+How much energy do you use?
-Well since I'm in an apartment on campus, I don't use much. Most of my roomates turn out lights. the only thing I leave plugged in or on usually is my laptop charger, my stereo system and my lamp. I only have one. when I leave for long trips I turn my power strip off and unplug it from the wall.
+What types of energy?
-There can be so many different alternatives. Solar, aqua, wind. Kinetic energy too. These are all eco-friendly alternatives.
+How is it sourced?
-Depends. One can install a bunch of solar panels, which can also heat up water, so there wouldn't be a necessity for hot water heaters. There's also wind turbines which are expensive, but generate a crazy amount of clean energy.
+What does it cost?
-Usually, alternatives don't come cheap. They range from more than 100 grand... but they will definitely last a very long time with postitive outcomes and results for the future and Earth itself.
+What are the environmental, social, community, political implications of its use and acquisition?
Well because there are so many alternative and cleaner ways to get energy, it puts fossil fuel burning companies and organizations that depend on a majority of mankind to fail. People are more afraid to lose money and profit than to lose the Earth in the near future because of their carelessness.
+What is the longevity of those fuel sources?
-Fossil Fuels can only last until we use all of it up. Alternative energy is endless. As long as we all invest and take interest and not fear change, we can have endless amounts of energy.
+How do other countries and cultures use and source energy?
-Not many places use alternative energies. There are some places that have solar panels built outside of the city, others have wind turbines. Most of the world still rely on fast energy, which is fossil fuels.
+What are your thoughts on meeting Primary Needs in the future.?
-Well as a person, I'm concerned in the environment. I don't want to lose the beauty of the earth because of the greed that we have. I believe it's not hard to change... but a majority of people treat this neccesary change as some kind of "doomsday".
+What information is available to you regarding quantity, quality, availability and demand for resources in the future?
-There are tons of imformation. Especially a few years from now, there will be lots more alternatives and ways for people to change.
+A ‘typical’ home in a mild climate uses between 5,000 kWh and 30,000 kWh of energy a year for its heating. So how much does your home use?
-I have no idea. I know living at my parents, they're extremely conservative. We never use the A/C or heat unless it's really needed, we never use too much electricity. Most of the electricity used would be our coil stoves and computers.
+Wind Power
-Wind energy harnesses the power of the wind to propel the blades of wind turbines. The rotation of turbine blades is converted into electrical current by means of an electrical generator. In the older windmills, wind energy was used to turn mechanical machinery to do physical work, like crushing grain or pumping water. Wind towers are usually built together on wind farms. Now, electrical currents are harnessed by large scale wind farms that are used by national electrical grids as well as small individual turbines used for providing electricity to isolated locations or individual homes. In 2005, worldwide capacity of wind-powered generators was 58,982 megawatts, their production making up less than 1 percent of world-wide electricity use.
+Solar Power
-Solar energy is used commonly for heating, cooking, the production of electricity, and even in the desalination of seawater. Solar power works by trapping the sun's rays into solar cells where this sunlight is then converted into electricity. Additionally, solar power uses sunlight that hits solar thermal panels to convert sunlight to heat water or air. Other methods include using sunlight that hits parabolic mirrors to heat water (producing steam), or simply opening a rooms blinds or window shades to allow entering sunlight to passively heat a room.
+Geothermal Energy
-Geothermal literally means "earth heat." Geothermal energy harnesses the heat energy present underneath the Earth. Hot rocks under the ground heat water to produce steam. When holes are drilled in the region, the steam that shoots up is purified and is used to drive turbines, which power electric generators.
+HydroElectric Energy
-Hydroelectric power comes from the potential energy of dammed water driving a water turbine and generator. Another variation is to make use of water's kinetic energy or undammed sources such as tidal power. Hydro power works by harnessing the gravitational descent of a river that is compressed from a long run to a single location with a dam or a flume. This creates a location where concentrated pressure and flow of water can be used to turn turbines or water wheels to drive an electric generator. Electric generators powered by hydro power can be run backwards as a motor to pump water back up for later use.
+Sugar as an Energy Source
-Researchers and chemists at Virginia Tech are developing a way to convert sugar into hydrogen, which can be used in a fuel cell, providing a cheaper, cleaner, pollutant-free and odorless drive. The scientists combine plant sugars, water and 13 powerful enzymes in a reactor, converting the concoction into hydrogen and trace amounts of carbon dioxide. The hydrogen could be captured and pumped through a fuel cell to produce energy. Their process delivers three times more hydrogen than traditional methods, which translates into cost savings. Unfortunately, it might be another 10 years before consumers can actually dump sugar into their gas tanks. What seems more realistic in the short term is using the same technology to create long-lasting sugar-based batteries for laptops, cell phones and other electronics.
