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Wow 136,000 mw! That's more than enough to power St. Kitts and Nevins! Unfortunately, the world consumes 19,320,360,620 megawatt hours per year.
Anywa...
Now I know that many tech orient people are divorced from real interaction with real live people so perhaps it isn't amazing that you steadfastly refuse to address the most fundamental issue, technology doesn't fundamentally change human behavior, only humans can do that. You can have all the solar panels in the world but the U.S. in 30 years will still be using an electrical grid built to deliver 120v of electricity to the average American home. We have the technology to put even the most meager broadband internet access in every home in the country, but we don't. We have the technology to track airplanes during every minute of their flight, but we can't find a 110,100 lbs, plane with a 212 ft wingspan. We got technology out of the whazoo that could solve all of man's greatest problems...except one, man himself and no amount of TED broadcasts is going to change that basic fact.
Its about 1% of our energy needs so many people dismiss it yet the power companies are stating to realize its a real threat and soon. Why because solar is advancing exponentially and soon will be drastically cheaper then getting power from the grid.
This is from The NY Times:
For years, power companies have watched warily as solar panels have sprouted across the nation’s rooftops. Now, in almost panicked tones, they are fighting hard to slow the spread.Alarmed by what they say has become an existential threat to their business, utility companies are moving to roll back government incentives aimed at promoting solar energy and other renewable sources of power. At stake, the companies say, is nothing less than the future of the American electricity industry.
There are 3,200 utilities that make up the U.S. electrical grid, the largest machine in the world. These power companies sell $400 billion worth of electricity a year, mostly derived from burning fossil fuels in centralized stations and distributed over 2.7 million miles of power lines. Regulators set rates; utilities get guaranteed returns; investors get sure-thing dividends. It’s a model that hasn’t changed much since Thomas Edison invented the light bulb. And it’s doomed to obsolescence.
Ahhh yeah, can we see it now, solar power and how beautiful it makes our landscape:
All we have to do is cover every square inch of non-developed land in the United States and stop the Earth from rotating so the solar power output remains continuous...
The article by the New York Times sounds more like the Times is in panic mode trying to get subscribers back...
If judging by the hysterical paranoia from the anti-GM gaggle is any indication of how many people are scared of technology our tech future is hardly guaranteed....
Ahhh yeah, can we see it now, solar power and how beautiful it makes our landscape:
All we have to do is cover every square inch of non-developed land in the United States and stop the Earth from rotating so the solar power output remains continuous...
The article by the New York Times sounds more like the Times is in panic mode trying to get subscribers back...
If judging by the hysterical paranoia from the anti-GM gaggle is any indication of how many people are scared of technology our tech future is hardly guaranteed....
Actually solar panels are getting smaller and more efficient as well as less expensive.
Actually solar panels are getting smaller and more efficient as well as less expensive.
Ivanpah (the largest and most modern solar array on planet Earth) cost $2.2 billion, covers 3,500 acres and can supply power for up to 140,000 homes...
Whooptie tweedle doo... they will never get to the point where they loose the distinction of being one of Mankind's worst eyesores and a very expensive energy source...
Lets take a look at some numbers (to see how many homes there are in America being cognizant of the size and how many homes Ivanpah covers:
Quote:
In 2009, the US Census Bureau reports all housing units totalling in at 130 million 159 thousand.
Also in 2009 91,241,000 total housing units for single detached and mobile homes in the United States with 79,918,000 total occupied year round. And of these, some are renters and some are owner occupied.
I forgot to add something that some people are oblivious to (human nature and distrust):
Quote:
Not everyone thinks the solar plant represents a brighter future. Environmentalists warn that the construction threatens the desert ecosystem, while the heated plumes of air from the towers could singe migrating birds.
Solar panels belong on roofs of buildings, parking lots and other structures as a way to use less fossil fuels, but not to replace them completely. Placing them on existing structures is much cheaper than building stand-alone solar farms. We shouldn't be crowding open land with expensive solar farms until panels become more efficient.
That being said, a lot of people are too lazy or uneducated to even put them on their roofs. It's sad how careless people can be.
Ivanpah (the largest and most modern solar array on planet Earth) cost $2.2 billion, covers 3,500 acres and can supply power for up to 140,000 homes...
Whooptie tweedle doo... they will never get to the point where they loose the distinction of being one of Mankind's worst eyesores and a very expensive energy source...
Lets take a look at some numbers (to see how many homes there are in America being cognizant of the size and how many homes Ivanpah covers:
So lets hear more about these fantasy "sometime in the future" technologies....
If solar was not advancing as fast as it is then I would agree with you.
Also, while I know it looks like I am predicting the future I am really not. What I mean is I have no idea what life will be like in 2020 or 2030 or 2040. I do not know what companies will be around, what specific technologies will be successful or not, or even where I will be living and if I will be single or married. What I can do is look at trend lines of information technology and predict where the technology will be and say generally what the impact of that technology will have on society. Solar is a great example of this. The trend is obvious as its getting more efficient and smaller and less expensive at a exponential rate. So by 2030 the impact on society will be profound and that is the year the UN says we need to be considerably off fossil fuels. People will be doing this not because its better for the environment, although it is, but because by then it will be 50% cheaper then fossil fuels.
Solar panels belong on roofs of buildings, parking lots and other structures as a way to use less fossil fuels, but not to replace them completely. Placing them on existing structures is much cheaper than building stand-alone solar farms. We shouldn't be crowding open land with expensive solar farms until panels become more efficient.
That being said, a lot of people are too lazy or uneducated to even put them on their roofs. It's sad how careless people can be.
It has nothing to do with being uneducated or lazy but expense. Historically solar has been too expensive for the average person to use. That is quickly changing as solar is now reaching parity with fossil fuels. That is why you will see people switching over to solar and by 2030 that will change the landscape of how people get their power not just in the United States but the world.
If solar was not advancing as fast as it is then I would agree with you.
And just how fast is solar panels progressing in your opinion based on your earlier comment that Ivanpah would have a smaller footprint if modern technology was used?????
Quote:
Also, while I know it looks like I am predicting the future I am really not. What I mean is I have no idea what life will be like in 2020 or 2030 or 2040. I do not know what companies will be around, what specific technologies will be successful or not, or even where I will be living and if I will be single or married. What I can do is look at trend lines of information technology and predict where the technology will be and say generally what the impact of that technology will have on society. Solar is a great example of this. The trend is obvious as its getting more efficient and smaller and less expensive at a exponential rate. So by 2030 the impact on society will be profound and that is the year the UN says we need to be considerably off fossil fuels. People will be doing this not because its better for the environment, although it is, but because by then it will be 50% cheaper then fossil fuels.
You do realize [Mod cut: not needed] that IT has nothing to do with solar panels, right?
I have no idea what life will be like in 2020 or 2030 or 2040.
Then out of the other side of your mouth:
Quote:
The trend is obvious as its getting more efficient and smaller and less expensive at a exponential rate. So by 2030 the impact on society will be profound.....
Here is the latest article on solar on how it is now reaching parity with fossil fuels. This is great news for the world and is more proof that technology will help solve our problems.
The article:
Choosing solar power no longer has to be a sacrifice for the sake of the environment. In Germany, Italy, and Spain, installing your own solar panels can now actually save money.
A report released by European renewable energy consulting firm Eclareon shows that solar energy has reached “grid parity.” In other words, over the full lifetime of the equipment, the total cost of owning and operating rooftop solar panels is about the same as buying electricity from the grid.
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