Energy and Construction - Clima2007

Nina Said:

Why don't we use the Earth's magnetic field to generate endless electricity for the whole world?

We Answered:

NASA did an experiment in space that showed that this idea might work. They strung a wire out from the shuttle and it developed a strong voltage just from passing through the earth's field. But then it burned out.

My fear is that if we actually did build an earth generator as described it would affect the rotation of the earth. You can't get something for nothing. You have to put mechanical energy into a generator to get electrical energy out of it. In this case the mechanical energy comes from the rotation of the earth. The earth is just coasting so extracting energy to make electricity would cause the rotation to slow down. Do we really want that?

Harold Said:

Why is the claim that "energy independence" is an ideal never challenged?

We Answered:

The whole idea of energy independence is one that big business corporations have been against since the 70s. The truth is that the foreign oil producers are cooperative partners with American oil companies and they have been for many decades now. In the 70s there was an energy revolution emerging from the jump in oil prices and while steps were taken by our government to invest in infrastructure projects, our beloved oil industry was able to halt the funding of these projects just long enough while their Arabian Oil counterparts lowered the price of oil, calming many angry Americans. You have to understand that American Oil Corporations do not have our national interests and you would be a fool to think that they did. A Corporation serves one purpose, and that is to profit for its shareholders. Chevron, BP, Shell, etc are not government entities buddy. We live in America and the last time I checked we live in the land of the free, we cannot look to the government to provide us with cheaper prices because we're not happy with the rising costs of oil. If that was the case then this would not be the Great United States of America. The oil companies are not the enemy, foreign governments are not the enemy, there are no terrorists and there are no countries, the only threat to the average American is his own ignorance. Americans are falling behind when it comes to intellect.

Erik Said:

Who are some important people in renewable energy history?

We Answered:

Look up T. Boone Pickens. He is a former oil man and corporate raider who has a ton of money and wants to do wind farms all over the place.

He became famous in the 1980's be acquiring big oil companies then selling them off (in whole or in part) and made a ton of money.

Tracy Said:

when was renewable energy discovered to be turned into power and what RE was discovered first?

We Answered:

Windmills have been around for centuries, used initially for grinding grain into flour. The first may have been made by the Chinese around 2000 years ago, but the Persians were using windmills from about 500 AD. The first recorded Chinese windmills were about 1200 AD. These produced renewable mechanical energy.

Hydropower wasn't harnessed to any great extent until about 1770, at first mechanically, while the first large hydroelectric generator was made at about the same time as the first wind powered electric generator, about 1880.

However the direct use of solar energy for warmth and for photosynthesis goes back to the beginning of life on our planet, billions of years ago. This is the ultimate "RE", despite the fact that it is actually a nuclear fusion reactor which will eventually burn out. But not for a few more billion years :)

Jill Said:

Are there any trade schools for renewable energy technician?

We Answered:

Information about schools will be found below.