Leonard G. Johnson: Difference between revisions
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'''Leonard G. Johnson''' (born June, 24, 1953) is an American [[inventor]] and [[businessman]] who developed and patented a plan that may impact the world's petroleum economy and provide a solution to global energy demands. Johnson's patent combines technologies such as [[desalinization]], [[pipelining]], [[algae farming]], and [[fuel]] production. In 2008, Johnson completed the United State’s first pure biofuel transcontinental flight using [[bio-butanol]] in an experimental airplane he personally built. |
'''Leonard G.(Len) Johnson''' (born June, 24, 1953) is an American [[inventor]] and [[businessman]] who developed and patented a plan that may impact the world's petroleum economy and provide a solution to global energy demands. Johnson's patent combines technologies such as [[desalinization]], [[pipelining]], [[algae farming]], and [[fuel]] production. In 2008, Johnson completed the United State’s first pure biofuel transcontinental flight using [[bio-butanol]] in an experimental airplane he personally built. |
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== Early life == |
== Early life == |
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Len Johnson was born in [[St. Charles]], Missouri in 1953. In elementary school, young Johnson’s creative and reading abilities were noticed by his teachers. He left High School at age 16 and enrolled in college. Johnson’s college was repeatedly disrupted when his father suffered two heart attacks, each of which caused him to leave college to run the family business. When his father’s business lost essential commercial frontage due to a highway project and was sold to an older brother, Johnson joined the U.S. [[Navy]] in April of 1975. In 1977 while still in the Navy Johnson became a member of American Mensa. Johnson achieved the rank of [[First Class Petty Officer]] before leaving the Navy. |
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As a employee of Hughes Aircraft Ground Systems Group, Johnson was named a [[Hughes Scholar]] and attended [[Fullerton State University]] where he graduated in 1985 with a B.S. degree majoring in [[Computer Science]] and a minor in [[Math]]. |
As a employee of Hughes Aircraft Ground Systems Group, Johnson was named a [[Hughes Scholar]] and attended [[Fullerton State University]] where he graduated in 1985 with a B.S. degree majoring in [[Computer Science]] and a minor in [[Math]]. |
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Revision as of 23:07, 27 August 2010
Leonard G.(Len) Johnson (born June, 24, 1953) is an American inventor and businessman who developed and patented a plan that may impact the world's petroleum economy and provide a solution to global energy demands. Johnson's patent combines technologies such as desalinization, pipelining, algae farming, and fuel production. In 2008, Johnson completed the United State’s first pure biofuel transcontinental flight using bio-butanol in an experimental airplane he personally built.
Early life
Len Johnson was born in St. Charles, Missouri in 1953. In elementary school, young Johnson’s creative and reading abilities were noticed by his teachers. He left High School at age 16 and enrolled in college. Johnson’s college was repeatedly disrupted when his father suffered two heart attacks, each of which caused him to leave college to run the family business. When his father’s business lost essential commercial frontage due to a highway project and was sold to an older brother, Johnson joined the U.S. Navy in April of 1975. In 1977 while still in the Navy Johnson became a member of American Mensa. Johnson achieved the rank of First Class Petty Officer before leaving the Navy.
As a employee of Hughes Aircraft Ground Systems Group, Johnson was named a Hughes Scholar and attended Fullerton State University where he graduated in 1985 with a B.S. degree majoring in Computer Science and a minor in Math.
Beginning his career
Johnson’s first project at Hughes Aircraft Ground Systems Group was chosen as the Cost Improvement Proposal (CIP) of the year in 1983. This led to his being named as a Hughes Scholar[citation needed]. Upon graduation Johnson continued his career at Hughes as a Software Engineer and Member of the Technical Staff (MTS).
Johnson left Hughes in 1977 and worked as a consultant for Locus Computing Corp, Braintec, Advantis, and Intel. His later software work included helping to implement backbone internet protocols for IBM Global Networks. Johnson also worked with Oracle Corporation where he was credited with helping to simplify installation of Oracle Applications on Windows computers. This enabled Oracle to expand sales in the middle market.
Recent Work
In 2006 Johnson founded THH, Inc. to research and develop biofuel technologies. Johnson applied his creative and problem solving skills at a research facility in Chino, California. THH filed for patent protection for one of Johnson’s ideas called “Method of Distributing Desalination Functions While Reducing the Environmental Impact of Industrial Cooling Water and the Introduction of Brine to Brackish or Saline Water Sources” (USPTO 11/866,958).
Historic Cross-Country Flight
Over his desk, Johnson displays a placard with Charles F. Kettering's famous quote: "The Wright Brothers flew right through the smoke screen of impossibility." As a small boy, Johnson listened to tower communications coming all the way from Lambert Airport in St. Louis on an old, upright cabinet radio next to the pot-bellied stove in Oberly’s General Store, a picturesque establishment owned and operated by an elderly couple who were long-time residents of Weldon Spring. MO. Their store sat across the road from the headwater of Weldon Spring, where people once drove their wagons to draw water.
Johnson dreamed of building his own airplane, which later lednhim to compare the various kit and plans-built airplanes available. Johnson chose to build a Cozy MKIV, taking over the project started by another builder in Maine. The project had a number of Aerocanard parts, but was registered as a Cozy MKIV by Johnson upon completion. He eventually flew it for the first time in Chino , CA in 2002.
On October 25, 2008 Johnson took off from Chino field in his Cozy Mark IV aircraft. Johnson had built the plane himself and had just completed a four-month process of adapting and proving the aircraft for use with bio-butanol. After taking off, Johnson first turned west towards the Pacific Ocean, and then turned east for the flight to Kitty Hawk. Along the way he stopped in New Mexico, Texas, Arkansas, and Tennessee. On November 2, 2008 he touched down at North Carolina's First Flight Airport in Kitty Hawk.
During his return flight, Johnson encountered a weather-related emergency and had to perform a forced landing at Osceola, Missouri[3]. Upon landing on the airport's taxiway, Johnson found himself headed right for a house. He steered into a power pole in order to sheer off a wing and dissipate speed, and ended up upside down in a ditch having lost both wings, half the canard, and the nose of the aircraft. Johnson suffered severe injuries including a broken neck and back. After being flown by helicopter to a local hospital, Johnson was listed in critical condition[5]. Johnson made a miraculous recovery after a prognosis that indicated he may be paralyzed and unable to breathe on his own.
Current Activities
Johnson is now rehabilitating at the VA Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) center in Long Beach, California, where he is learning to SCUBA dive with the Handicapped Scuba Association (HSA). Johnson recently appeared in an NBC Los Angeles channel 4 news segment with Vikki Vargas[4] on stem cell research.
See also
References
[1] [1]. [2] [2] [3] [3] [4] [4] [5] [5]