What kind of energy would you be most likely to invest in? / LJWorld.com

Asked at Dillons, 1015 West 23rd St. on March 23, 2011

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“Hydroelectric.”

— Dan Stohs, Amarr Garage employee, Lawrence

“In this part of the U.S. I’d say wind.”

— Don Rixon, AT&T employee, Lawrence

“Wind energy. It’s clean, renewable and abundant here. It’s why I moved to Kansas.”

— Nora McAfee, KU employee, Lawrence

“Hydroelectric probably.”

— Megan Beard, customer service, Lawrence

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Pitt_Mackeson 2 years, 2 months ago

I have a herd of cattle..... so methane? yes methane. Even though it's quite smelly. I'll be rich! And smelly.

Agnostick 2 years, 2 months ago

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89657242

RoeDapple 2 years, 2 months ago

Hydrogen/electric conversion.

snap_pop_no_crackle 2 years, 2 months ago

Cordite

misterlee 2 years, 2 months ago

I don't have the energy to invest.

sallyone 2 years, 2 months ago

Nuclear! Contrary to what the media and the left wing nut case would have you believe, it is the safest means of power out there!

scott3460 2 years, 2 months ago

Except for where to store the radioactive spent fuel.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/4799996/Spent-nuclear-fuel-storage-sites-are-packed

mr_right_wing 2 years, 2 months ago

I gave up on arguing nuclear on here....

superstition and ignorance abound in this area for most; and they have no interest in actually educating themselves on the technology available for today's nuclear.

For most of them, we're still in the 1970s at best!! Nuclear is still the evil, scary boogie man!

Agnostick 2 years, 2 months ago

Is there really anything "superstitious" or "ignorant" about scott3460's point of concern? I agree that nuclear is largely safe, largely clean, and largely reliable. It's not perfect--but then what energy source is perfect? None that I know of.

I think the real reason you "gave up" is because you took the coward's route, and slithered away from the one point that is most difficult to argue... for you and other nuclear enthusiasts.

I don't think storage of spent fuel should be the top priority--I think the better question is, "How can we reuse or recycle spent fuel?"

gccs14r 2 years, 2 months ago

The problem with using spent fuel as fuel is that the waste product lasts even longer than depleted uranium and plutonium. We're wondering how to store waste for 25,000 years. How will we store it for 15 million years?

Agnostick 2 years, 2 months ago

High Fructose Corn Syrup, maybe?

lounger 2 years, 2 months ago

Tell that to the 400,00 plus evacuated people of Japan- And to the Ocean creatures who will mutate in years to come-And the poor infants who cannot drink the water in Tokyo- And so on and so on and so on and so on. Safe is an awful big word to use when talking about nuclear. Its fast becoming old hat and waaaaaaay to dangerous-no matter how you spin it!

conservativepunker 2 years, 2 months ago

Coal, baby.

overplayedhistory 2 years, 2 months ago

Efficiency.

Kontum1972 2 years, 2 months ago

clean reusable human gass.....it burns......ouch!

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 2 years, 2 months ago

Waste Cogeneration.

peachesncream 2 years, 2 months ago

The Energy my kid has .......

Pywacket 2 years, 2 months ago

If only there were a way to hook up an exercise bike to the TV or the wii or other game system--and make them earn their time on those activities.

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 2 years, 2 months ago

Looking at energy sources and deaths per terawatt-hour, here is how various energy sources stack up.

Oil.......................36
Coal – USA..........15 Natural Gas...........4
Biofuel/Biomass...12 Peat....................12 Hydro...................1.4 Solar....................0.44 Wind....................0.15 Hydro...................0.10 Hydro...................1.4 Nuclear.................0.04

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 2 years, 2 months ago

Whoops.. cleaned up... Energy sources in terms of deaths per terawatt-hour. Oil.......................36 Coal – USA..........15 Natural Gas...........4 Biofuel/Biomass...12 Peat....................12 Hydro...................1.4 Solar....................0.44 Wind....................0.15 Nuclear.................0.04

labmonkey 2 years, 2 months ago

Do the biomass deaths include people who Dutch-oven themselves to death?

matchbox81 2 years, 1 month ago

Source? How the heck does solar and wind cause any deaths?

nut_case 2 years, 2 months ago

Interesting the push seems to be toward 'hydro' and wind. I am not knocking them, but do people just assume these are the 'cleanest' forms of energy? Or are they just willing to put up with destroying ecosystems behind a dam, changing/killing fish migration patterns and the relatively short life before everything silts up for hydro? Or taking a natural vista of rolling hills and plopping hundreds, if not thousands of ugly wind turbines on top?

I think of what trouble we've had to pave over a few dozen acres of swamp to complete the bypass. What of flooding 10's of thousands of acres behind a dam, and building thousands of dams? Or covering hundreds of thousands of acres in wind turbines?

