Stories tagged energy
It's a new day in America: Where should our energy come from now?
Courtesy timsamoffOn January 21, 2009, there’s going to be a brand new administration in the White house. Defining the energy policy of the United States is going to be a big issue, and one that’s likely to get tackled early on.
The members of the Obama Administration are going to have their own ideas about how our country should get its energy, but what do you think?
Is green energy your one and only? Are you a coal man? A nuclear gal? Or do you fall asleep murmuring “drill, baby, drill”?
Some options are going to be more expensive than others, each will affect the environment differently, and some are going to take more time before they’re ready. So what’s it going to be?
Voice your opinion in Science Buzz’s new poll: Energy and the Obama Administration.
You might not have been able to vote on November 4, but you can vote now, and you can let everyone know why you think what you think.
Tags : So if the universe was created by the big bang... then that would mean that from entropy came order. Does that mean that a messy room or desk could create a whole new universe?
If that is the case, what type of universe would be created from your room or desk? What new life forms or environments would there be?
Based on my desk and the mess of papers I feel that my new universe would be very difficult to locate things in... like those caves that have tunnels that you can get lost in.
Which forms of energy production should the government be subsidizing more? Nuclear or renewable technologies like wind and solar?
Is it possible to calculate the "potential energy" of a particular Offensive line compared to a particular Defensive line?
Should a Coach know if they are statistically unable to force the line of scrimmage the direction they want?
Sure - weaknesses can be exploited by double teaming, and running slant plays.....checking the stats on each lineman the coach should be able to choose their strategy before the game....and give the best chance of success
Jobs in the wind
Courtesy BIGRED_50
Local economies benefit from global crisis
Buying locally not only saves transportation costs, but also puts money into local economies. Wind turbine gearbox manufacturer, Moventas, based in Finland, is going to build components locally. In addition to about 90 jobs and an initial annual payroll of roughly $4 million, the construction of the $9 million dollar facility will mean more employment for Faribault area workers. Faribault Daily News
Iowa benefits, too
In Newton, Iowa, TPI Composites opened a wind turbine blade manufacturing facility that hopes to provide 500 jobs. The Faribault factory hopes to add 30 jobs per year to total 200. Click here to read about more wind energy jobs created.
Bailout package includes renewable energy incentives
The American Wind Energy Association was relieved by the passage of the Economic Stabilization Act.
These tax credits are essential to the continued growth of wind energy, to the economic and energy security of the United States, and to a successful beginning in the fight against global warming.
Solar gains longer term benefits
The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) also was happy to see the legislation extend the 30-percent federal investment tax credit for both residential and commercial solar installations for 8 years.
“This long-term extension of the solar tax credits will create a domestic solar industry with hundreds of thousands of jobs while providing clean, affordable, carbon-free energy to millions of American families, businesses, and communities.” SEIA press release
Car Magazine online has photos and info about an electric Mini Cooper.
Mini will produce 500 electric Minis as part of its radical ‘Project i’ programme initiated to rethink low-emissions urban mobility (see the forthcoming November 2008 issue of CAR Magazine for full details on this innovative project, out on Wednesday 24 September 2008).
A mighty duke: and very powerful, although not a favorite at parties.
Courtesy Albedo-ukrSan Antonio has made a deal with the duke. A particularly mighty duke, too, and one that has often been overlooked, despite this duke’s ability to deliver great power.
Science and Politics: Oil
Where will we get the energy we need for the future?: Some people would like to see more oil drilling in the US.
Courtesy L. Gnome
(With the Republican National Convention literally across the street, the Science Museum of Minnesota will be closed starting Friday, August 29. But Science Buzz marches on! To honor our convention guests, I’ll be posting entries focusing on issues where science and politics overlap. Hopefully this will spur some discussion. Or at least tick some people off. This is the last entry in this series. Previous entries here, here, here, here, here and here.)
Energy is one of the big issues in this election cycle. With gasoline at record high prices, and much of the world’s oil lying in politically unstable regions, there is a lot of pressure to do more drilling in the US, open up more areas to exploration, and build more refineries.
