Fascinating Solar Power Breakthru....

[jaguarr]

Ok, maybe I'm more disgusted than shocked. Oil really is the devil.

You can thank American car manufacturers, too.

jag

 

[Mr Sparkle]

Ok, maybe I'm more disgusted than shocked. Oil really is the devil.

No , O'rly is the devil!!!!

 

[Colossal Spoons]

You can thank American car manufacturers, too.

jag

I need to hurry up and get struck by lightning so I won't have to worry about oil or cars. I'll fly where I need to go.

 

[maxwell's demon]

Between this and that vid of the guy who's figured out how to make a combustion engine run on plain old tap water, I hope we're seeing the start of a new trend in energy-efficient technologies starting to emerge.

jag

hmmmn...
I'm all for alternative energy solutions but, unless we figure out how to fend off the H2O shortage that's supposed to occur during our lifetime, i might want to table this guy's water-powered car idea. Until then, cars should only drink car-beverages, and people should keep the people- beverages for themselves. and their puppies. and kittens. and cows. and stuff.

but wheres that vid, Jag? I wann see it.

 

[Ronny Shade]

I always thought the whole "government burying efficient technologies" thing was a myth.

I don't know which is better. One the one hand, if it is true, we have awesome technological capabilities that I didn't know about, which is good On the other hand. The government sucks. which is bad

 

[jaguarr]

hmmmn...
I'm all for alternative energy solutions but, unless we figure out how to fend off the H2O shortage that's supposed to occur during our lifetime, i might want to table this guy's water-powered car idea. Until then, cars should only drink car-beverages, and people should keep the people- beverages for themselves. and their puppies. and kittens. and cows. and stuff.

but wheres that vid, Jag? I wann see it.

I dunno. I'd be willing to see soft drinks outlawed in the name of having enough water for this invention. Here it is..

jag

 

[maxwell's demon]

jag,

you're brilliants.


no soft drinks

 

[JLBats]

Now where is my caffeine going to come from?!:ANGER!:

 

[jaguarr]

Now where is my caffeine going to come from?!:ANGER!:

You can suck it out of a dirty sock full of coffee grounds like everyone else, mister!

As for me, I haven't had a spec of caffeine in over 6 months and a soft drink in over a year and I really don't miss 'em.

jag

 

[Ronny Shade]

considering how much ****ing energy we put into oil, you'd think we could divert our attentions to finding a quick and easy way to converting ocean water to fresh water.

We won't do it to save lives, but we might do it to make money from cars.

 

[AllThingsComic]

We have the technology and capability to build the perfect car (c'mon, we've walken on the moon and sent sattelites to Pluto), the reasons the manufacturers don't do it is 1) main reason MONEY 2) it would harm the economy. If we had perfect cars that never broke down, we'd put mechanics out of business, we'd have to shut down tire making plants, every aspect that goes into the maintenance of cars would cease to exist and many, many jobs would be lost creating a higher unemployment rate and massively hurting the economy. Just an opinion, I could be wrong?

 

[The Incredible Hulk]

considering how much ****ing energy we put into oil, you'd think we could divert our attentions to finding a quick and easy way to converting ocean water to fresh water.

ever hear of a desalinization plant?

 

[Ronny Shade]

We have the technology and capability to build the perfect car (c'mon, we've walken on the moon and sent sattelites to Pluto), the reasons the manufacturers don't do it is 1) main reason MONEY 2) it would harm the economy. If we had perfect cars that never broke down, we'd put mechanics out of business, we'd have to shut down tire making plants, every aspect that goes into the maintenance of cars would cease to exist and many, many jobs would be lost creating a higher unemployment rate and massively hurting the economy. Just an opinion, I could be wrong?

I'd rather hurt the economy than the ENTIRE PLANET

 

[Ronny Shade]

ever hear of a desalinization plant?

expensive, isn't it?

 

[ReTrO JuNkIe 42]

I'd rather hurt the economy than the ENTIRE PLANET

You think them rich sons of *****es care about the planet, get all they can and EF every body else

 

[AllThingsComic]

I'd rather hurt the economy than the ENTIRE PLANET

I'm sorry, I should have stated that I feel the exact same way as you. This, I think, is their only possible excuse for doing what they do. I have kids, i'm all for a healthy earth.

