Posted on August 26th, 2008 by admin
USA Today - August 25, 2008
Regardless of your thoughts on global warming, government waste and inefficiencies are something that most of us can agree on. To have alternative energy programs that are on or off, year after year, is simply a waste. I understand the need to have finite limits to programs (except Social Security never seems to end) but they shouldn’t just stop.
Instead the programs should be weaned off of government assisted life support so that the economy can adjust. Having these alternative forms of energy production suddenly cut off forces other programs to never start since the investors can’t be assured of a long and viable future.
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Wind, solar projects race to finish before tax credit expires
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Posted on August 13th, 2008 by admin
DailyTech - August 11, 2008
Maybe I am wrong! Most people that know me haven’t heard me say that very often. Maybe Mr. Al Gore is correct. I don’t think anyone has ever heard me say that! But here we have a technology that may make solar cells live up to Mr. Gore’s challenge of several weeks ago. Although, to be honest, if the technology is being discussed on paper and in prototypes now, the likelihood of it making a significant dent in 10 years is not very likely. So maybe I am not wrong and Mr. Gore is incorrect after all!
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Revolutionary Nanoantenna Skin to Provide Next Gen PC Cooling, Solar Cells
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Posted on August 11th, 2008 by admin
Engadget - June 4, 2008
Cyclone Power Technologies is actively talking about their motor that can gather energy from waste heat. It can also grab energy from non-waste heat and use it to create electricity or propel a vehicle. It is another tool in the arsenal to increase the efficiency and flexibility of our power generation. More effort like this needs to be made available to really reduce our reliance on foreign oil and to reduce our emissions.
Engadget had a video of the motor on their site which I have reproduced below. But first, let’s look at how this think works.
According to the company website:
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Filed under: Greenhouse gas, Technology
Posted on August 5th, 2008 by admin
Sacramento Business Journal - August 4, 2008
Mr. Al Gore recently challenged the US to a goal of 100% renewable energy in 10 years. His lofty goals cited the need for domestic energy independence and his concern that the world would end due to global warming. Many people have questioned the feasibility of this goal and now it appears that California is going to even miss a much more reasonable goal.
The Public Utilities Commission has reported that California is not likely to hit its goal of 20% renewable sources by 2010. They may be able to get there by 2013 but that seems to depend on enough rainwater coming down to keep the dams working. There is also a goal that California his 30% by 2020 (just a few more years from now then Mr. Gore’s 10 years) and this goal doesn’t seem to be attainable.
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Report: Power giants likely to miss renewable energy goal
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Posted on July 31st, 2008 by admin
Popular Mechanics - May 8, 2008
Saw this article on Popular Mechanics. It really isn’t that hard to set up your own still to create ethanol to burn in your flex fuel vehicle. This Micro Fueler looks good but your housing association may have something to say about setting up a fueling station in your side yard!
While this isn’t going to make a huge dent in our development of CO2, it is an interesting idea to explore. Perhaps the best way to reduce foreign oil dependence and cut back on CO2 pollution is to make everything smaller and closer to home.
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Filed under: Technology
Posted on July 29th, 2008 by admin
Wall Street Journal - July 22, 2008
Sometimes I think that this site exists solely to condemn Al Gore. He is easily the person that we discuss more than all else when you consider his film, his rock concerts, and his foolish statements it seems that it is all that one can read on the subject of energy. And to think that this man was a heartbeat away from being the President of the United States for 8 years in addition to a few hanging chads from being elected to the office himself.
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Filed under: Getting warmer, Greenhouse gas, Human fault, Politics, Technology
Posted on July 23rd, 2008 by admin
Phoenix Business Journal - June 25, 2008
John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee for US President, is deriding the Executive branch for their suggestions to curb energy prices as well as the Democratic leadership for its plans. (Follow the feed link to read the rest of the story).
Mr. McCain is proposing more aggressive investment in “clean” coal plants and nuclear energy. Personally, I am not sure there is such a thing as a clean coal plant but I am all for it if we can make one! I also think that we need to step up our reliance on nuclear energy and deal with the disposal issue which haunts that technology.
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McCain wants $30B for clean-coal research, 45 new nuclear reactors
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Filed under: Getting warmer, Greenhouse gas, Politics, Technology
Posted on July 22nd, 2008 by admin
This is great news! We need more effort in creating alternative energy sources. I wonder if they did an environmental impact analysis? Were their “greenies” protesting or are they too busy blocking other green projects like nuclear plants?
Obviously, Mr. Kennedy doesn’t have a resort in Delaware!
Bluewater spokesman Jim Lanard said the power company will get about 16 percent of its electricity from a field of 150 wind turbines, anchored in the sea floor about a dozen miles off Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
The offshore site is expected to be operational within four years, but the timing depends on how quickly regulatory agencies can review and approve the construction project.
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Filed under: Technology
Posted on July 19th, 2008 by admin
Washington Post - July 17, 2008
Mr. Al Gore recently gave a speech in Washington DC regarding energy. While many in the blogosphere will call Mr. Gore “Pope Gore” and refer to environmentalists as a religion, in this case, I don’t think that Mr. Gore makes many of the outlandish comments which I have chastised him about. Most of his comments are regarding energy independence, the status of the technology of alternative fuels, and the balance of power.
He does make a few global warming references which are a little hard to defend. He implies that the fires in California are caused by manmade global warming - this is probably not true since California has been enjoying an unusually wet climate for several decades and it appears that this current drought is simply going back to status quo.
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Filed under: Getting warmer, Human fault, Politics, Technology
Posted on June 24th, 2008 by admin
Wall Street Journal - June 16, 2008
In order to reduce the pollution of our atmosphere, it is imperative that we find other ways of generating electricity. IBM has a long history of inventing computer chip technology and it is good to see that they are going to try and commercialize their developed techniques.
International Business Machines Corp. said it is collaborating with a Japanese semiconductor-equipment maker to commercialize a solar-energy technology developed by IBM scientists.
Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co. will work with IBM to develop processes and equipment for the production of thin-film photovoltaic solar cells that convert sunlight into electricity. Terms of the collaboration weren’t disclosed, but IBM said it expects to license the technology and, eventually, collect royalties, rather than building its own large-scale, manufacturing capability.
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Filed under: Technology