Posted on 01/23/2006 12:01:06 PM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist
Amory Lovins has a vision: The U.S. economy keeps going and going and going—without any oil
AMORY LOVINS is a physicist, economist, inventor, automobile designer, consultant to 18 heads of state, author of 29 books, and cofounder of Rocky Mountain Institute, an environmental think tank. most of all, he's a man who takes pride in saving energy. The electricity bill at his 4,000-square-foot home in Old Snowmass, Colorado, is five dollars a month, and he's convinced he can do the same for all of us. his book winning the oil endgame shows how the united states can save as much oil as it gets from the persian gulf by 2015 and how all oil imports can be eliminated by 2040. And that's just for starters.
When I give talks about energy, the audience already knows about the problems. That's not what they've come to hear. So I don't talk about problems, only solutions. But after a while, during the question period, someone in the back will get up and give a long riff about all the bad things that are happening—most of which are basically true. There's only one way I've found to deal with that. After this person calms down, I gently ask whether feeling that way makes him more effective.
(Excerpt) Read more at discover.com ...
You posted it! What's your take on it?
BTTT
Does this mean we won't need oil for plastic, safety goggles, tires, medicine, phones, computers, glasses, paint, safety vests, lubricant's and all the rest...
An homes are generally warmed by natural gas not, oil.
But it does imply he's selling (solar ?) elect. back to his elect. utility.
What? No 100 mpg carburetor?
Hay tripple E! Git back here an tell me you posted this for a joke, or for us to use as a verbal pinata, or something funny like dat, will ya???
I used to work for Edwin Land, the father of Polaroid photography. Land said that invention was the sudden cessation of stupidity. He also said that people who seem to have had a new idea often have just stopped having an old idea. So I suppose if I bring something unusual to this business, it's that maybe I find it easier to stop having old ideas.
Interesting, is liberalism an old thought?
The major changes he proposes for the automotive industry make sense, but how do you get businesses that have invested billions in the way they currently operate, to make sweeping and radical changes in the way cars are designed and built?
I mean, are any of these industries listening to this guy?
Brilliant distinction!!! I'll take your take long before I will Dr. Feelgood in his MSM pop-culture mag!!! Phhhhhht!!!
The article doesn't say, but it has a picture of (what looks like an expansive) hothouse which he uses to generate heat.
The thing is, you can create all sorts of things that eventually save you alot of money. But there is an initial big investment, and then the time for that to get paid off before you see any real savings.
It isn't that he doesn't have "good ideas" per se. It's just that, like alot of people who propose radical changes, there's a big jump from here to there. All he does is say hey, there's a great town on the other side of that chasm, but he hasn't got a bridge.
Where's the prototype of this super efficient thermoplastic automobile?
Nor has he got ANY real foundation. He says right off the bat that he's afraid of any critical analysis and calls it negativity. I'm not fond of knee-jerk negativity either, but natural law (meaning physics) requires there be both positivity AND negativity, lest we forget the immutable laws of nature!!!
"When we designed the research facilities at Rocky Mountain Institute, we didn't plan on having a banana farm inside. We're up 7,100 feet in the Rockies, and it has gotten as low as –47 degrees in the winter.
We planned about 900 square feet of jungle space with five different kinds of energy collection: heat, hot air, hot water, light, and photosynthesis. The arch that holds it up has 12 different functions, but I paid for it only once. The whole building exemplifies design integration: getting multiple benefits from single expenditures. It saves about 99 percent of the normal need for space- and water-heating energy, about 90 percent of the household electricity, and half the water. All that efficiency paid for itself in 10 months—and that's with 1983 technology! Now we can do a lot better."
The problem is, not everyone has the possibility for 900 SF of jungle, or tracking photoelectric cells on the roof, etc etc. So, it's real nice but very impractical. And I'll tell you, I have a small pond w/waterfall & fountain in my back yard. It requires some knowledgeable upkeep. Most folks don't have the time or inclination to maintain a hothouse.
I can see some use for this guy in that people who "think up stuff" can be useful for innovation. But then you need to take their ideas and bring them back down to reality and probably somewhere in between you'll find the feasible.
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