Alternative Energy Sources
Nov. 11th, 2004 09:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ellyssianI'm extremely interested in alternate sources of electricity generation - although I am not a proponent of any *one* form - and thus found this article on wind power exceedingly interesting.
I've discussed at length in many essays (most now lost - at least for a time - on obscure, injured hardware and systems; the one accessible exception being On Artificial Intelligence & Machine Men) what happens when you create a binary construct. The system that results does not represent the actuality - it becomes truly artificial, and creates an imbalance.
What, exactly, does this have to do with alternative energy sources?
Unfortunately, people tend to be in the "all or nothing" camp much more than in "moderation". Ah, fossil fuels no good? Build windmills anywhere and everywhere! And, as the study mentioned in the article, there appears to be an impact on the environment from this "big shift" to use "large-scale" wind farms of "behemoth windmills". This results in the same sort of dynamics and black-and-white thinking that come from binary structures.
I'm sure there's an impact on the environment from replacing what might have been a forested (or at least, a grass-covered) hillside with solar panels. And the various methods of generating electricity from the flow of waves would probably butt heads (perhaps literally) with dolphins, whales, and others who might not appreciate a solid roof, at least in part, over their heads.
I believe that research should be made to increase the efficiency of devices (such as solar cells) and to reduce the impact of such devices on the environment - to allow such devices to be easily and economically viable on a small and local scale.
That removes some - or all - of the power (literally & figuratively) from utility companies, which might be seen as an excellent goal in and of itself. However, not that I'd mind being released from monthly bills to keep the current flowing, that would not be the prime benefit from such diversification. It would, unfortunately, most likely become the political centerpiece of any such dialog.
I've discussed at length in many essays (most now lost - at least for a time - on obscure, injured hardware and systems; the one accessible exception being On Artificial Intelligence & Machine Men) what happens when you create a binary construct. The system that results does not represent the actuality - it becomes truly artificial, and creates an imbalance.
What, exactly, does this have to do with alternative energy sources?
Unfortunately, people tend to be in the "all or nothing" camp much more than in "moderation". Ah, fossil fuels no good? Build windmills anywhere and everywhere! And, as the study mentioned in the article, there appears to be an impact on the environment from this "big shift" to use "large-scale" wind farms of "behemoth windmills". This results in the same sort of dynamics and black-and-white thinking that come from binary structures.
I'm sure there's an impact on the environment from replacing what might have been a forested (or at least, a grass-covered) hillside with solar panels. And the various methods of generating electricity from the flow of waves would probably butt heads (perhaps literally) with dolphins, whales, and others who might not appreciate a solid roof, at least in part, over their heads.
I believe that research should be made to increase the efficiency of devices (such as solar cells) and to reduce the impact of such devices on the environment - to allow such devices to be easily and economically viable on a small and local scale.
That removes some - or all - of the power (literally & figuratively) from utility companies, which might be seen as an excellent goal in and of itself. However, not that I'd mind being released from monthly bills to keep the current flowing, that would not be the prime benefit from such diversification. It would, unfortunately, most likely become the political centerpiece of any such dialog.
