Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Weaning the World Off Oil


Summary: Tom Rand speaks to us about why it is important to "kick" the fossil fuel habit. Says that its a dangoruse road to go down and that we've reached the end and we need to turn back. When asked why he belives we should stop using fossil fuels he had many answers. One of which is what we are doing to the Gulf of Mexico. He stats that "We are sticking straws a mile underwater and taking enough oil to destroy the Gulf but couldn't run the economy for a whole day." If this isn't reason enough there are plenty of others including the tar melting in Canada which he says "Is complelty backwards." Right now we are at the bottom of the barrel. We have huge issues what we need right now is a way to slove them not make more issues. Orginally taking the idea that renewable energy was "kids" stuff his changed his mind stating that this renewable engergy stuff is a big deal. A solar power plant as big as a coal plant can prduce power 24 hrs a day. They even keep things powered after the sun goes down. On top of that geothermal energy can do the same. In fact one geothermal energy plant can provide power for an entire civalaztion.

Reflecton- I find it hard to beleive that we have all of these unused resoucres. I didn't even know half the things in this ariticle. If solar power produces the same amount of energy as coal and it is renewable why don't we just use the solar power. It seems a lot less risky and since it works when the the suns down what is stopping us?

Questions-Whats stopping us from using solar power? How much solar power would it take to power the high school?

What other green energys are there that we could use?

How many places in the world use solar power?

How much longer to we have to use coal, if we keep using it at the rate we do?

4 comments:

  1. I know that it would be great to convert into all of the renewable energy sources, but I also know its not going to be easy. We are so dependent on fossil fuels and it would be a tough struggle to switch. If it was that easy to switch, we would've done it years ago. Each renewable resource has disadvantages that are difficult to pass through.
    I can relate this topic to a project I did in 6th grade, where I had to find all the advantages and disadvantages of one of the renewable resources. Since I had to research solar energy, it is even easier to connect the two.
    Answer to question 1) Although solar power is helpful at times, the equipment to both set it up and store it is very expensive. In addition, the sun isn't always out (night-time and behind the clouds), so in a multi-day rainstorm or winter storm, we could be in danger of a power outage if we rely solely on solar power. However, it might be a good idea to use it in addition to fossil fuels, so that we can expand the amount of time our fossil fuels will last.

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  2. I think that fossil feuls becoming scarce are a growing topic in the world. We are depleating our natural supply of fossil feuls and if we don't stop then we won't have any enegry. I agree with Sam, the switch to renewable resources will take a while, so I think we should start now. The USA could save billions every year on oil and since we could be a potantial leader in renewable resources the national debt could be paid.

    Question 3: Many dams around the world are an example of hydroelectric power, using water to turn a turbine to create electric power. Biomass, which is from recently living organisms, can be used for heat. Scientists are also developing ways to harness the tides for power.

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  3. I do not agree with Tom Rand. I think that we should be using what we have. It will get used up eventually. We should also save what we have not started to use let for another 50 years. During those 50 years, scientistts should figure out how to make the fossil fuels more efficient then they are today. I can relate to this when there is one peice of cake left, I debate if I should eat it today or save it for another day. The scientists should save the fossil fuel that we have not started to use yet for another day.

    Questions-

    How many years of oil do we have left?

    If we save fossil fuels that we have not started to use yet, what would the effect be?

    Can we make solar power cheaper to use?

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  4. We should be using as much of our resources as possible. As a nation we are too dependent on other countries for our resources. We should be looking into renewable energy and start using it! I know it is tough to switch because not a lot of people have the money to buy solar panels and new hybrid cars which is initially expensive, but it’s something we eventually all have to do. Every year in school I feel like we have to look at another area of renewable energy, doing projects and giving the advantages and disadvantages. If we keep informing our youth about this I feel like renewable energy will eventually happen.
    To answer question number 1: There are many types of renewable energy that we can use. It all depends on were you are in the country. There is wind power, hydropower, solar power,biomass, biofuel and geothermal energy.Wind power is good in wide open areas with lots of wind, while solar is good in areas with a large amount of sun all year around.

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