Mary asks…
How would you convince the US government to fully support and invest in alternative sources of energy?
I know if the government really put every resource they had into alternative energy, it would become possible to commercialize this industry in as little as 10 years. But 2 decades of war in the Middle East have not encouraged this move, neither have terrorist attacks. Greenland already is moving away from oil as its primary source of energy, why can’t we? We have scientists and MBA’s that are just as brilliant. The only good news I’ve heard is that somewhere in the Midwest, I think it’s Colorado, the state returns some money to homes which use wind-powered energy instead of the traditional forms of energy (oil or electricity). Tax breaks on electric cars are not enough, because I haven’t seen that big of a change in our energy resources yet.
The Expert answers:
It shouldn’t be the government that does this. I am an Economics major, and spent a semester studying Environmental Economics. The solution can, will, and should come from the private sector. There are many companies out there researching alternate sources of energy, and when it becomes more economical to use these new advances in technology, the market will use them. Right now it is too cost prohibitive to use alternate forms of energy, but as other resources become more scarce, the price of them will go up, and we as a society will use alternate forms of energy, all without having to get the government involved.
Donald asks…
Yahoo Science news has not updated its Alternative Energy section since March 12.?
The Expert answers:
Inform it to the Yahoo! Answers team or Yahoo! Customer Care by mailing:
Email Yahoo! At these addresses:
y_answrs_team@yahoo.com (Y!A Team)
cc-advoc@yahoo-inc.com (Y! Customer Support)
You can also fill out these “Online Help” forms, which lets Yahoo know that you’re experiencing that problem as you have mentioned here, and wait for a reply from Yahoo Customer Support:
http://help.yahoo.com/fast/help/us/mail/cgi_feedback
Paul asks…
What do you know about alternative energy sources?
I have read articles about wind, solar, alternative fuels, and hydro power in The Mother Earth News. Who has used these alternative resources?
The Expert answers:
I have burned vegetable oil for about a year in various burners. Narrowed it down to simple easy clean exhaust. And applied it to a few household chores. I think I would sum it like this. If everyone burned veggie oil. Theres not enough. Geothermal should be mainstay temperature regulation. Hot water, cooking and clothes dryer activities are next. You only need so much hot water at one time. Make that much. Cooking make mega meals and freeze some, eat and eat some later. Lots of various savings here. Clothes, air dry if possible or dry selected items.
Steven asks…
Is this new solar dye technology the future of alternative energy?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7501476.stm
What do you think about this? Could we be seeing these solar dyes on all new buildings within 5 years? Would you be willing to put these panels on all the windows in your house? Could this technology make solar energy the most commonly used alternative energy source?
The Expert answers:
Hi Manda…
Yeah, I saw this and my immediate reaction was “great” – a simple product, easy to get going (no huge infrastructure required) and commercial production available within a few years…
The human eye doesn’t need anywhere near the full output of the sun to see so I see no problem in having only 10% filter through the windows.
Not sure if it will make commercial sense at a household level so may not become that common but sticking them on all those glass skyscrapers – fan-bloody-tastic!
Bit disappointed with the other two answers, though – linlyons is usually spot on but I found her response too negative; I think we need to be a little bit more optimistic that we can do something about GW even if it means now and then doing a few things that weren’t so good (as long as they don’t hurt!)
Agua gave a lot of info – not really germane to your question though… Couldn’t be bothered to read all of it as I figured he was selling something so I scrolled to the bottom and… Yep; he’s selling something!
So – does that make me as much of a cynic/pessimist as lyn?
Lisa asks…
Is this a good source of alternative energy?
What do you think of this for a source of environmentally friendly energy?
http://news.yahoo.com/comics/unstrange-phenomena
The Expert answers:
Where can i get the lightning bugs from
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