Gas prices are on the rise, not just in the U.S. but across the world. Yes, the Ukraine war has played a role in influencing global gas prices, but there are more worrying reasons behind this increase in energy prices.The impact of the price hike is particularly pronounced in countries that house some of the poorest in the world. The more unaffordable gas prices become, the harder it is for families to even meet their basic needs.God has called His people not just to be spectators but to … [Read more...]
Analysis of Gas Prices
Gas prices: If you look at inflation-adjusted gasoline prices over the last century, there has been an overall downward trend, reflecting greater efficiency at finding, pumping, and refining petroleum. We are now at $5 a gallon, but that isn't a whole lot more than we've been in the past (for example, just before the 2012 recession). Still, the price is a lot higher than it needs to be given current technology, and the current spike could have been mostly avoided (COVID impacts being the least … [Read more...]
Rolls-Royce’s SMR Needs 10,000 Times Less Land Than Wind Energy, Proves ‘Iron Law Of Power Density’
Last month, Rolls-Royce said that it expects to receive regulatory approval from the British government by 2024 for its 470-megawatt small modular reactor and that it will begin producing power on Britain's electric grid by 2029.Will that happen? Time will tell. Many nuclear projects and startups have blown past their projected in-service dates. But Rolls-Royce’s announcement is important for two reasons. First, it adds more credence to the notion that a global nuclear renaissance is, in fact, … [Read more...]
Pregnant People are Birthing Distrust of Science
There’s a real concern that the public is losing trust in the scientific establishment, and maybe for good reason. A recent news article in one of the world’s most prestigious science journals, Nature, contained an editor’s statement that sadly apologized for being insensitive to a new unscientific norm. The article was titled, “COVID vaccines safely protect pregnant people: The data are in.” The journal editor thought it was necessary to assure readers that, “Nature recognizes that transgender … [Read more...]
Germany’s Green Energy Fixation Should Teach US a Lesson
Germany’s new Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government vice chancellor and economic minister Robert Habeck, a leading member of his country’s Green Party, has experienced a rude lesson regarding the disastrous consequences of his years of naïve opposition to fossil fuels.After tasking his top officials to assess the energy security implications of Germany’s dependence on Russian supplies in the event of a then-looming Ukraine invasion, their conclusions were desperately dispiriting.Habeck reportedly … [Read more...]
Biased Reporting Overheats Climate Fear, Ignores Cold
It was a cold May night for many in the city of Bengaluru, India. The mercury dipped to 52 degrees Fahrenheit, a low not witnessed in the last 50 years.The same week, some Indian cities made global headlines not for unusual cold but for extreme heat. Followers of international news likely have seen reports about heat waves and historic high temperatures in South Asia.“India and Pakistan are no strangers to extreme temperatures, but the current heatwave stands out for its early-season … [Read more...]
Must Fossil Fuel Extraction Be Stopped to Limit Global Warming?
“Fossil Fuel Extraction Must Be Stopped to Limit Global Warming.” That’s the headline of an article at Earth.com, an environmental activist website. It purports to convey the message of a study published May 17, 2022, in Environmental Research Letters, “Existing fossil fuel extraction would warm the world beyond 1.5°C,” though the study makes no such claim.According to the study, the world is already committed, through its 25,000 oil and gas fields and 3,000 coal mines, to … [Read more...]
CO2 Enrichment Improves Plant Water Use Efficiency
This article is the third in a series. You can read the first post here. and the second one here.“Gratefully, nature does not have to wait another century or so for the air’s CO2 concentration to double before reaping benefits from enhanced water use efficiency. It has already begun to profit in this regard from the approximate 50% increase in atmospheric CO2 that has occurred since the Industrial Revolution began.”In my last article I wrote about increased plant productivity … [Read more...]
EVs on Fire! Electric Utopia Takes a Deadly U-Turn
Electric vehicles have been pushed hard as a solution to the world’s faux climate emergency, but in India, they have turned into killing machines. Many EV bikes and scooters have been bursting into flames across the country. The frequency of such incidents has increased considerably since spring 2022.In my home state of Tamil Nadu, a man and his daughter were killed when their EV scooter caught fire. You might think it as a one-off incident, but that is not the case.In March, an EV bike (from … [Read more...]
Real Threats to Biodiversity and Humanity
References to climate change almost guarantee funding, even for research topics of little interest beyond academia and eco-activists. Polls reveal that most people worry most about energy and food prices, crime, living standards, Putin’s war on Ukraine, and increasing efforts to control their lives. A recent study by Rutgers University scientists sought to determine how much diversity is required among bee species to sustain wild plant populations. They concluded that ecosystems rely … [Read more...]
