by NORM. 2023 © Hardcore Gaming 101

Join the HG101 gang as they discuss and rank Capcom's deeply disturbing take on Bubble Bobble. This weekend's Patreon Bonus Get episode will be HOME ALONE! (SMD!) Donate at Patreon to get this bonus content and much, much more! Follow the show on Bluesky to get the latest and straightest dope. Check out what games we've already ranked on the Big Damn List, then nominate a game of your own via five-star review on Apple Podcasts! Take a screenshot and show it to us on our Discord server! Intro music by NORM. 2023 © Hardcore Gaming 101

Join the HG101 gang as they discuss and rank Platinum's high-contrast, ultraviolent gameshow game. This weekend's Patreon Bonus Get episode will be HOME ALONE! (SMD!) Donate at Patreon to get this bonus content and much, much more! Follow the show on Bluesky to get the latest and straightest dope. Check out what games we've already ranked on the Big Damn List, then nominate a game of your own via five-star review on Apple Podcasts! Take a screenshot and show it to us on our Discord server! Intro music by NORM. 2023 © Hardcore Gaming 101