Technotranscendence wrote:
>
> > The difficulty with grass that generates electricity is conductors. You'd
> have
> > to run electrical conductors along the ground, and have the grass plants
> weave
> > themselves into series/parallel networks to conduct energy, with two types
> of
> > roots that grow toward different metals, like copper and aluminum, so you
> can
> > draw current from the field to the grid.
>
> I suppose one could make plants than produce chemicals that react to produce
> electricity. In essense, most electric production does rely on organic
> matter as a primary input -- oil, gas, coal.
>
> But don't you think a more efficient method of get cheap energy would be to
> increase oil drilling, especially outside OPEC controlled areas? Also,
> fomenting rebellion within OPEC might be another solution. I'm not calling
> for military action...
The current spike in prices is not due to the suppliers, but due to the
increases in taxation and environmental mandates adding to the cost of fuel.
Here in the US, most all the spike in the last year is a result of the
introduction of new rules by the EPA regarding additives and processes for
refineries. The fact that production has increased by 2 million barrels a day
over the last four months with no change in prices indicates that its not a
matter of supply, unless this is a result of some european countries
deactivating nuclear plants, with the electric demand being satisfied by new
fossil fuel burning plants.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Mon Oct 02 2000 - 17:37:44 MDT