Damon CliffordDamon CliffordEnergy in the 21st Century and Beyond! Discuss energy efficiency and alternative energy. The blog covers all aspects of energy from oil, gas, solar energy, wind power, biofuels, and biodiesel. 
Articles
Alternative Energy Fragmentation Drives Innovation Which Will Lead to Groun
2009-08-31 20:00:00 The alternative energy sector is so fragmented between not only which type of alternative energy will be economical, but the technologies behind each alternative energy source are widespread with no clear trend. It seems like each week I read, hear, or see a new method and technology to produce my garbage into a form of biofuel that will generate enough energy to run my truck for 100mpg! Now, this isn’t a bad thing. I love to see all these technologies being developed as a proof of concept, and then if it has enough legs underneath it, get some seed capital to manufacture and create some prototypes. I have seen literally hundreds of different technologies that produce energy from an alternative source and I am always amazed at the human ingenuity. We are in an exciting part of history. What’s happening in the alternative energy sector today reminds me of what happened to the personal computer industry in the 80’s. At the beginning of the decade, there were h... More About: Energy , Alternative , Innovation , Alternative Energy , Lead
T. Boone Pickens Lowers The Sails On Wind
2009-07-22 06:36:00 Last week, T. Boone Pickens announced he was selling 667 Wind Turbines. Due to the economy and drop in oil prices it’s just not economical to develop wind farms in the Texas panhandle. The wind energy market has lost a lot of it’s luster considering it can be much more expensive than traditional energy sources such as oil and with the price per barrel of oil dropping below $70 there’s just not as much interest putting together a wind energy project. The economics of alternative energy will be the driving force of innovation and technology. As long as the prices stay low, there won’t be much advancement in the alternative energy sector, but as oil prices increase, you will see many more technologies and innovation coming from alternative energy sources.
Energy, Innovation | A New Look At An Old Problem
2009-07-01 04:53:00 The world has been running off of fossil fuels for over 100 years. The addiction we have to oil can be seen in our daily lives as we import millions of barrels of oil a year in the US with no end in site. Are there any solutions to our ever growing dependence on foreign oil? Couldn’t we just drill more here? Is alternative energy the only solution? I just watched a speech by Malcolm Gladwell on spaghetti sauce where he spoke of about the food industry’s pursuit of the perfect spaghetti sauce, that would make everyone satisfied. The basic conclusion that he revealed is that there is no single sauce that would please everyone, but that you must produce a couple different variants of the same sauce (spicy, chunky, original) to satisfy the majority of the people. This was groundbreaking when the research came out because for decades, the food industry had a single solution that they believed would satisfy the most people and since they were content with their sales, th... More About: Energy , Innovation , Problem
Fueling The Future With Alternative Energy
2009-06-01 04:36:00 The current dominant conventional fuels that are used include fossil fuels, petroleum, uranium, coal and propane. There has been growing concern about these conventional fuels, thus leading to the increasing demand for, and interest in alternative fuels. The Pros of Alternative Fuels Alternative fuels such as bio-diesel, bio-alcohol, fuel cells, hydrogen, non-fossil methane, non-fossil natural gas and vegetable oil are now well known and deemed to be greatly more desirable in the quest to to fuel our vehicles. There are a number of benefits to using alternative fuels. Firstl, alternative fuel-powered vehicles will emit less harmful gasses into the air resulting in less pollution. Biodiesel is also completely renewable as its primary source is vegetable oil. So there is no need to throw out used oil as it can be collected and refined. Secondl, these fuels can also prolong the engine life of your vehicle and are generally cheaper than conventional fuels. Thirdl, they burn more effici... More About: Future , Energy , The Future , Alternative Energy
Auto X Prize Kicks Off With 111 Contestants
2009-04-13 02:58:00 I’ve been following many of the companies involved in the Auto X Prize over the past year. The teams, which collectively represent 136 vehicle entries with 14 different fuel sources, include diverse groups from 25 U.S. states and 11 countries. Established automakers, emerging start-ups, universities and inventors are among those represented. Six of the Registered Teams remain confidential. The contestants will continue to work on their vehicles through the rest of 2009 and the winner will be announced sometime in 2010. As it gets closer to the announcement date, I will review the top contestants and give their strong points and things that they need to work on to create a vehicle that will be commercially viable. Good luck to all! More About: Kicks , X-Prize
“Smart Grid” Powering The United States
2009-03-20 05:50:00 The “Smart Grid” is the idea on how the US will generate and distribute power across the US. Using alternative energy, the “Smart Grid” would connect alternative energy sources such as solar power, wind energy, and geothermal energy into the electricity infrastructure in around the country to businesses and homes. Using smart grid technology, your future home would be as likely to be powered by electricity from a neighbor’s roof-top solar panel, or a biomass generator on the edge of town, as from a traditional power plant 50 or 100 miles away. This setup would be great, however there’s still too few people who understand how it all works. Even though the “Smart Grid” is gaining momentum, there are some obstacles still in the way. The technology needed to create such a “Smart Grid” is still years away as our current infrastructure’s technology is outdated. There are companies that are working on the “Smart Gr... More About: United States , United , States , The United States
What’s Your Crazy Green Idea? The Capacitor Challenge!
