So, you know I drive my car to and from Philly. And, let’s not forget the trip between Charlottesville and DC. So, I’ve developed two favorite vendors for my stops. One is WaWa. This company has the best food, great coffee, fantastic shakes (we have to rely on my son for this fact), clean bathrooms, and great prices. Oh- and they treat their employees really well. Which is why service is fantastic.
Continue reading Can’t Stand Still!
Alternative energy. We all know that means non-petroleum based sources. We’ve looked at solar panels, tidal power, algae, and wind. But, those are not really our only choices.
Continue reading Split Water, Add Carbon Dioxide, Get Energy
I generally ride my bike every morning. Sometimes I ride it in the afternoons, too.
But, since the end of Pesach, it has rained so much and so long that my bike riding has been pretty much missing from my daily activity logs. As a matter of fact, one night when I was returning from a business trip to Baltimore, the Rock Creek Parkway was underwater (that was announced on the radio), as was the road I was on (instead). Kenilworth Avenue/DC 295 had significant flooding that forced me to back up on an interstate (the first time I ever did so) and execute a very long detour. So much for getting home by midnight.
Continue reading It’s not hot air
I remember the first time I experienced an earthquake. I was in Long Beach (CA) and was awakened in the middle of the night. I looked out my sliding glass doors and noticed that the pool was sloshing about. True, it was early in the morning, but even my addled brain recognized that pools don’t slosh when no one was in them.
I’ve always been tempted to use solar energy for my home. But, in the places I’ve lived, it never seemed practical.
Continue reading Let the sun shine in?
So, last Friday, I gave you a hint of the kind of warfare our infrastructure is enduring. Not well, mind you. Which means we are at risk. At risk of being flooded out of our homes, left in the dark, having our factories shut down, or traveling our roads confounded with lights that are arranged for congestion or collisions.
I started complaining about this four years ago. And, since the last time I wrote about this was a year ago, it’s time to bring you up to speed. And, have you join me in asking our elected officials, WHAT IS GOING ON?
Looks like the idea of using heliostat for electricity is getting worse.
When I reported on the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System last June, we were waiting for it to begin delivering 377 MW of electricity to PG&E (Pacific Gas and Electric) customers. The plant, which was built by Bechtel, uses more than 170,000 mirrors (that’s NOT a typo) to concentrate the sun’s energy on three (3) solar steam generators some 450 feet up in the air. That steam runs generators to produce electricity for PG&E customers.
Continue reading Solar flares?
qHere it comes. Why I was not truly in favor of the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) Why I am not sold on the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement (TPP).
Continue reading They’ll poison us one way or another…
Most of you know that I am a chemical engineer. (OK. A few other things, too. But, I always wanted to be a chem e- since I’ve been 8.)
Continue reading Another Alternative?
