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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Climate Change

Global Warming—Is It “On Hold?”

Has global warming stopped?  Is it explained by natural cycles, e.g., sun-spots?  Solar flares?  The Earth’s orbit and tilt?

Here’s a document composed by Dr. Alex Cannara, holder of five degrees in physics and engineering, that summarizes the basic science here.  I don’t claim to know Dr. Cannara’s intention behind assembling this information, but I offer it to readers who may encounter an occasional windbag, blathering nonsense with total certainly about this at a cocktail party or family gathering. (See quote — if desired, click “read more” for a larger, easier-to-read version.) (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Efficiency

Cloud computing services have been around for a while, and there’s much discussion about their benefits for organizations of all sizes. Top on the list is that cloud technology has the ability to save small as well as large organizations a lot of time and money, and also reduce the risks inherent in other storage methods.

Very few people have actually approached cloud computing as a way to save the environment, and that’s what we’ll be discussing in the next few paragraphs. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Nuclear

Advanced Nuclear Seminar in Northern CaliforniaI’ve mentioned my colleague Dr. Alex Cannara a few times lately.

If you’re interested in advanced nuclear, and you really appreciate the science behind the subject, you may want to check out his upcoming seminar he’s co-presenting on the topic.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Climate Change

style="border: 0; margin-left: 11px; margin-right: 11px;" Earlier today, a reader suggested that my data on renewable energy and climate change had come from various unverified and unproven sources, not unlike a game of “whisper down that lane” that you may (or may not) recall from your childhood.  At a certain level, of course, he was correct.

I remember getting a similar email from a lady when we first started 2GreenEnergy in 2009. She said that my viewpoints on climate change had no validity because I hadn’t done the research personally, and bless her heart, recommended that I get started on the project immediately.

I was flattered, and I thanked her for her faith in my abilities, but I needed to explain: (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Climate Change

George Will is a “Climate Change Denier”—But Why Does He Have a Position on the Subject in the First Place?Dr. Alex Cannara, who holds no fewer than five degrees in physics and engineering, writes about my post on George Will and climate change:  (Will’s column) displays ignorance that he is smart enough to correct, if he cared about facts…..Fortunately, there are many more responsible adults addressing the problem, while Will just exploits his readership.

If this is the case now, i.e., that he just exploits his readership, it’s extremely sad, because it wasn’t always so.  (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Climate Change

Is Climate Disruption an Absolutely Certainty?Over the last decade, George Will has written dozens of articles expressing and defending his skepticism on climate change.  He comes to this conclusion from an array of different angles, each a subtle variation on the central theme:  our civilization should be suspicious of its scientists who shout warnings that climate change is here and has just begun to wreak its horrific effects.

In this piece, Will refers to those of us who urge action to mitigate global warming as “Cassandrans,” i.e., those who can foretell the future but who are not taken seriously (see picture below).  Here, he supports his “denialism” with two books that identify various points in time where the Earth’s climate changed, during which human society was clearly not the culprit. Of course, neither of them discusses the rise in carbon in Earth’s atmosphere that began with the Industrial Revolution.  This glaring omission renders the whole argument asinine.

But even if that weren’t the case, who finds this sort of logic compelling?  (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Biofuels

Are Great Energy Technologies Being Suppressed?We’ve all been told that this was so, and we’ve all had the notion that it might be true.  Forty or fifty years ago we had claims of the auto carburetor that gave drivers 400 MPG (but the car companies made it illegal). More recently, we saw gadgets (also banned by the auto companies, and rejected by no-nothing chemists and physicists) that involved various forms of water and hydrogen.

Now, we read claims about waste-to-energy or other sources of (relatively) clean energy, like this one:

(more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

Has the Environmental Benefits of Electric Vehicles Been Finally Established?Micah (a subscriber since August, 2009–one of our very first) writes:

Hi Craig, Could you point me to the body of facts that point to electric vehicles being dirtier than gas vehicles? This is news to me that it had been effectively decided. Thanks.

Micah:   Here are five posts in chronological order.  If you read them, and all the dialog in the comments between Glenn Doty and me, you will understand this.  (Please be sure to read all Glenn’s comments on the first one, to both me and to “Richard”; he explains this very carefully and thoroughly.) (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Photovoltaics

Cheap Solar Causing Fossil Fuel Infrastructure to CollapseOne of the 14 reasons that I’m “bullish on renewable energy” (the title of my new book) is covered in a chapter called “cheap solar.”  How cheap?  Had you asked me a year ago, I would have guessed $0.10 – $0.11 kWh.  But according to this article, in Dubai, the current market price for wholesale energy from PV is under $0.06 per kWh.

Those of us who are paying attention are realizing that the whole horrible apparatus that was the fossil fuel infrastructure is coming crashing down.  And not a moment too soon.

 

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Investing in the Technology SectorA friend has advised me to diversify into several different ETFs that focus on different sectors.  People still like technology, most which, I suppose, largely means is better and cooler communications gadgets.  There is no doubt Microsoft, Google and Apple have kept this arena afloat for many years.  (more…)

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