The rich and wealthy complain

The people of Cape Cod, Massachusetts are trying to organize a ban on the production of America's first offshore wind farm, simply because they say it will ruin their lovely view. They would rather have power plants in the interior burn massive amounts of coal, polluting the environment and the continuation of carbon being pumped into our atmosphere than ruin their pretty little view. I think that this is obserd! If we do not take action in this matter, the "Rich folks" over time will not have a nice little home on Cape Cod to go to. I have read a few different articles on this project and there has been much debate on the issue of building this project period. I say yes to this project all the way. Windfarms produce renewable energy that we need!!!!!!

Bibliography

The economist. (November 9, 2009). Cape wind: America's first offshore wind farm on nantucket sound. Retrieved (November 11, 2009). from http://www.capewind.org/

Check out this clip, it is funny but it has meaning.

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-august-7-2007/jason-jones-180---nantucket

Energy from the ocean

"Thermal energy from the suns heat and mechanical energy are the two types that the ocean can produce. Over half of our earth is covered by oceans, which makes them the worlds largest solar collectors. The heat from the sun warms the surface water a lot more than the deep ocean water, and the difference in this creates thermal energy. It is said that just a small portion of the heat trapped in the ocean could power the world"(http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/).

It is pretty cool that the ocean produces energy just like the sun, and the wind. We seem to lean more on other sources, like oil, nuclear power and so on. I think that the natural elements of the world that produce energy, like the sun, the ocean, and the wind should be used more because they don't pose a threat to us, our world, and our way of life. They do not seem to produce the energy as fast as us humans need it. "The thermal energy that the ocean produces is used for many reasons, including electricity generation" (http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/). To me it sounds like the ocean is a powerhouse of energy that is still untapped. The sun, the ocean, and the wind together create massive amounts of energy, yet it seems like people do not have the time to wait around for them to produce energy. What will us humans do when we run out of oil and natural gas? What will we humans do when our ozone layer is gone from all of the pollution we have forced upon it? There is nothing we can do! We will be slowly on our way to the grave, because we have one foot in it already.

Bibliography

Renewable Energy World (2009). Ocean energy-renewable energy world. Retrieved (November 11, 2009). from http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/tech/oceanenergy

Spain's windfarms set new national record

"In Spain over the weekend the country set a new national record for electricity generation. These high winds supplied 53% of the electricity which is equivalent to the power output of 11 nuclear plants. For more than 5 hours this past Sunday, output from wind power was providing more than half of the electricity being used" (http://www.guardian.co.uk/.). Having to do this assignment, I have had to do tons of research on "energy" period. I have come across articles stating that wind farms are a waste of money and do not produce electricity fast enough, and that these things are not efficient enough for our needs. The wind does not always blow, so I can see why these statements are made, but on the flip side of the coin just look at what happened this weekend in Spain. The results are there. If results like this keep surfacing, It would be beneficial to start building more of these wind farms and cut down on our use of oil and gas around the world. It would help preserve our planet a little longer.

Bibliography
Tremlett, Giles.(November 9, 2009). Spain's wind farms set new national record for electricity generation. Retrieved (November 10, 2009). from http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/nov/09/spain-national-record-power-windfarms.

Peak Oil Crisis-Prepare to survive /The New World (Dis)-Order.

This article is insane, and a must read in order to find out what could possibly happen to our nation, yet the world! It is estimated that the world may have enough oil until the year 2030 at the current consumption that is, and enough natural gas until the year 2060 if all known reserves were recoverable. In addition to the world becoming very low in oil and gas, we humans could suffer. Our nation and other nations could begin to fight over this limited supply of natural gas and oil, to conserve our economy. As we get closer to the last drop of gas and oil, the prices of these two things could sky rocket. People will not be able to afford these high prices, therefore their bills will not be paid, which will cause a major spike an unemployment. People will become homeless and as they get desperate they will start to loot and pillage our city's to stay alive. It says that the response to all this could be martial law, a government seizure of weapons, foods, and medicines. In respone to this article, I think that this is crazy! What if something like this was to happen? I really don't have much to speak of on this matter, but yes I do have my thoughts and opinions. How does this tie in with energy? As of right this second in life it takes oil and natural gas to heat our homes, and run our factorys. Fertilizers and pesticides require oil and or natural gas for manufacture, which we use fertilizers and pesticides on our farms all over the world so we can eat and stay alive. Read this aricle, it will blow your mind for sure!!!

Follow this link and keep an open mind!
http://www.3k88.com/

Iwatani Hydrogen Bike Unveiled

"The Iwatani Corporation based in Tokyo, Japan has decided to unveil its new hydrogen bike. This bicycle uses H2 cartridges plus a lithium ion hybrid system to extend the range of the bike. Its range is around 45 miles before the new cartridge has to be inserted. The bike weighs around 31 pounds and provides zero emissions while on the road" (http://www.hydrogencarsnow.com/). I think that this thing is pretty cool, because all kinds of people in Japan like to ride bikes. It also cuts down on the pollution as well. Imagine that! The price has not yet been said as far as I know. I like the option of the extended range with an extra battery, so that you can ride a little longer if you desire. This bike can also be pedaled if a person seeks the exercise.

