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POLYNOUS INTERNATIONAL
For those unable to attend Dr Saul Griffith’s recent superb talk at Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory, the slides can be found at http://www.timeinc.net/fortune/conferences/brainstormgreen/docs/slides-makani.pdf .
The talk dovetailed beautifully with David Mackay’s recent well received presentation at the Cambridge Society for the Application of Research (CSAR) meeting, at which his excellent book, “Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air” was launched.
It should be compulsory reading for all those in positions where decisions need to be taken regarding our future energy requirements.
It is also downloadable via http://www.withouthotair.com but the book has the inestimable advantages of portability, the ability to scribble notes on, and the fact that it makes an excellent Christmas Present!
The web-site also includes details of forthcoming presentations
You might also like to try http://www.wattzon.com/ , which enables you to get a handle on your own energy consumption. It is sobering to realise how profligate we are, so don’t try it when you are feeling depressed!
The Aims of Polynous-International
We started the site in May with tables about fuel consumptions of economical cars, as switching to more economical forms of personal transport seemed to us to be something we could each think about doing on a personal level. It will be appreciated that continually updating this will require a not inconsiderable effort.
But our overall aim is to look much more widely and comprehensively at the ever changing state of current information concerning the provision of sustainable energy and energy security in all its forms.
With such a high proportion of the world’s population now living in cities, transport in all its forms presents one of the most vital challenges in the future. One only has to consider the number of heavy lorries on our roads to realise how difficult will be the transition from fossil fuels to a transport system which can no longer depend on them.
We therefore intend to look next at Bio Fuels, which seemed at first sight to have been the route to our future transport salvation, and are now often seen to be less green than they at first seemed.
But, as in every aspect of sustainability, the picture is immensely complicated. To give a simple example, if we all switched, in the interim fossil fuel environment, to economical diesel vehicles, would petrol become a ‘by-product’, whose price could then tumble (since there is a roughly fixed relationship between the proportions of Diesel to Petrol obtainable from a barrel of crude oil)?
This, and more, require considerable time and effort, and we are looking for sponsorship to enable us to continue and expand this work.
Please contact Jim Cleland, on 07818 403 226
See the Gobion section of this site for a link to a site dealing with air transport.
Polynous-International
ENERGY SENSE
The oil and gas, upon which our way of life depends, comes from three major supply regions - Russia -Venezuela - and the Middle East. Trading (supply) routes from these regions are vulnerable, the supply regions unstable and the Refineries and Terminals are physically prominent and easily found on Google Earth.
The loss of a major refinery or pipeline would not bring the world to a halt, but it would upset the finely balanced relationship between supply and demand. If it concerned oil it could within days result in the price of petrol soaring and maybe, even rationing; similarly with gas.
Common-sense suggests that to set up a plan for future access to some if not all of the following would be a prudent move, while at the same time helping to keep your current Carbon Footprint down and curbing your running costs:-
Ultra fuel efficient means of transport, - Solar, or thermal powered hot water system, coupled with solar energy panels to produce electricity to at least run the water pump, the deep freezer, TV and the computer, would also be a sensible investment.
It is satisfying to run a hot water tap, knowing that the heat in the water has come directly from sunlight.
- Risk Management
How to get 20 miles of motoring for free - see ‘Driving’ .
November 2008 Edition Further expanded editions of the site will follow in the coming months.
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