2009-02-07 23:24:00 Congratulations to the Capacitor Challenge ! A couple of months ago, I wrote about that X PRIZE selecting new contest ideas and out of 133 entries, 3 finalist were chosen. Out of those 3, the Capacitor Challenge was the winner! They want to revolutionize energy storage with the ultra capacitor. They want inventors to come up with a capacitor that holds energy more effectively, more efficiently, and longer time frames than conventional batteries. From their video, the winning capacitor will be real, working energy storing device that must: Use only self-contained capacitors Exceed the energy density of average lead-acid batteries Fully recharge under one minute and up to 500,000 cycles Be completely recyclable and incorporate non-toxic materials Cost less than two times the price of average lead-acid batteries As proof of utility, the submission should provide enough electricity to drive an electric vehicle for 100 miles, be recharged, and then driven back in order to win the... More About: Green , Crazy , Idea
Barack Obama on Energy and the Environment
2009-01-22 05:25:00 Barack Obama is now the president of the United States of America. Now, more than making promises, he has to deliver on those promises and create real change. The White House website had a complete makeover just as he was being sworn into office, and with that, his policy and agenda where added to the website. You can view Obama’s agenda for energy and environment to review his plans. Has his agenda changed from when he was campaigning? If you look at his energy agenda when he was campaigning, you can see there are a couple of bullet points that are now missing. • Provide short-term relief to American families facing pain at the pump • Enact a Windfall Profits Tax to Provide a $1,000 Emergency Energy Rebate to American Families. Why has he taken these off his energy plan? Maybe it was just a copy and paste error by whoever handles his website, maybe it wasn’t. Even though the price of oil has dropped considerably since the high in the summer, people still help fi... More About: Environment , Barack Obama , Barack
Gas Prices Rise at the Pump for First Time in Three Months
2009-01-06 23:19:00 The conflict in the Middle East has prompted a surge in gasoline prices across the US. Despite the rise, gas prices are still down $1.44 cents from this time last year, when a gallon of regular cost $3.00. So much of it depends on if you think the glass is half full…or half empty. I’ve always been one to believe that the glass is half full. As long as gas prices stay low enough that everyday Americans can afford the cost to get to work and back, it’s a good thing. It will be interesting to see how the conflict in the Middle East turns out and how the transitional of power here in the US effects gasoline prices moving forward into the spring and summer of this year. More About: Time , Gas Prices , Rise , First Time
AlternativeEnergyWiki.org – Alternative Energy Community
2009-01-05 23:38:00 A project that I’m currently working on is the Alternative Energy Wiki. This is awesome because it has the same business plan of Wikipedia, where anyone and everyone can contribute to the website creating a knowledge database on all things related to alternative energy. Wiki – a page or collection of Web pages designed to enable anyone who accesses it to contribute or modify content, using a simplified markup language. Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites and to power community websites. Please visit the Alternative Energy Wiki and add your knowledge to the community. More About: Community
G8: 3 Things You Must Know About Their Meeting on Oil and Alternative Energ
2008-06-09 02:03:00 The Group of Eight developed member nations plus China, India, and South Korea met in Aomori, Japan to talk amid issues, with the biggest being the high oil prices. They agreed to promote energy efficiency for stable market The ministers believed that energy saving and efficiency is one of the quickest, greenest, and most cost-effective way to ... More About: Energy , Alternative , Things , Meeting
test text length
2008-04-10 18:35:00 this is a test. this is only a test to see how far the text will go over on each post. i am trying to align this up so the text will look good and not wrap in the wrong location. More About: Text , Test
Hello, and thanks for visiting
2008-01-09 04:22:00 I will be writing on different topics such as business, life, sports, and many things in between. More About: General
Flow
2007-10-17 22:52:00 Everything in the universe flows. You can’t get ahold of water by clutching it. Let you hand relax, and you can experience it. I often see this in people under a lot of stress. They are trying to change their life, but they cannot because they are blocking the flow. The more ... More About: Manifestation , Flow
