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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Biomass

A few months ago, I ran across a human dynamo by the name of Mary Jo Shaub, and I am now busily adding her creds to the website as an associate, in order to address a need that I’ve long wanted to fill.  Mary Jo has 20+ years’ experience in helping agricultural businesses explore their renewable energy potential, especially biomass — utilization of farm waste.  And she makes it happen, by writing grant proposals and assisting with loan applications. 

Mary Jo and I met initially at a dairy farm nestled in the Blue Ridge.  Great learning experience.  Glad I wasn’t wearing my best shoes.

I’ll hope anyone interested will contact us to pursue a conversation.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Science

There is a lot of research and system development going on in the renewable energy field right now. Vector gives you a taste of some very different technologies that could – some day – change the economics of renewable energy generation.

Two of our research technologies are nano-materials. Working at molecular level, scientists are creating new materials with extremely useful properties. Once the materials have been designed, they can be scaled up for mass applications.

Our third example concerns developments in tidal power, one of the few sources of renewable energy that is as reliable as clockwork – in fact, as reliable as the orbiting moon. The moon’s gravitational pull is the source of tidal power.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Here’s a discussion I’m having with a reader on the subject of the Supreme Court ruling of January 2010 that grants the rights of real persons to corporations. I hope other folks will join in. 

PS: I don’t understand how corporations can “extend their powers” as a result of the Supreme Court ruling you mention.

Craig: It’s fairly simple. Let’s take an example. Chevron made $24 billion profit last year.  Now I’m not saying that they will do this, but as of January, 2010, they can spend as much of that as they want influencing our elections, ensuring the victory of a candidate who supports them, who will make things difficult for renewable energy and electric transportation while continuing or expanding favors for oil, which currently include: (more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Not to carry on too far on this subject of the US Supreme Court’s decision to empower corporations with the rights of real persons, but I’ve begun to realize how truly intractable the problem is, and why:  virtually no one knows about it.  My mother, who reads the New York Times and the Philadelphia Inquirer every day of the week, wasn’t exactly sure what I was talking about when we discussed this on the phone a few minutes ago.  David Cobb, the attorney who gave the lecture that I attended on the subject last Sunday, says he’s had no coverage whatsoever from the mainstream (corporate-owned) media.  Of course, this isn’t at all surprising, but it creates an incredibly difficult condition to overcome.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

I’ve been preparing for my upcoming interview with Bob Pollin, Economics Professor at UMass Amherst, as the basis for my next book – this one on Clean Energy Job Creation. Here’s a list of questions I hope to cover. Please feel free to suggest any new ones.

Thanks so much for taking the time with me here, Bob. I have a few questions I’d like to ask. Btw, I’m not one of these guys who goes into a project trying to prove what he’s already assumed. I DO have a set of beliefs here, but I actually hope I’m wrong. (more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

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It’s time to launch my book, Renewable Energy – Facts and Fantasies, on Amazon.com. The big day: October 29, 2010.

To help generate interest in the subject, we have a few giveaways, the first of which is a hot new report called, appropriately enough:

HOT ISSUES IN RENEWABLE ENERGY.  It’s a 21-page collection of articles providing cutting-edge insight in the world of clean energy. You’ll learn:

 

 

  • Who the bad guys are in Washington, what they’re trying to do, and how their greed could ruin the only home we have.

    •  

  • What the US needs to do to put itself back on the path towards world leadership and industry domination.

    •  

  • What China and other huge players are doing to shape our energy future.

    •  

  • What you can learn from the energy investments that Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and other multi-billionaires are making.

    •  

The report can be downloaded for $149.00 at:

http://2greenenergy.com/hot-issues-renewable-energy/

Or, it’s yours – absolutely free – if you purchase a copy of Renewable Energy – Facts and Fantasies from Amazon.com on October 29, 2010 — the official launch date for the book.

This $149.00 report will be provided for no cost ONE-DAY ONLY, on October 29, 2010, to those who purchase the book Renewable Energy – Facts and Fantasies for only $14.95 from Amazon.com.

For more details about the free report as well as the book itself, visit the following page:

http://2greenenergy.com/renewable-energy-facts-fantasies/

Thanks very much and best regards,

Craig Shields

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

The US government’s stimulus package will double the country’s renewable energy capacity by 2012 (from 28.8 GW from renewable energy in 2008 to 57.6 GW) , according to a White House progress report launched by Vice President Joe Biden towards the end of August. At the same time, stimulus action is expected to cut the cost of solar generation and EV batteries

“The government plants the seeds, the private sector nourishes and makes it grow,” according to the Vice President. “If we’re as innovative as we’ve been in the past, we launch entire new industries.” Biden expects the cost of solar power to drop to equal fossil fuel generated power by 2015.

But is this rate of transition fast enough? Is the rate of transition in our hands? And what will the consequences be if oil supply drops faster than we can replace it with renewable sources?

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

At this early point in the development of my new book on clean energy job creation, I’m still just trying to find my feet. As the creation of new jobs for Americans is largely a subject of politics and macroeconomics, and as I’m an expert in neither, my choice of interview subjects and understanding exactly what I’m attempting to glean from folks in these areas is going to be of paramount importance.  Thus, I’m treading very slowly and carefully at this point.

Having said that, I’m starting to make some rough guesses as to what direction this project will ultimately take.  (more…)

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Science

IRAS in JPL simulatorAs I write in the conclusion to my book: Renewable Energy — Facts and Fantasies, I have no axe to grind on the subject of global warming.  Though I see no grounds on which to argue against the vast majority of climate scientists who have made this subject their life’s work, I think we all need to admit that it’s perfectly possible they’re all wrong.  And you don’t need to be conspiracy theorist of some kind to admit that possiblility; the vast majority of 15th Century geologists sincerely believed that the world was flat.  Besides, as I hope the book amply demonstrates, global climate change only is one of half a dozen reasons to move to renewable energy. 

But I do want to continue to call readers’ attention to material on the subject that I consider to be professionalially constructed and compelling.  On such item was co-written by Erik Conway, a gentleman whose work is chronicling the history of JPL (which, coincidentally, I can see from my back patio from my home here just northwest of Pasadena, CA).   You may want to check out Merchants of Doubt, an exposé of the group of rightwing scientists hell-bent on destroying the cause of environmentalism.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Photovoltaics

Here’s another blog post on the legacy of Hermann Scheer, German Parliamentarian and clean energy hero, who died unexpectedly yesterday.

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