Live while you can; society gonna plunge in ~30yrs

[Alpine]

In the UK some time back, they switched to pricing in litres (bloody French) to hide the cost.

Currently it's about 89pence per litre. Work that one out and I think you Yanks will feel yourselves lucky.

 

[StrangeButTrue]

About thsi global warming doom and gloom...

The Earth's temperature fluctuates all the time, and its been doing so for milennia. For example, when the Romans were around, the Earth was five degrees hotter, on average, maybe more.

We've had Ice Ages and everything imaginable

These tiny changes the last hundred years are nothing but natural.

 

[Bonhomme]

Nibun is right.

I have a master's in atmospheric science, and no degreed or professional meteorolgists have had any doubts about global warming for the last 2 decades. The question is how much a change in atmospheric composition Earth can adjust to, and maintain a stable climate.

Obviously the climate has fluctuated quite a bit, and earth has adjusted. But the cause of the adjustment is critical in determining if climatic stability can be maintained. These drastic, rapid changes in atmospheric composition may be quite unlike anything before. Most similar changes have taken place over millennia, not decades.

My only hope is that we run out of the fossil fuels before our climate gets too far out of balance to maintain its stability.

There is still the "chicken an egg" problem regarding hydrogen fuel cells. But there will be other energy sources developed, and improvements in hydrogen techology implementation. Using less energy would not necessarily be so bad, either.

It's just that society tends to wait until disaster happens to get off its fuggin' ass and do something.

 

[Paradox]

This post...

I think it's funny so I'll leave it open.

I'm just a little suprised that people have not done their research before posting. You guys are usually right on top of things.

 

[ScrewIt]

Look into PHEV's, the south koreans invented a car that runs on compressed air that's kept inside the car's tank, that totally beats the **** out of hydrogen/hybrid/solar cars.

I read an article of it online a week ago, unfortunately i lost the link, do a search u might find it.

 

[nibun]

Paradox : Out of curiosity, what's your take on this issue?


mitzer, bonhomme & anyone who agrees with my asessment:
Good to have some support in here!

Those who disagree with my assessment:
I only respond to intelligent responses backed up by sound reasoning AND research. I'm not impressed by personal attacks ("Hey chiken licken"), mockery ("The end of the world is at hand!"), or simple denial without proof.

And one last thing: Drop the global warming posts already! I barely mentioned it in my original post and you guys think that's the main topic. It's NOT. Get over it. I'm not even going to defend it cuz it's insignficant compared to global energy crunch.

 

[ShizamDaMan]

Well, I guess if you study something for 9 weeks then you must be a world expert on it and know more than anyone else, right?

I really doubt that the entire world will come to a hault in 30 years because of global warming and/or dependence on foriegn oil.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

 

[belividere]

So how long have ~you~ studied these issues?

I've studied them enough to know that any REALIZEABLE effort to solve these problems is futile. Nothing short of voluntary suicide of half of the world's population, and the rest going back to living like the pre-industrialized world.

I have never studied these issues directly. I have a masters in engineering and working on a PhD right now. I am in a lab that is the only lab on the entire floor of the building not working on biomass fuel cells or methanol fuel cells. This is at a top 5 engineering school and I have many good friends who I often have discussed this situation with. I trust that the assesment of the situation from these folks and the others like them who are actually solving these problems is more accurate than most of the authors on those websites. Have faith this problem is a lot less serious than most people actually think.

 

[comic_relief]

well heres my take on getting rid of oil and global warming (I know you want to get rid of global warming from this post but this is the last post I'm making on global warming). Without the oil that is made maybe this is the way that Earth is getting rid of the problem. Without oil there will be no more pollution so I think this is how the Earth will recover.

 

[SageOFAllenAge]

Well ..I'd mention that we might set off a nuke war before that ..but that would be going political ...which is a no-no here

 

[Bonhomme]

Easter Island, Haiti, Africa, etc.

Just wanted to bring up those ecological disasters to remind those with their heads in the sand.

I bet the long-forgotten minority in those places who were expressing their concerns about the long-term effects of their societies' course of action were also dismissed as "chicken littles."