Lack vs. Abundance
2007-10-16 21:44:00 Many times, you may feel down and look to your friends for comfort and solutions to feel better. Sometimes it works, other times it doesn’t. This may be very well because of the friend you choose to help you and the words that they use. Let’s say you want something out of life, more ... More About: Relationships , Abundance , Positive Energy , Awareness , Lack
Abundance
2007-10-15 19:13:00 All the abundance you want is already here. You just have to tune it in. This is a great quote and is the premise behind the movie “The Secret”. You will often notice in your life if you’re looking for something, you will find it. Have you ever wanted to be with someone, and then ... More About: Life , Spirituality , Abundance , Positive Energy , Law of Attraction
Spiritual Being
2007-10-14 16:01:00 You are not a human being having a spiritual experience. You are a spiritual being having a human experience. I first heard this quote about 6-8 months ago and I liked it. It changed my perception on life a little bit and I started to look at things a little bit differently. Apparently, ... More About: Relationships , Spirituality , Positive Energy , Spiritual , Awareness
Business owners looking for telephone solutions
2007-09-11 00:38:00 If you’re a business owner, you know that you are always looking for solutions to reduce costs and increase efficiency. One of the best places to do that is in the telephone service you use. You spend all day talking to clients, probably racking up many long distance phone minutes and through the traditional phone ... More About: Business , Solutions , Telephone , Solution , Owners
JohnCow.com giving away a free Nintendo Wii
2007-09-08 23:56:00 Are you still waiting to buy the Playstation 3 or Nintendo Wii? Have you been indecisive and couldn’t figure out which one to buy? Well, try winning one for free so you don’t have to worry about it! The Internet money making website JohnCow.com is giving away a free Nintendo Wii ! They’ve been ... More About: General , Free , Giving
BusinessBlogFocus.com is now live
2007-09-08 23:33:00 Alright, I told you a couple of days ago that I was working on a new project, well, it’s here! You can see my newest website at Business BlogFocus.com I will be discussing issues, news, and events about corporate and business blogging on the site. If you have any questions about it, please let me know. More About: Live , Sine
Q&A: New games with the friends
2007-09-08 23:31:00 Q: My friends have really gotten into slot cars over the last couple of months. They tell me that it’s fun and I should come and join them. Have you ever raced slot cars? Sammy, KS A: I haven’t done anything with them in a long time. I remember when I was much younger ... More About: Friends , Games , General
Q&A: Camping in the great outdoors
2007-09-08 23:27:00 Q: I’m going camping with some friends of mine. It’s been a long time since I’ve gone camping and I don’t want to look like a tool. What gear do I need to buy? Joe, WY A: You’re going to want to buy some North Face gear so it looks like you know what you’re ... More About: Outdoors , General , Great , Camping , The G
Q&A: Buying your wife a gift
2007-09-08 23:24:00 Q: I’m looking to by my wife some jewelry for our anniversary. Do you have any recommendations for what type of jewelry I should buy her? Larry, NV A: Women like any type of jewelry, as long as it’s given with love. So it would be hard to disappoint her with any type of jewelry ... More About: Buying , Wife , General , Gift
Q&A: Why do people get money after a car accedient?
2007-09-08 23:20:00 Q: I have a friend that was in a car accident and he just received a lot of money. How and why does that happen? Joe, NY A: If someone gets injured in a car accident they will probably receive money from the insurance company. You can find a New York car accident ... More About: People , Money
Q&A: Decorating your living room
2007-09-08 23:15:00 Q: We just bought our new house and we want people to be impressed when they walk into the living room. What are some great fixtures that will accomplish just that? Tom, AZ A: One of the best ways to make a great first impression is to add a table lamp that will really light up ... More About: Living , Living Room , General , Room
Q&A: Saving on clothing costs
More articles from this author:2007-09-08 23:08:00 We’re looking to save more money in our budget. Do you have any simple ideas where families can save money and stay within their budget? Karen, NV A: Yes, one of the best ways you can save money is watch how much money you spend on clothing. Cloth ing is so expensive these days that ... More About: General , Saving , Costs 1, 2, 3 |
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