U.S. vs. China for Oil

When oil runs low, will the U.S. and China forcibly occupy the Middle East, with the reason finally being overt in that it’s all about the oil? Will our respective governments sell us on a battle for resources, for energy? It seems like as military powers, the U.S. and China are the big kids on the block, and the Middle Eastern nations are the nerdy kids that help us with our homework. Maybe some of them wrote computer programs that do homework automatically. So we don’t need them anymore! Would the U.S. and China completely dominate the oil-bearing nations in a time of crisis?

Nuclear Power vs. Nuclear Waste

A few weeks ago, I was a major fan of nuclear power. I thought it could solve all our problems. When I was younger, I was more familiar with the issue of nuclear waste. It seemed to be in the media somewhat more. At the time a few weeks ago during which I was enthused about the prospects of nuclear power, I hadn’t considered the implications of creating new nuclear waste.

Apparently, the stuff just builds up. We don’t have a proper disposal or conversion method yet. You’d think we’d wait before moving forward with such a technology. It’s not perfectly clean. Because instead of producing pollution in the air and water, it just concentrates it into radioactive drums.

It’s not the best solution available, but maybe it will be good enough until we can properly dispose of the waste materials generated. Who knows, in 50 years, we may have mastered cold fusion, and no longer need the waste-making nuclear power.

Downed Spy Satellite Could Affect Weather

I read on Yahoo today that an ailing American spy satellite has gone rogue (i.e., we've lost control) and will make its way through our atmosphere to our surface. Perhaps it will land in the ocean, or on a deserted stretch of land. One particular detail caught my eye.

"The satellite, which no longer can be controlled, could contain hazardous materials, and it is unknown where on the planet it might come down...."

So, perhaps this satellite contains radioactive material. Perhaps the satellite will crash somewhere and release it. Or perhaps it will explode in the atmosphere, spreading radioactive crud all over the planet. Then, things would get "warm." The weather would be "warmer," even when snowing. It would be a radioactive snowfall.

But I assume if this is possible, the military will take care of it.

Artificial Intelligence Solves Global Warming

Just think: We're close to developing AI already. If we could build a machine that was smart enough to build smarter versions of itself, at some point one incarnation would be powerful enough to come up with a sure-thing solution to global warming.

When Google changes its name to SkyNet, maybe we could ask it "How do we fix the planet?" in the microseconds leading up to its decision regarding the fate of the human race.

Who Shot Mr. Burns And Big Oil

Recently Fox aired the first part to "The Simpsons'" "Who Shot Mr. Burns" cliffhanger saga. It obviously forces Mr. Burns down an aggressive and dangerous path merely for the sake of the plot, but his actions do seem in accord with the forces behind Big Oil.

First he steals oil from the elementary school, and then he blocks the sun. That way, everybody is dependent on his energy.

Sure, Mr. Burns is a Nuclear Power supplier, but he wants to keep everybody under his thumb. I've heard about sabotage behind the development of the electric car, and it seems like parallel forces to what Mr. Burns displays are and have been at work in reality. It's a shame.

Ancient Mayan Global Cooling

I saw a short segment on television within the past 24 hours detailing how the Mayan civilization existed during a time when the sun's solar output diminished for some reason. This caused a global cooling trend, which shifted ocean currents, and dried out the Mayan territory. Major droughts eventually lead to cultural devastation.

So now, with our man-made greenhouse gases, will we create a global warming trend that shifts ocean currents and causes major freezing in the northern hemisphere? The show displayed what might happen - video of a super blizzard wiping out cities.

Nuclear Power Is Bad?

I was watching an old episode of "The Simpsons," and Homer and Mindy were selected to represent the Nuclear Power Plant. They were sitting at a table, maybe preparing to go on the air or something, when a few people walked by and yelled their displeasure with the Nuclear Power industry. One said something like, "No more Chernobyls!"

Sure, nuclear disasters are very bad. But I've heard that our new technology, and that of our nuclear subs, is pretty safe. And if we can get safe, clean energy, what's not to like?

150 MPG Vehicles

A few days ago I watched a news story about a minivan or SUV that was a gas-electric hybrid which had been modified to get 150 miles to the gallon. What they did wasn't that new; I'd seen the technique before. You take a normal hybrid, and add as many batteries as is feasible. So the SUV has a bunch of batteries sitting near, under or in the trunk. You drive 40 miles, up to 87 mph, on pure electricity. After that you need gas.

One downside is that the vehicle needs plugging in every night. So there's risk there. What if you lose power? Where does that power come from? Is oil used somewhere along the line to produce that electricity? So even when you plug your SUV into your home outlet, you'd still be using gas.

Or would you?

Droughts In South East U.S.

Sign of global warming?

I've read that we're supposed to get lots and lots of droughts, to the point that we're all clamoring for limited resources, and then oil peaks and the economy crashes. Then all governments collapse and widespread riots ensue.

And then we get superpowers.

But seriously, could the current droughts be connected with worse ones on the horizon?

Sylar Says Change Your Light Bulbs

I saw a commercial on TV today advocating changing your light bulbs from the old kind to the new, more efficient kind. There were a few different semi-famous people there. One of them was the actor who plays Sylar on "Heroes."

I already knew that taking that step was a good idea. At first the commercial seemed almost a little redundant. And kind of confusing. I've only seen it once, and I wasn't paying that much attention at first because it seemed off-putting. It was like it berated us all as a group, whether or not it was appropriate on an individual basis.

The only reason it would be appropriate is if not many people have been made aware or made to care that they should change their light bulbs. It's just a small step, and once it's out of the way, we can move on. But I thought we already had.

Nuclear Power Boom

Sure, sounds like a meltdown, but what I really mean is an explosive growth in the nuclear power industry.

I am pretty sure that I heard we're at the point now where our technology is advanced and safe. So what if we take all that tech and build a new nuclear reactor for every state. Or 5?

John McCain said our nuclear subs haven't ever had a problem. So if we get super-skilled guys to work on our power plants, we could free ourselves from oil dependence with existing technology. We'd be cleaner, and have a new booming industry to drive the economy. More skilled jobs for Americans.

I Can't Wait To Be Oil Independent

I can't wait...

It's like waiting for Christmas.

It's like waiting to see if you won the lottery.

If and when the U.S. becomes oil independent, that day will go down in history.

You wake up, flip on the news, hear "America has finally announced its technological advances have yielded 100% independence from foreign oil," and party!!

$3.00 Per Gallon For Hydrogen

I don't really know how much it will cost, but I recently realized that it won't be free!

Seriously, how dumb of me to overlook that.

I had been dreaming of getting a car with a super high MPG. Hybrid, pure electric, hydrogen fuel cell?? Ideally I think I'd go for the Hydrogen one. But then I remembered seeing a prototype fueling area, and it's just like a futuristic gas station. So of course we'll have to pay for the new, different fuel.

Sure, it will be cleaner and better for the environment. But it will still cost some bucks.