A few spoken words by Al Gore

Al Gore is on the front lines of our energy crisis and global warming issues. I never really paid attention to him as a person until we started doing this assignment on "Energy". I just happened to get a magazine in the mail yesterday and low and behold it has him in it with a article by him on this whole "Energy crisis" thing. So I thought that it would be interesting to blog about what this man has to say in reference to our energy crisis, and what he thinks we as humans should do in this matter. In this article he starts by saying, "we as a nation, we are faced with three interrelated crises that collectively threaten our way of life: The climate crisis, the continuing economic crisis, and finally the security crisis" (Rethinking energy, ideas for the future).
It then goes on to state that three years ago he began a series of solution summits to bring together world leaders from government, science, engineering, agriculture, etc. It states that Al has held almost three dozen of these meetings. Those are some high numbers. "There is a common thread running between these three things. Our overreliance on carbon-based fuels. The fact that we are borrowing money from China to buy oil from out of the Persian Gulf and burn it in ways that destroy us and our planet. We as humans must change the source of our energy from dirty and expensive carbon-based fuels to clean energy from the sun, wind, and the earth itself" (Rethinking energy, ideas for the future). It almost sounds like Al is turning into a environmentalist. There is nothing wrong with that at all, at least he is willing to address the nations problems and the worlds as well. Hey, he was Vice President for eight years. I think this man knows what he is talking about. He has the knowledge of how this country works from a political stand point, and he has money as well. He is not as rich as Bill Gates, but I know this man is not hurting like other Americans.

Bibliography
Gore, Al.(November, 2009).Rethinking energy, ideas for the future. Retrieved (November 8, 2009). from The costco connection.

Iowa, the powerhouse

"The state of Iowa and its renewable energy companies seem to be leading the race to become the renewable energy capital of the nation. Iowa's strong agricultural foundation and the legacy of manufacturing excellence have positioned Iowa to lead the nation in wind energy, renewable fuels-ethanol and biodiesel as well as biomass"(http://www.iowalifechanging.com/). You would never think that "Iowa" would even be doing these kind of things. Because Iowa is turning into a major renewable power house for energy, maybe the rest of the nation should take a look at what this state is doing, and help with the effort to make changes for a better world.

If you would like to read more about it, please follow the link.
http://www.iowalifechanging.com/Business/renewable_energy.aspx

Facts

Can you imagine being able to trap or store the energy produced by the sun? It says that in one second the sun can produce enough energy to power our energy needs for 500,000 years. That is insane and would be hard to accomplish, because the closer you get to the sun, the hotter it gets. Nobody wants to be burnt to death in the attempt of storing one second of the suns energy and who knows if anybody is crazy enough to try? Any volunteers?

My response to another students ideas on energy.

My paragraph in response to another students blog and ideas is on human energy. Human energy is a crazy thing. I think we do not pay that much attention to our body's energy. The fact that we need food in order for our body to produce energy, also the energy produced from our soul as well. I am interested in seeing this students blog page complete.

http://kaytezz.blogspot.com/

U.S. solar energy map

This is a map of our solar energy resource areas in the United States. It shows the hot spots, like in the southwest for example as you get closer to the desert it gets hotter due to the high heat in the desert areas of Nevada, California and Arizona. Great places for solar exploration. The Midwest in some areas gets pretty hot as well and has a good source of solar energy also. Notice Alaska in dark grey, we have mild summers and freezing, long dark, cold winters. Not the best place to explore for solar energy.

http://interestingenergyfacts.blogspot.com/2008/04/us-solar-energy-map.html

Solar shingles!

Check this out! Talk about technology at its finest! They are available for residential and commercial use, but yet they are pretty expensive, try $185.00 each, OUCH! But hey, if you are looking to go green this is a good way to start. They can be installed just like a normal shingle with nails and such. Could you imagine applying these to your whole roof? You better have some serious paper yo! What will they come up with next in this department? Only time will tell.

North Wales offshore wind farms

"North Wales got the go-ahead to build the worlds second largest offshore wind farm in the world at the end of last year. This wind farm is to be built 13 miles of the coast of North Wales. The UK is leading the world in offshore wind and this project will turn North Wales into a powerhouse for renewable energy. North Wales got approved to build up to 250 turbines between three and five megawatts (MW). Combined, these things are capable of generating enough electricity to power the average annual needs of around half a million homes" (http://www.greenwisebusiness.co.uk/). A half a million homes, wow! This creation is insane! I think that offshore wind farms need to be built more, all over the world. It would cut back on the development of land. It would also save our natural resources on the land as well. The only bad thing about offshore wind farms is our wild life in our oceans. Do these things interfere with their habitat and their breeding grounds?

Bibliography
Greenwise Staff.(2008, December 4).North Wales offshore wind farm gets greenlight. Retrieved (November 1, 2009). from http://www.greenwisebusiness.co.uk/news/north-wales-offshore-wind-farm-gets-greenlight.aspx.

My Energy Calculator Results

So check it out, I went and used the BP Energy Calculator and got my energy results profile. In a detailed report that it gave me, it said that I use approximately 49,369 kWh per year in energy. (Cars, heating, cooling, lighting, and appliances).I don't pay much attention to what my folks pay in total for electricity every year, but I can imaging it is a few thousand dollars. In this profile it states that most of the energy used in this matter comes from the use of my family's cars. I need to chill on the driving. We turn off the lights in the house when they are not being used or when we all leave to try and save energy and cut down on the cost of our electric bill. We also try not to over heat the house in the winter and leave the heat off in the summer as well. My carbon footprint total was registered at 23.0 CO 2, which I don't think that is that bad. Between me and my family we only fly about two times a year. We do not travel for business and our household energy level is more than likely average. One of the things that we could change, is the use of our light bulbs in our household to conserve energy.