For my .02, I would like to see enough work put into the Bussard / Polywell fusion reactor to either prove it is possible (and build it), or prove it is completely impossible and abandon it.

Polywell - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaWikipedia

none2 2 years, 2 months ago

Since when have "natural" vista not been marred by the presence of humans? We have building pollution, asphalt pollution, light pollution just to name a few things. Thus, should we require all buildings to be built below ground, all utility lines buried, do away with all towers (ie radio, cellular, etc)? Is a wind turbine any more ugly than smoke stacks from power plants or all the above ground electrical lines we currently have? How many people who complain about the looks of wind towers have removed what above-ground edifices to human progress that they themselves own or use?

We have several dams in Kansas, but primarily to control flooding, provide for irrigation and other water needs in the area. Should we eliminate those dams too?

I hope fusion will help get us from being reliant on fossil fuels. However that is still a long ways away.

Andini 2 years, 2 months ago

Warp.

CWGOKU 2 years, 2 months ago

You are, warped!

somedude20 2 years, 2 months ago

Pure energy...I want to know what you are thinking tell me what is on your mind! www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPuXvpkOLmM>

somedude20 2 years, 2 months ago

Those messages were hardly offensive. Go take your luch break and chill out!!!

somedude20 2 years, 2 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

labmonkey 2 years, 2 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

somedude20 2 years, 2 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

K_Verses_The_World 2 years, 2 months ago

Idiot wind

tomatogrower 2 years, 2 months ago

I'm saving up to put solar panels on my house. They are coming down in price, so it might be a reality someday soon.

kernal 2 years, 2 months ago

Wind and solar. Can't expect to use just one as we'll always need an alternative as back up.

Marty_McFly 2 years, 2 months ago

The Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor.

sciencegeek 2 years, 2 months ago

Whatever can't be controlled by utility companies for their own profit.

jonas_opines 2 years, 2 months ago

Keystrokes from over-reactive and angry Internet bloggers.

RoeDapple 2 years, 2 months ago

Are you outa yer mind! The world isn't ready for that kind of power!!

Pywacket 2 years, 2 months ago

Peat bogs.

strongarmcrunch 2 years, 2 months ago

Free energy, ... ...so that people don't pay for energy at all! Cut out the energy corporations Completely (!), and make the contraption easy for everyone to build. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=steven+mark+solid+state+generator&aq=1

Geothermal. Solar, which is already making rapid and clear-cut advancements at a stunning speed.

Always keep the energy generation at the end user, and no one else!

snap_pop_no_crackle 2 years, 2 months ago

Do you also have a link to video of the Steven Mark 1,000 mpg carb?

strongarmcrunch 2 years, 2 months ago

I was thinking that too. Just how far can this contraction go. Just need to get the research done. Will it be done at KU? I doubt it.

roadwarrior 2 years, 2 months ago

second that, geothermal and energy generation with the end user.

snap_pop_no_crackle 2 years, 2 months ago

Unicorn toots

Kontum1972 2 years, 2 months ago

popcorn energy

strongarmcrunch 2 years, 2 months ago

Why don't we find a way to place generators on the KU fan base here about this time of the year? There is a lot of un-tapped energy to be accessed with this phenomenon.

strongarmcrunch 2 years, 2 months ago

There are now clothes that generate energy from your own movements. I L O V E this idea.

RoeDapple 2 years, 2 months ago

Kegel exercises.

consumer1 2 years, 2 months ago

Thigh masters.

somedude20 2 years, 2 months ago

after all, he did do it for the nookie so you can eat your cookie

jumpin_catfish 2 years, 2 months ago

Cold Fusion! Worked great in Back to the Future.

gl0ck0wn3r 2 years, 2 months ago

Define invest. If the question is financial, oil and coal are still unbeatable. The big oil companies will probably remain unbeatable into the near future even if personal vehicles transition away from gasoline and into a fuel source that requires gasoline-like distribution networks. Nuclear is a distant third for investing. Other "clean energy" companies are interesting but really not developed enough for investment unless one is prepared to wait and take quite a bit of risk. Take a look at PEIX just for fun. Look at the five-year chart. Now overlay XOM. Enjoy.

charliejohnson 2 years, 2 months ago

I would LOVE to have a windmill. Just how cool would that be. I'd help autie with the Patchouli production. My flavor of choice.

none2 2 years, 2 months ago

Well if you read the LJWorld today, you know that you need to go for something other than wind energy. Wind energy is not the biggest risk to our nation's road systems. We are in immanent danger of collapsing bridges and dangerous potholes. Not to mention that if they ever put any in the flint hills, drivers will be distracted from the decimation of the scenic view that they will cause traffic fatalities.