 

[Ronny Shade]

I'm sorry, I should have stated that I feel the exact same way as you. This, I think, is their only possible excuse for doing what they do. I have kids, i'm all for a healthy earth.

kgood

but yeah you did capture how the moneymaking public seems to feel

 

[jaguarr]

The issue really is that the large corporations that are in control of most of these new energy efficient technologies (and the goverment cronies in their pockets) see no real incentive to change their business models because they make so much money off of them. This is sort of the golden goose scenario, because in essence they're really cutting open the goose to get all the golden eggs immediately rather than feeding the goose well and keeping it happy so that it continues to produce for a long time to come. They want to get their nut right now, and they don't really want to look long-term at sustainable, renewable energy and ways to make a profit off of that until "right now" becomes tomorrow and they really have no choice but to do so, or when the financial temptation of such prospects becomes too great to ignore any longer. I'm betting on the latter.. The investment required across industries research, implement, retrofit manufacturing and re-train technicians to new technologies is fairly substantial and would cut into profits that could otherwise be stuffed down the trousers of corporate bigwigs and stockholders. Unfortunately, they're unable to see the bigger picture and look at how business models could be reconstructed to make such an endeavor profitable in the long-term. And, in the case of the auto industry, there will always be a need for mechanics and tire manufacturers and all the other things that go with it. They'd just need to revise a bit to suit the new technologies is all. At some point, advancements in technology like the water powered car or viable solar power are going to be enough to make some company break ranks from the rest of their industry in order to be the first company out of the gate to have the technology on the market, which could lead to complete market dominance down the road for them. Imagine the first car manufacturer to put a water powered car (and all the associated services that go with it, of course) out on the market. Yes, they'll be spitting in the face of big oil, but they'll also have started a revolution and be the first to profit from it (and be able to market themselves as the one's who were brave enough to stand up to big oil and do something good for the planet, etc., etc.). Again, greed will be the primary motivator so it's more of a question of WHEN will it happen rather than IF, IMHO.

jag

 

[maxwell's demon]

another way to state it?
"Even giant multibillion dollar corporations are sometimes afraid of change. Just like us, sometimes."

poor multibillion dollar corporations.

 

[Ronny Shade]

whoa. jag....post...length...overload.....*crash*

 

[logansoldcigar]

I think we've seen a lot of holding back on alternate energy resources such as this, thanks to the big utilty and oil companies lobbying the government and buying out these technologies and burying them. Between this and that vid of the guy who's figured out how to make a combustion engine run on plain old tap water, I hope we're seeing the start of a new trend in energy-efficient technologies starting to emerge.

jag

In germany, there are already energy effiecient green houses. Grey water systems, where old bath water, laundry water ect goes towards flushing the loo and watering the garden. Solar panel roofing which is efficient enough to leave these houses with an electricity surplus: they actually re-insert energy onto the grid. what it takes is for governments to give financial aid, by way of tax breaks and grants, to people that wish to install grey water systems and solar collectors, windmills ect. If someone wants to install a windmill in their garden for helping with electricity, have a set of approved designs that dont require planning permission. all that guff.

In Iceland, shell have al;ready made the hydrogen necessary for hybrid cars available on the forecourt. In fact, if one oil company does really take a lead, thats who i would bet on: Shell

 

[jaguarr]

another way to state it?
"Even giant multibillion dollar corporations are sometimes afraid of change. Just like us, sometimes."

poor multibillion dollar corporations.

Maybe we should throw a telethon for them.

jag

 

[jaguarr]

In germany, there are already energy effiecient green houses. Grey water systems, where old bath water, laundry water ect goes towards flushing the loo. Solar panel roofing which is efficient enough to leave these houses with an electricity surplus: they actually re-insert energy onto the grid. what it takes is for governments to give financial aid, by way of tax breaks and grants, to people that wish to install grey water systems and solar collectors, windmills ect. If someone wants to install a windmill in their garden for helping with electricity, have a set of approved designs that dont require planning permission. all that guff.

Yes, and we have some of that in the States as well. The issue I see is that so much of it is on a small scale and left up to the individual, the majority of whom can't afford the technology required to have solar panel roofing or solar collectors or windmills. That technology, at least here in the U.S., is still rather expensive and therefore the incentive for Joe Average to install and use it is small, even if they can sell off the excess energy to the power companies. Hopefully things will improve at the smaller level over time, but the real change needs to happen at a larger level that can impact consumerism as a whole in a greater fashion.

jag

 

[logansoldcigar]

As with everything, create the market and the price drops. If several million Joe Average in the USA want solar panels and the Govt gives them a tax break to do it, then some enterporising bod will mass produce them somewhere.
At the very least, the government should make all new housing have these systems (again, using tax breaks for the developers).
Imagine an office block weher every other window is a solar panel...how much power that would generate over the year

 

[jaguarr]

As with everything, create the market and the price drops. If several million Joe Average in the USA want solar panels and the Govt gives them a tax break to do it, then some enterporising bod will mass produce them somewhere.
At the very least, the government should make all new housing have these systems (again, using tax breaks for the developers).
Imagine an office block weher every other window is a solar panel...how much power that would generate over the year

I don't disagree at all. Howver, the lobbyists have made it awfully attractive for Congress to NOT enact these kinds of tax breaks and then we get into the whole "protected interests" discussion. It's wrong, but it's the state of things at the moment.

jag