Nate Lewis Video

Video Recap:
We need roughly 10 Terra-watts of energy to sustain us.
Oil, Gas and Coal make up 85% of our current energy.
USA uses 1/4 of the worlds energy.
Renewable energy sources cost more money to build and run making them less desirable, we need cheap energy.
We have roughly 40 years of oil, 60 years of natural gas and 2,000 years of coal left on earth (based on current consumption amount.)

Renewable energies will ONLY have a chance to be used more often IF:
-There is a technology/cost break through
-Outside forces make us stop using oil (government interference)
-Climate change becomes more dramatic/more of a priority

Sources of Carbon-Free Power:
-Nuclear (Fusion/Fission) (capacity to produce 10 TW if we build 1 new plant a day for 50 years)
-Hydroelectric
-Geothermal
-Solar (active, passive, photosynthesis)
-Biomass
-Wind


I would like to start by saying that I really hate coal. Coal is bad in every way possible. I may be over simplifying but our entire global warming and air pollution problem could have been avoided if people stuck with a rule similar to you are what you eat, our air is what we burn. All the thick black petroleum and chary black coal burned up and put in our atmosphere, OBVIOUSLY we were going to have problems.

I think Nate Lewis is a really intelligent guy. Besides the obvious that he teaches at Cal Tech and such, I really like how he presented his ideas first stating that everything he was going to say was based on scientific fact, not personal preference or outside influence. He began by talking about how much energy we need and that stayed the constant theme through out the entire presentation which gave the presentation more structure and strength in my opinion. Mr. Lewis then proceeded to discuss what energy sources are currently used and how much each contributes to our total energy used. I can not believe coal is 50%. That is jaw dropping. Everything I hear is always about oil, solar, nuclear etc., and because of that I sort of forgot about coal as an energy source and seeing that it contributes that heavily to everything I do is rather discouraging. Like I stated earlier, I am not a fan of coal, so that added insult to the miss-informed injury.

Moving on to the renewable portion of the presentation, I am really bummed that renewables are not a larger percentage of our energy sources. Nuclear, probably the worst idea for energy ever because of the waste, is a MUCH larger percentage (19.9) and that SUCKS. I loose more respect for politicians and government every day that nuclear power is the topic for 'alternative' energy. We have NO idea what to do with the waste NOTHING can contain it long enough and there is NOTHING we can do (yet) to change the composition of the RADIO ACTIVE waste. There is so much wrong with nuclear power and our way of containing it (Barring it in a mountain? Seriously?) that I am convinced who ever thought it up just half thought it out and decided to not think it the rest of the way out period because he/she would be dead before it would be a problem. This out-of-sight, out-of-mind attitude is getting more and more apparent and annoying as I get older and learn more about the things we (human race) have done. I would like to formally apologize to my future family and the future families of everyone in my generation if we don't figure this out, because you guys might all have cancer just for being alive on this planet we are pumping full of radio-active waste.