The nationwide distribution of goods, which occurs mostly through commercial trucking on the interstate system, consumes an enormous amount of energy. That’s why any discussion of making the world a more energy efficient place should include talk of green logistics. (more…)
I had a terrific meeting this afternoon with some very bright and progressive people at Lockheed Martin. They hope to be huge contributors to the development of a number of different flavors of renewable energy, and I, of course, am going to do everything I can to help bring that to fruition.
And let me tell you, these people think big. They need to; they’re a $47 billion / year company; they can’t be occupying themselves with little stuff that doesn’t make a difference to themselves or anyone else.
More on this shortly.
Humankind is watching the “train-wreck in slow motion” that is the decline of the Earth’s natural environment at the hands of our civilization’s reckless energy policy. And we all know that we will one day acquire the ability to harvest the measly fraction of the energy we receive from the sun (1/6000th) necessary to turn off all other sources of power. Even Shell Oil concedes that by 2060, solar will have surpassed coal, oil, and natural gas. (more…)
I’m proud to be a co-founder of a new website: EmpowerTheOcean, a repository for educational and inspirational content on ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC), a technology that provides great promise for the low-cost and eco-friendly provision of electricity to the approximately one billion of us who live near tropical oceans. I hope you’ll check it out and contribute your own thoughts – recognizing that it is, for now at least, brand new. Consider yourself a pioneer!
Below I’ve linked to a video gone viral that I wanted to share because it illustrates a phenomenon that we see all around us and, to some degree defines our civilization today. I call it: “The good are getting better,” which means that the top players in each field are constantly improving.
Perhaps the most visible examples are in sports. If you look at tapes of professional tennis matches or basketball games from 50 years ago, you think you’re looking at a different sport; players just keep getting stronger and faster each year, and so the way these sports are played today barely resemble what they were like when I was a young boy. (more…)
It’s the birthday of F. Scott Fitzgerald, whose affinity for the leisure class served as the driving force behind many of the classics he produced in the early 20th Century. Somewhere along the way, Fitzgerald wrote something that I’ve always treasured: “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.”
It’s the lack of the “first-rate intelligence” that lies at the root of so many problems in the world today. We want easy answers; we want to see things in black and white terms, but factually, today’s world doesn’t present itself that way; life in the 21st Century is more nuanced. (more…)
Here in the U.S., the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the group that regulates the trading of stock in public and privately held companies, has recently lifted its ban on “general solicitation,” meaning that anyone can offer and sell securities to accredited investors. We will soon have, and I’m not exaggerating, infomercials on late-night TV offering not only music collections of the 1970s (not found in stores!), but equity investments in start-up companies as well. (more…)
Production of energy is one of the most crucial challenges facing many countries across the world. Energy production method varies from one point to another but what makes it expensive is the cost of production. Bio gas is one of the most efficient gases that have gained worldwide recognition because of energy production. (more…)
It’s always good to see credible people debunking the myth that renewable energy is expensive. Though there are many possible dimensions to this discussion, Colorado ex-governor Bill Ritter takes the most obvious tack possible in his Wall Street Journal blog, i.e., explaining that, depending on various conditions, renewables are often far cheaper than coal – and even cheaper than natural gas.
I’ve always liked the cut of Ritter’s jib, ever since I saw him speak at the Renewable Energy Finance Forum a few years ago. Nice going.
Frequent commenter Tim Kingston sent me this article on public transportation, making the point that some cities, Los Angeles in particular, are not well-suited for trains, trolleys, buses, etc.
There is no doubt that this is true. But I’m suspicious that the problem with Los Angeles is at least partly a matter of intent / bad faith, rather than logistics. I base this on the fact that we have Metro lines all over L.A. County – but you can’t take the Metro to the airport! You want to show some sort of honest attempt to bring mass transit to a city, but you can’t get to the airport? Hmmmm.