Meanwhile, many conservation groups oppose more drilling, especially offshore or in ecologically sensitive regions of the Arctic. Some call for conservation measures to help reduce oil consumption.
(While the Science Museum of Minnesota does not endorse any candidate or platform, I personally like this energy plan.)
The Bureau of Land Management has announced that a major source of oil is sitting right below our feet: oil shale. Shale is a fine-grained rock made of compressed clay or mud. In some place, oil seeps into the rock. This oil is much more difficult to extract than free-flowing liquid petroleum. But with gas at $4 a gallon, it is becoming feasible to squeeze oil from the rock.
The government estimates there could be up to 800 billion barrels of oil sitting beneath Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. This is equivalent to our current oil imports for, roughly, 219 years. So, tapping this resource would go a long way toward meeting our energy needs until other, greener sources (wind, cheap solar, non-food ethanol) come on-line.
The Bureau of Land Management has produced preliminary guidelines for regulating commercial oil shale production. They are prohibited by law from producing final guidelines. The President has asked Congress to lift the ban so that this effort may go forward.
Science and Politics: Ethanol and Food
Demand for ethanol is pushing up the price of corn: Some poor countries are facing food shortages.
Courtesy swankslot
(With the Republican National Convention literally across the street, the Science Museum of Minnesota will be closed starting Friday, August 29. But Science Buzz marches on! To honor our convention guests, I’ll be posting entries focusing on issues where science and politics overlap. Hopefully this will spur some discussion. Or at least tick some people off. Previous entries here, here, here, here and here.)
In 2005, Congress passed a law requiring that set levels of renewable fuels, such as ethanol, be blended into gasoline, with the amount rising every year. Ethanol is usually made from corn, and increasing the demand for ethanol has pushed up the price of food.
(We have touched on this topic a time or two before. Researchers are working on making ethanol from non-food sources.)
In August, the state of Texas asked the Environmental Protection Agency for a waiver from the requirements, claiming that higher corn prices were making cattle farming unprofitable. And, ironically, making ethanol production unprofitable, too. The EPA reused.
Some bloggers argue that this refusal puts upward pressure on food prices—a fact that is beginning to hurt poor people the world over. Robert Zoellick, president of the World Bank, has argued for a “safety-valve” that would let refiners miss their targets if food prices rise too high.
Subsidies and tariffs also keep the price of ethanol artificially high. If these wee dropped, the incentives to turn corn into fuel would lessen, and food prices would stabilize.
Proposed power grid for wind and solar: clipped from American Electric Power document
Courtesy U. S. Dept. of Energy
Is our power grid ready for wind and solar?
Renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and geothermal show promise for breaking our addiction to oil. One big problem, though, is moving this new energy to energy users. According to a recent New York Times article,
many transmission lines, and the connections between them, are simply too small for the amount of power companies would like to squeeze through them.
The grid today is a system conceived 100 years ago to let utilities prop each other up, reducing blackouts and sharing power in small regions. It resembles a network of streets, avenues and country roads.
“We need an interstate transmission superhighway system,” said Suedeen G. Kelly, a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Upgrading our power grid faces multiple obstacles
Our power grid, with about 200,000 miles of power lines, is divided among about 500 owners. Upgrading transmission lines often involves multiple companies, many state governments and numerous permits. Property owners often fight new power lines saying "not in my back yard".
"Modernizing the electric infrastructure is an urgent national problem, and one we all share,” said Kevin M. Kolevar, assistant secretary for electricity delivery and energy reliability, in a speech last year.
Dept. of Energy recommendation
I recommend reading the Department of Energy report titled, "20% wind energy by 2030" (30 pg pdf). The United Sates plans to add 300 GW of wind power by 2030 (I figure that equals about 200,000 1.5 MW wind generators). They recommend an interstate power grid to carry electricity similar to how our interstate highway system carries cars and trucks.
American Electric Power also has recommendations
In an 8 page pdf document titled, "Interstate Transmission Vision for Wind Integration" American Electric Power, working at the request of, and in partnership with, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), presents a "high-level, conceptual interstate transmission plan that could provide a basis for discussion to expand industry infrastructure needs in the future".
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