Energy Ideas

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I had a dream that Mercedes Benz started manufacturing generators and heating utilities which are strictly electric. That was a start but perhaps, if they started manufacturing generators that run from nuclear energy, then we would be free from using propane.

We could also consider fuel-cells.

Is methane harmful to the environment? The reason I say that is because trash would probably emit methane.

The US needs to stop making such huge cars. Hummers and Escalades should be banned and burned.

Ahem.

Also, air conditioners need to be turned UP. If it's so cold you need a sweater, you're wasting energy cooling too much. If you're too hot while everybody around you is freezing, lose some weight. That would help the environment too. In fact, if we all ate less and exercised more, the world would be a better place.

Some people with AS are hypersensitive to heat and humidity so I will be keeping my AC as low as it will go. Oh I'm 5'9" 156 lbs and I exercise often.(I do not have a car)

Yep, methane is one of the most heat retaining greenhouse gasses out there.
Sorry may have misinterpreted, but you do not get methane from burning stuff, its a decay product.

Burning of rubbish doesn't just emit CO2, there are alot of toxic compounds, obviously depending what you burn.

Maybe there is a way to harvest methane from cattle and paddy fields and use it as a fuel somehow? maybe it would be a bit wierd to plumb the worlds cows into a gas collection system though

There are taxes on rubbish disposal here in the UK, they were designed to encourage recycling but instead they've caused a huge "fly tipping" problem where unscrupulous waste firms simply dump all of their rubbish by the side of the road or on someone else's land. Be aware that well-intended ideas can have unexpectedly awkward consequences.

I don't believe it's necessary to wrap everything up so much. It's pointless and wasteful. There should be laws preventing excessive packaging so that there's less rubbish in the first place. Also possibly some curbs on the advertising nonsense that encourages people to buy so much worthless crap by promising that it'll make them rich, contented and sexy. NO IT WON'T. At the present rate of consumption it'll make their head burn and their toes wet, comprende?

I'd also have a word with the manufacturers of cars and household goods designed with "built-in obselesence" i.e. designed with a weak point so they fall apart within 5 years and you have to buy another one. This is a sham.

I would change the motoring taxes in the UK so that there is no road tax, but a high rate of VAT on fuel. This way the tax collected is in direct proportion to the amount of pollution created. It also gets round the old problem of people justifying car use on the basis that they've already paid the road tax so they might as well get something for it.

People who don't own a car at all should get some sort of reward from the Government. Also people who are genuine citizens but don't have a passport, as they won't be polluting anywhere through aeroplane or boat travel.

In the longer term I would like to see a shift back to local employment coupled with an increased use of the internet and tele-conferencing to abolish the need for travelling sales reps and long-haul flights for meetings.

Perpetual economic growth doesn't really seem to benefit the average person - we're all working harder than we ever have just so a few people can get a lot richer. Enough is enough. Less people should mean more resources for everyone, PROVIDED THE SYSTEM IS FAIR, so a fundamental shift in attitude is required. In fact, an attitude shift is required in many areas. For example, instead of pestering homeowners to turn appliances off rather than leaving them on standby, why not oblige the manufacturers to remove the standby option from their products? It's either on or off, ok? Likewise, rather than making a fuss about free range eggs, why not make those the default standard and put big stickers on the battery farmed eggs saying "Produced with needless cruelty"??

One excellent partial solution for global warming which I've seen is to paint your roof white, so it reflects the sun's rays. If enough people did this, it could make a significant difference.

While nuclear power may be 'clean' in terms of emissions, it poses considerable risks and nuclear waste remains a ticking time-bomb. The nuclear energy industry also has strong links with the arms industry, who waste more resources per annum than us ordinary citizens ever will (more rich people getting richer at everyone's expense).

The only long term solution is to attack the environmental problem from all sides simultaneously: population control, technological improvements, education, social change, taxation etc. etc. until we reach a sustainable equilibrium level.

Yeah it could help in theory by reducing cooling needs and hence electrical production needs (which in the US is largely from coal). But a few years ago I bought a new roof
for my moms house as a Christmas present and had to consider what kind of roof to get. Most people strongly suggested to avoid a white roof as it will look dirty /moldy in
a short amount of time. Oh most people use asphalt shingles in Texas. Metal roofs are
slowing getting in commom use now. They look nice and I consider getting one but they
were twice as much as asphalt shingles. Anyway my mom wanted brown.

if this is such a problem why don't we just dissolve the CO2 from power plants in Sodium hydroxide solution

personally i am a skeptic but i know that people will think that it's going to happen no matter how much evidence i can find against the idea

Because it will take many times more carbon dioxide to make that sodium hydroide than it can remove.

There is talk of using air seperation to produce pure oxygen to burn coal with in power
plants then cool and compress the gas produce (mostly CO2). Then inject into wells. This has added benfits of pushing more oil to the surface. The draw back it reduces over all electrical production and adds alot of cost.

I have fears of Carbon sequestration of this type, in that what would happen if the gas were to escape. I believe there was a case of an entire african village being wiped out by CO2 escape from under a lake due to volcanic activity. I see the potential for devastation to be massive if we spent decades storing carbon like this.
Really, we need to reduce our reliance on unecessary appliances. Through all of the energy efficiency improvements made, I can almost guaruntee at least half the energy saved is used powering new, unecessary appliances.

There is potential energy whenever there is a difference in temperature, cold thing have no less energy than warm things, it's when you put them together then you get energy.

i think the nuclear option should be explored further and the mutations of the animals at chrynople should be analyzed and maybe decipher a type of gene therapy vaccination from radiation.


Wildlife Defies Radiation


Health Risks from Radiation Less than First Thought


Chernobyl 20 years down.

Get off planet. Put power stations (thermal or nuclear) on our other moons (Cruithne or 2002 AA29). Beam power down. Add skyhooks (space elevators) for convenience. Advance nanotech to clean up atmosphere, etc. Throw in immortality. Build ringworld. Visit other galaxies or make pet universes. Enough to be getting on with for a few years?

Better yet screw Earth and go with all your other ideas

... make the USA sign the Kyoto Protocol...

Yes we should cut CO2 but we need a way to do it to. Your pro-nuclear I hope.