My mom and I read The Writer’s Almanac every morning, and I’m sure that, when she sat down at her computer this morning and found that it’s the birthday of George Orwell, she must have thought: “Oh boy. I wonder …
Author: craigshields
Doing a Little Doublethinking on a Sunday Morning
Those of you hip people who subscribe to the “Word of the Day” on Dictionary.com saw that today’s word is “doublethink,” meaning the acceptance of two contradictory ideas or beliefs at the same time. This, of course, is reminiscent of what F. …
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Tagged with: matters of science
Renewable Energy: How Much Storage Will It Take To Get There?
It’s both important and fun to look down the road and see where the migration to renewable energy is taking us. What will it take to get to 80% penetration of wind and solar? How much storage is necessary? What …
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Our Civilization’s Impact on the Environment
Through a magnificent coincidence, I found this fabulous video cartoon summarizing humankind’s impact on planet Earth just a few days after we celebrated Edvard Grieg’s 174th birthday earlier this week. You’ll immediately recognize the ominous crescendo in the theme (“In …
Tagged with: humankind's impact on planet Earth
Hydrogen-based Transportation
The video linked here is a promotion for the hydrogen-based Toyota Miria. Here are a few comments on its claims: It’s for the philosopher; it’s an ode to living.
The Politics of Coal: Here’s an Interesting and Entertaining–Yet Factual–Source
The top American comedians whose fodder is U.S. politics include household names like Jon Stewart, Steven Colbert, and John Oliver. Now, I’ve heard these people themselves warn audiences: this is not a valid way to find and ingest news; this …
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Tagged with: Politics of Coal
Human Existence: It’s Icy Cold Out There, But That’s OK
If the 109th birthday of French existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre isn’t a good time to discuss the meaning of life, it’s hard to imagine what would be. I agree with Sartre that we live in a universe that is completely indifferent …
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Can We Get To 100% Renewables?
This sounds like an important question, doesn’t it? After all, we know that the consumption of fossil fuels is causing a huge amount of damage to our environment and our physical health. No one with any sense denies that we …
Understanding the Merits of Renewable Energy as Civilization Edges Closer to a Precipice
Senior energy analyst Glenn Doty wrote the following to a commenter who challenged the validity of renewable energy from a financial perspective and referred to those of us who are concerned about climate change as “alarmists.” It’s so solid and …
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U.S. Participation in the Paris Accord on Climate Change Mitigation Will Survive Donald Trump
In many cases, my rants on the damage being wreaked by the Trump administration are met with these reassuring words from friends and colleagues: Calm down, Craig. Trump’s power to destroy our civilization is far more limited than you think. …
