Energy Secretary, Steven Chu January 10, 2012 Re: Year in Review Dear Colleagues, As we enter the New Year and move forward with our efforts…(it’s) important to take a moment to reflect on the progress we have made. Across the complex, our workforce is reducing nuclear dangers, expanding the boundaries of science and innovation, …
Continue reading “11 awesome achievements by the Department of Energy in 2011”
I recently encountered a state-of-the-art wind tower on the freeway. The base was separated into three parts and the turbine into another three. Carried by six trailers flagged with “wide load” and trailed by escort cars. Yeah, it was big. The current trend in wind power is to go bigger and bigger with more complex …
Continue reading “Future of wind power? I vote for Dutch Windmills and small pinwheels”
If you drive down PCH in Huntington Beach you will pass the only power plant in Orange County. Located at Newland and PCH, across the street from the beach. The natural gas plant is owned by AES a leading global power company with 132 plants in 32 countries with $17 billion in revenue. It is …
Huntington Beach is leading the nation in many green areas, including clean energy. In just a few weeks, the city government’s largest buildings, City Hall and Central Library, will have full solar installations in the parking lot. This project is the result of several years of energy savings for the city, including a review of …
I often hear folks complain about cars and the pollution they cause. This seemed a little off so I did some investigating. Out of all the ways to go green, including reducing energy use, buying green products, and driving less… Which one is the best for the environment? The EPA keeps a tally …
Today the largest truck ever to travel in California transports a nuclear steam generator weighing 750,000 pounds to Utah. The 50 foot long turbine is classified as nuclear waste and is travelling on a truck with 192 tires to a nuclear waste dump in Utah. The story of the journey is fascinating. A large police …
Continue reading “Ginormous nuclear haul from California to Utah”
I like to think of thermal solar power as the rock star of clean energy. The technology starts off with the coolest name, the Power Tower. The Tower is surrounded by thousands of adoring mirrors all focusing their attention on it in the center. As the mirrors build up the heat in comes the molten salt …
Continue reading “Molten salt and the Power Tower, the new solar power”
On Wednesday night, ~75 futurists gathered for an engaging meet-up at Public Bar in Washington, DC. Patrick Tucker (@TheYear2030), senior editor of THE FUTURIST magazine, spoke briefly, as I had invited him to share a little about his experiences while on assignment in Japan during the past six months. In an email response to Shashi Bellamkonda (who …
Continue reading “Leading into the Future: Why the U.S. will look to Japan, not China”
CES 2011 is approaching and the DC Tech community is representing. A quick round-up shows at least 10 of us going. Here is the robot’s guide to the best keynotes, sessions, parties, awards, showdowns, and private events. Let me know if I missed anything! DC Tech Representing With a ton of us going it would …
Wow! What an exciting day in energy. Today Bloom Energy changed the game with their Bloom Server, here is why. We all know the story that the vast majority of our energy comes from old (and dirty) power plants that use coal and nuclear energy sources. Well the hidden truth behind these “energy sources” is …