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End of Fossil Fuels
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as you all know... we have entered an oil crisis as many Canadians (yes... i am Canadian, eh?) have already realised... not only because of rising prices... in fact... that's a good thing... that means less people will drive H2 hummers, carrying only themselves and a cup of coffee to work... i'm talking about the dwindling supply of oil... i'm not a tree-hugging, nature freak... however, it is clear that our supply of oil will not last forever... i've read some articles... and they say the supply will reach it's peak output in 2007 and be completely deplete in 20 or 30 years... i dont know about you... but that kind of freaks me out... in 3 years... supply will become much lower than demand (prices would skyrocket)... it means i can get my full G liscense... but wont be able to afford to fill up my car!!! that would bite... unfortunately... fossil fuel also includes natural gas... which would mean heating costs would also increase... WHEE!!! i shall freeze to death while getting my degree... that's not all... fossil fuels are also used to make plastics, polyester, and other synthetic products... which would increase the price of almost everything else... alternate power supplies? ok... maybe... but what do we use to make those power supplies? mostly fossil fuels (energy and as synthetic products)... on top of that... they are not very efficient... i'm pretty sure i dont have to mention this... but burning fossil fuels also pollutes the air... causes acid rain... adds massive amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere turning this planet into a convection oven... is it just me, or have we screwed ourselves over? maybe i'm being a little pessimistic here... but i think the end is near... what do you guys think? |
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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by
on 2004-05-16 20:13:59 |
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one proton, one neutron: hydrogen the answer to all our energy problems. 
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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by
on 2004-05-16 20:19:31 |
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the whole global warming thing is propaganda. in geological terms, we are still on the tail end of an ice age. of COURSE the earth is gonna warm up a little. california WILL go underwater before it cools off any, wether or not we burn the remains of Cretaceous organisms or not. CO2 is part of all plant's healthy balanced diet. its not evil. The real killer of our environment is CFCs (Chlorofluorocarbons). One can of hair spray is worse than a barrel of oil. Refrigerators are the devil. </rant>
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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true... we COULD use hydrogen... but it very expensive to store... you would also need special equipment to transport it as well since hydrogen is extremely combustable... as seen by the zeppelin incedent... unless you like looking at craters x_X... even if we were to switch to hydrogen cars... how many of us would buy them? there are many who cling to the ideal that fossil fuels will not run out (at least not in their lifetime)... i may be wrong but i dont think it's affordable to the "common joe"... yet... there is one potential solution... nuclear fusion with it's acclaimed unlimited supply of power... they know how to produce nulear fusion power... it's just a matter of controlling it... however... they said it would take only 10 years to develop... it's been 50 years, though scientist still claim it'll only be 10 more years... as for global warming... aye... i dont think global warming is that much of an issue... i wouldnt go as far as to call it propaganda though... who knows... i'm pessimistic, cynical, and a bit senile... so i'm probably wrong when i say human existence is treatened (at least our current lifestyle)... |
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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They're still working on fusion reactors. It's much less dangerous than nuclear energy but it's harder to use. To elaborate: fusion reactors need to work at aprox 10000degrees K to fuse the atoms (1H + 1H -> 2He) (1H + 2He -> 3He) (1H + 3He -> 4He) something like that. We haven't quite been able to sustain the 100000K for longer than a couple of mili seconds but we're making progress. Input = Hydorgen, Output = Energy and Helium 4. Fusion reactors works in the same way as the sun. Considering 70% or so of the earth consist of water (Hydrogen) fuel shouldn't be a problem for the comming eons. I really do wonder, will our voice change pitch over time because of the increase of helium? O_o As for global warmin: put an ice box on the roof of every house/building (with the door/lid open) and it should cool down. Ah, dont forget to unscrew the light bulb, we dont want to use uneccesary power, now do we? |
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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: P still... the government should make the public aware of our need for an alternate sources (actually, they're methods of transporting energy) and not suck the supply dry then leech off our lean wallets when there's almost no fossil fuels left with no alternative... but hey... i guess that's how the government works... as long they can get rich from it, screw the future... screw the fact that the future generations (most likely ours) has to suffer from and fix it... it's not like it matter because they'll be long dead... or so they think... |
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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by Jerc E. Ophe
on 2005-06-19 15:07:10
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| That's the problem with businesses these days. They care more about money than our problems and the world's problems. By the way I see with alternative forms of fuel, we may rely on nuclear technology and solar power, probably reuse the concept of steam-powered vehicles, and maybe the perfection of cold fusion that can help anything run for centuries by non-pollutionary means. |
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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wow... it's been a while since i posted anything... anyways... nuclear power is... an alright alternative... ignoring the fact that it might wipe out a few cities if there's a problem... or the fact that we have no place to dump nuclear waste... bury it you say? dont expect anything to grow on the ground above for the next few centuries... or in the sea? mmm... mutated fish... yummy... reuase the steam power concept eh? hmm... let me think... how were steam trains powered again? oh right! they used COAL, a fossil fuel, to heat the water into steam... =P cold fusion might work... but it's going to take a looooooong time before we can make it into a viable energy source... there's also anti-matter (or was it dark matter?)... that might work... but it's incredibly inefficient and expensive to turn it into energy right now... dont expect this to be of any use until a century or 2 later (if at all)... |
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Re: End of Fossil Fuels
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by S-a-c-h-i-e-l
on 2005-11-24 08:11:40
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I'll go for cold fusion, you guys can sit there and waste money on polution :P Wind power and water power are also possibilities. I heard that part of the Silk Soy company has largely switched over to wind power, and that it's working really good for them.  |