 

[nibun]

Originally posted by ShizamDaMan
Well, I guess if you study something for 9 weeks then you must be a world expert on it and know more than anyone else, right?

I really doubt that the entire world will come to a hault in 30 years because of global warming and/or dependence on foriegn oil.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

No, it doesn't make me an expert. But it does make me more informed on the matter than 98% of the general population. How many people do you know that researched, analyzed, and debated (not simply studied) on global issues for 10 weeks? And even if I'm not an expert, I know what experts are saying (on both sides), and I'm just presenting my findings & analysis. If you want I can provide you with over 120 sources of my research, but I doubt anyone would be interested in doing all that reading. You can refer to the few links I posted earlier to just scratch the surface of the issue.

And no, the world won't abruptly collapse in 2040, but you can bet that the quality of life then will be much worse than it is now. It'll gradually get worse, and accelerate as 2030 approaches.

Originally posted by belividere
I have never studied these issues directly. I have a masters in engineering and working on a PhD right now. I am in a lab that is the only lab on the entire floor of the building not working on biomass fuel cells or methanol fuel cells. This is at a top 5 engineering school and I have many good friends who I often have discussed this situation with. I trust that the assesment of the situation from these folks and the others like them who are actually solving these problems is more accurate than most of the authors on those websites. Have faith this problem is a lot less serious than most people actually think.

I also have a masters in Engineering (Electrical) in a well respected engineering university in California. But that is irrelevant here. Your friends who are working fuel cells are SUPPOSED to be optimistic of the situation; they MUST believe that what they are doing will help solve the problem, or else they woudn't be working hard on it. I applaud them for their efforts, and I wouldn't dream of telling them to stop what they are doing. I've incorporated people working on alternative energy (like your friends) in my overall analysis. And I didn't just rely on a few superficial websites (those just scratch the surface). I've researched countless articles and journals from scientific sources such as the European Energy Commission. And all those efforts at best will just slow down the problem.

Funny you say that "this problem is a lot less serious than most people actually think". It's the other way around. Most people are not aware of the problem, and even those who do have no idea how bad it is.

 

[CLOONEY]

lol, sadly its true, the ageing populations dependence on the welfare system is even worse. Our economies are going to be smashed soon enough.

 

[OzyBoy]

I think global warming is inevitable - it is going to happen and its too late to stop it. Many places are going to be flooded as a result in the next 50 years due to the ice caps melting and rasing sea levels, there will probably be more severe storms and droughts but i do think in thirty years time there will not be many oil cars left on the roads - who knows they might be outlawed if things get really serious. I would say hydrogen and electric powered vehicles will probably be the future for cars so it won't be such a problem then but in the mean time i think its going to cause a few headaches with high oil prices.

 

[Mack Bishop]

petroleum must be replaced with hemp. that is all

 

[Ricky]

Saw an interesting book being pimped on TV.

I think the title is the world is flat

Hold on a sec google searching as we speak

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...102-4877945-0956939?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

Sounds interesting...

 

[PRMoon]

Wouldn't it be cool if after the apocolypse there was a post apocolyptic world of barbarians and super science?!!!
I'd shorten my name to just PRM and have a slew of weapons and I'd ride around in a chariot pulled by mutant horses!!! Suficive to say I'd loose and eye eventually so I'd get an eye patch bolted directly to my skull!!!
Hmmm 30 years from now eh? That'll make me around 50 or so so I better start training now. From now on out I'll be running 20 miles in the sweltering desert heat with ONE dixie cup of water in my hand. After that it's up to the frozen north where I'll spend time with the natives for sub zero climatization!

Look out aftermath... PRM is going to OWN you!!!

 

[Zaine]

www.survive2012.com

If it happens, be prepared. So live with the few years we still have.

 

[comic_relief]

ah good thing I read the postman book and am reading all these post-apocolyptic books. i'm ready. Saint Rose, oregon here I come

 

[Create Reality]

I am gonna laugh so hard the day I see a hydrogen powered tank.

Seriously.