+Solar Wind
-One hundred billion times more power than humanity currently needs is available right now, out in space. It comes through solar wind, a stream of energized, charged particles flowing outward from the sun. Brooks Harrop, a physicist at Washington State University in Pullman and Dirk Schulze-Makuch of Washington State’s School of Earth and Environmental Science, think they can capture these particles with a satellite that orbits the sun the same distance Earth does. Their so-called Dyson-Harrop satellite would have a long copper wire charged by onboard batteries in order to produce a magnetic field perfect for snagging the electrons in the solar wind. The energy from the electrons would be beamed from the satellite via a infrared laser to Earth, since the infrared spectrum would not be affected by the planet’s atmosphere. This Dyson-Harrop satellite holds a few technical problems that researchers are currently trying to fix. It has no protection from space debris, and some of the power could be lost as it’s beamed through Earth’s atmosphere. Plus, finding a way to aim the laser beam across millions of miles of space is no small task.
+Feces and Urine?! REALLY?
-In both solutions, dog walkers are provided biodegradable bags, which after they’re filled, are placed into a large container called a digester. Inside, microorganisms process the poo, giving off methane as a byproduct. The methane can be used to power lights.
+Even People can be used as Energy Sources... Dead or Alive.
-The next time you’re standing in a crowded subway in the middle of summer, don’t sweat it. The heat your body produces can warm an entire building, complete with offices, apartments and shops. At least that’s what is happening in Stockholm, Sweden and Paris, France. Jernhuset, a state owned property administration company, is putting together a plan to capture body heat from train commuters traveling through Stockholm’s Central Station. The heat will warm water running through pipes, which will then be pumped through the building’s ventilation system. Paris Habitat, owner of a low-income housing project in Paris, will also use body heat to warm 17 apartments in a building, which is directly above a metro station near Pompidou Center. On a more morbid and less sweaty note, a crematorium in the United Kingdom is using gasses released from the cremation process to heat a crematorium. The energy in cremated bodies is already being captured when it has to pas through filters to remove the mercury in the deceased’s fillings. Instead of letting the energy escape, pipes are used to pump it through the building.
+Vibrations
-Club Watt in Rotterdam, Netherlands is using floor vibrations from people walking and dancing to power its light show. The vibrations are captured by “piezoelectric” materials that produce an electric change when put under stress.
+Sludge Energy
-California municipalities alone produce 700,000 metric tons of dried sludge annually, which has the potential to generate 10 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per day. The University of Nevada, Reno, is drying sludge to make it burnable for a gasification process, which turns it into electricity. A team of researchers at the university built the processing machine as a way of producing low cost and energy efficient technology. The machine turns gooey sludge into powder by using relatively low temperatures in a fluidized bed of sand and salts to produce the biomass fuel.
+Jellyfish as Energy
-Jellyfish that glow in the dark contain the raw ingredients for a new kind of fuel cell. Their glow is produced by green fluorescent protein, referred to as GFP. A team at The Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden placed a drop of GFP onto aluminum electrodes and then exposed that to ultraviolet light. The protein released electrons, which travel a circuit to produce electricity.
+Exploding Lakes as Energy
-There are three known "exploding lakes," in the world, called such because they contain huge reservoirs of methane and carbon dioxide trapped in the depths by differences in water temperature and density. If temperatures should change and the lake turns, these gases would immediately fizz to the surface like a shaken bottle of soda, killing the millions of people and animals living nearby. In fact, such an event happened on August 15, 1984, when Cameroon's Lake Nyos unleashed a huge cloud of concentrated carbon dioxide, instantly suffocating hundreds of people and animals. In Rwanda, Lake Kivu is such a foreboding place. But the government has built a power plant that sucks up the noxious gases from the lake to power three large generators, which produce 3.6 megawatts of electricity. The government hopes that in the next couple of years, the plant could be producing enough power for one-third of the country.
+Bacteria as Energy
-enzymes from the bacteria are extracted to boost fatty acid production, and then dehydrated the fatty acid to get rid of the oxygen, which made turned it into a type of diesel fuel. The same bacteria that can make us sick can also help save people money and the environment, by providing fuel for transportation.
+Carbon Nanotubes
-Carbon nanotubes are hollow tubes of carbon atoms that have a range of potential uses, from armor-like fabrics to elevators that could lift cargo between Earth and the Moon. Recently, scientists from MIT have a found a way to use carbon nanotubes to collect 100 times more solar energy than a regular photovoltaic cell. The nanotubes could work as antenna to capture and funnel sunlight onto solar arrays. This means that instead of having an entire rooftop covered in solar panels, a person may need just a small space.
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