On Sun, Mar 02, 2014 at 01:31:28PM -0500, John Clark wrote: > On Sat, Mar 1, 2014 at 2:50 PM, John Mikes <[email protected]> wrote: > > > I wanted to ask 'why the closed mind FOR solar? > > > > I have nothing against solar and I'm in favor of anything that works, but > there is a reason it hasn't taken over by now and its not because of a > sinister secret ruling cabal that enjoys kicking puppies and breathing > dirty air, it's because with current technology solar energy is just too > dilute and unreliable for most (not all) applications. What I'm saying is > that energy supply is a very important matter an unrealistic expectations > can be downright dangerous and with current technology solar can't even > come close to replacing fossil fuel. I wish it were otherwise but wishing > does not make it true. >
Solar PV only reached cost parity with oil in the last couple of years, and is still a year or two away from doing the same with coal. That is a combination falling prices of PV, and rising prices of fossil fuels. One wouldn't expect PV to have replaced fossil fuel yet - but it looks like it will do so fairly shortly. > > No Windfarms? > > > > If they ever became really common environmentalists would fight to the > death to stop them. Windfarms are ugly, they're noisy, they disrupt global > wind patterns, and they kill little birds. > That seems to depend on the country. In Denmark, they're quite popular. In the UK, there is some resistance from environmental groups. Here in Australia, it is still a small, but growing segment of energy provision (coal is still really cheap here). One problem (being worked on) is how to predict accurately what the weather will be at the turbine blades (accurate micro-weather simulation) so as to optimise the spot market contract prices. That is being worked on right now. > > no Geotherm? > > > > If it ever became really common environmentalists would fight to the death > to stop it. Geothermal smells bad, if fouls the groundwater, and causes > earthquakes. Aside from places like NZ which are already set up for geothermal, I suspect this is still not ready for prime time. But the disadvantages you mention above also apply to fracking, and that seems to be a full-speed juggernaut in spite of the environmental objections! > > Environmentalist love any new energy source as long as it's just on paper > and is never put into practice; they prefer the solution of freezing to > death in the dark. > > John K Clark > -- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prof Russell Standish Phone 0425 253119 (mobile) Principal, High Performance Coders Visiting Professor of Mathematics [email protected] University of New South Wales http://www.hpcoders.com.au ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
