In memory of our guiding lights - Russ, Mike and Charlie - “To be a star, you must shine your own light, follow your own path, and don't worry about the darkness, for that is when the stars shine brightest”
https://fwis3.com/
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 6:12 pmPosted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 10:35 pmPosted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 11:51 pmPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 3:00 amSigma_Orionis wrote:I think it also highlights something related to "'American Exceptionalism'".
Regardless of whether any of us furriners (and you gringos too) like it or not, the US is a giant in the international community. The direct consequence is that its fuckups are as far reaching as its accomplishments.
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 3:42 amPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 4:05 amFZR1KG wrote:It's also a case of humans in general tend to remember the bad tings rather than the good.
Part of evolution I guess, you know, like, "damn! I won't wipe my ass with that plant again" but all the good plants fade in memory.
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 4:19 amPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:22 amSigma_Orionis wrote:Having said that, I still prefer you guys to the Russkies or the Chinese. And IMHO, expecting a Multipolar world in the current situation is wishful thinking.
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:30 amPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:45 amSigma_Orionis wrote:Don't you just LOVE RealPolitik Mr. Mono?
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 12:32 pmPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 1:27 pm
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 2:14 pm ). All the "environmental talk" is at best a secondary effect (if it were true).Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 3:19 pmSciFi Chick wrote:That article pretty much lost me when I got to the part about how we're doing more to fight climate change than Europe because we're using fracking, and it costs less than what the Europeans are doing. Seriously? Fracking is a good alternative to fossil fuels?
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:14 pmSwift wrote:SciFi Chick wrote:Yes, sort of. Natural gas (which we can get more easily and more cheaply with fracking) is a better fossil fuel than coal or oil; you get more Joules per CO2 molecule (or however you want to look at it).
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 7:01 pmFZR1KG wrote:Swift wrote:SciFi Chick wrote:Yes, sort of. Natural gas (which we can get more easily and more cheaply with fracking) is a better fossil fuel than coal or oil; you get more Joules per CO2 molecule (or however you want to look at it).
Really?
Last I remember was that propane and natural gas weren't as efficient as petrol or diesel.
I had a car that ran on LPG and it was less efficient and the natural gas alternatives weren't even viable back then because of the huge loss of power and energy density was low. Could also be my fading memory though.
At the power plant, the burning of natural gas produces nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide, but in lower quantities than burning coal or oil. >Methane, a primary component of natural gas and a greenhouse gas, can also be emitted into the air when natural gas is not burned completely. Similarly, methane can be emitted as the result of leaks and losses during transportation. Emissions of sulfur dioxide and mercury compounds from burning natural gas are negligible.
The average emissions rates in the United States from natural gas-fired generation are: 1135 lbs/MWh of carbon dioxide, 0.1 lbs/MWh of sulfur dioxide, and 1.7 lbs/MWh of nitrogen oxides.1 Compared to the average air emissions from coal-fired generation, natural gas produces half as much carbon dioxide, less than a third as much nitrogen oxides, and one percent as much sulfur oxides at the power plant.2 In addition, the process of extraction, treatment, and transport of the natural gas to the power plant generates additional emissions.