Solve one problem, create a hundred others.
Free, limitless energy will place demands on other resources, and the same complainers will cry injustice, claim oppression, and demand more answers through government.
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ideas and energy PING
There are a great many technologies on the horizon that may have great impact on these figures
High temperature super conductors could reduce line losses in electric power transmission increasing effective power output 20%.
It is conceivable that nuclear fusion could become practical in that time frame generating cheap carbon free power (Whoopee).
And there are always new unexpected discoveries popping up. Who knows what might happen.
If we don’t solve the problem energy will become more expensive and demand will be reduced in response and again the problem will solve itself.
But I expect that if government stays out of the way the market will produce adequate power to meet demand. Left to itself the market will produce energy much more abundantly and cheaply than any government agency could imagine.
How idiotic and stupid!!! As if the entire globe's population of 9 billion would EVER, EVER, EVER be living at the American quality of life 44 years from now.
Nocera suggests, assuming heroic conservation measures that would enable affluent American lifestylesOR maybe China and India could master birth control and stop increasing their populations at an unsustainable rate.
I know it's not popular with some of the folks here, but what America needs to do is completely eliminate it's dependence on foreign oil. IMHO this means a move to electric cars coupled with the development of a sufficient power generation system based on nuclear and other technologies not requiring foreign oil.
If we do that, China and India can reproduce themselves back into the stone age and it won't directly effect us because we won't be competing with them for oil.