Just for fun :)

Graph for Hydropower

Facts about Hydropower. Retrieved April 5, 2009, from Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company Web site: http://www.wvic.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7&Itemid=44

In the US, the hydropower provides about 10% of all electricity. We are the 2nd largest producer of this kind of power in the world. Even though this picture is of 2000, we, USA, still hold the second place. Norway, on the sixth place, produces 99% of its electricity with hydropower. Hydropower, as was calculated, prevents the burning of 22 billion gallons of oil every year. It looks like there's no way we can go on without it. This is one of the great ways to prolong the use of fossil fuels.

The sun back in the day

Nasso, Christine (2007). Solar Power. USA: The Thomson Corporation.

Greeks were first to use the sun to heat their houses. Even at 400 b.c. they knew it would conserve heat if they build their houses with most exposure to the sun. In 212 b.c., Archimedes (who was a great mathematician, engeneer, mostly inventor) used energy from the sun to reflect rays off the mirror onto the ship that was attacking his land. The roman sails had burned in the result. We don't know how true that story is, but there's a painting of the mirror's reflection showing us the history of the use of solar energy. Romans and Greeks built glasshouse to grow cucumbers for the Roman Emperor. They found a great use out of glass houses; it made it easier for fruits and begetables to grow. Back then people also relied on the sun to evaporate brackish water so that they could collect the salt. Also, as practical as they were, they took advantage of the colors; something painted dark attracted the heat from the sun, and bright colors reflected the light.

Solar Power: Capture the Sun

Nasso, Christine (2007). Solar Power. USA: The Thomson Corporation.

Utilities relying on coal, nuclear power, and natural gas for generations produce electricity for 6-8 cents a kilowatt hour. On the other hand, solar generation of electricity costs 35 cents per kilowatt hour. The good thing about solar power: it’s not exhaustible like fossil fuels. More than 80% of people in Africa don’t have access to electric grids. Because there is huge amount of sun, the electricity could be generated by installing solar panels on the roofs of their houses. The incentive for people to invest into solar power generation is remembering that electricity produced by finite fossil fuels may not last forever.

BP energy calculator

http://bpenergylab.bp.com/
This process is kind of interesting. It seems like it's hard to be accurate. When I plugged in numbers for how many miles we drive per year, I really didn't know the number because I never counted the miles. All those questions about using renewable energy and insulating your house just reminded me how inefficiently our family uses energy. In USA, for many households, it feels like if you can pay for it then it's ok to use, overuse, and waste energy. My family's that way, for the most part because we live in a huge house.

Classmate's Energy Blog

https://bb6.uaa.alaska.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?course_id=_327050_1

On Katie’s blog I found information that was very fresh to me. It’s about soap nuts. She’s saying that they come from a tree in India. I don’t think I would use them though because they are unscented; it’s always nice to smell the familiar smell of soap on your clean clothes. I can see though how amazing it is for people to use who are allergic to standard detergents. This sounds like a thoughtful way to go “green”, like Katie mentioned. Even though I’ll never use this product, I still appreciate her blog for informing others about this alternative. This is a good commercial for people who don’t want to pollute the earth.

A little windmill can do a lot

Some say that wind power is not an efficient way to produce electricity because windmills are noisy, they interfere with television reception, and they take up too much space. They also need some maintaining. I think it’s great to have windmills. Aside from maintenance, most of the time they peacefully collect energy. Even though it’s not much, but as hundreds and thousands of them work together it looks like it’s worth it. Once I’ve seen a tiny windmill for the cabin of our family friend. We flew on a plane to get to his place which was exposed to the view of a sleeping lady mountain. Knowing that windmills don’t produce too much energy, especially this small one, I thought it was funny he had one so I took a picture of it. It wasn’t that funny any more when he told us the windmill provides all the energy he needs when he comes here a few times a year.