January of this year brought near-zero temperatures to Chicago and other northern cites, producing an electric vehicle (EV) charging nightmare. National media showed images of owners pushing dead EVs around charging stations and waiting for hours to try to charge their vehicle. Drivers lucky enough to connect to a charger sat in their freezing-cold automobile, unable to run the heater while the car tried to charge. Nevertheless, the federal government and many states continue to push to … [Read more...]
Spencer vs. Schmidt: My Response to RealClimate.org Criticisms
EN: Dr. Roy Spencer serves thoughtfully on the Cornwall Alliance Board. What follows is a response to Gavin Schmidt’s blog post at RealClimate.org entitled Spencer’s Shenanigans in which he takes issue with my claims in Global Warming: Observations vs. Climate Models. As I read through his criticism, he seems to be trying too hard to refute my claims while using weak (and even non-existent) evidence. To summarize my claims regarding the science of global warming: In Gavin’s post, he … [Read more...]
Green Energy Advancement Act’s Effects & Implications
The following essay by Diego Vargas-Godoy won an honorable mention in our Summer 2023 Essay Writing Contest for high school and college students. Image: Creative Commons under Unsplash In the complex realm of governance, legislation stands as a pivotal force that guides the trajectory of societies. At this juncture where policy decisions bear far-reaching consequences, the essay competition hosted by the Cornwall Alliance offers an opportunity to delve into the intricate interplay … [Read more...]
The Dangerous Delusion of a Global Transition to “Just Electricity”
World leaders continue experiencing a “dangerous delusion” of a global transition to “just electricity” that they believe will eliminate the use of the crude oil that made society achieve so much in a few centuries. Image: Creative Commons under Unsplash Crude oil is the basis of our materialistic society, as discussed in an educational and entertaining 27-minute podcast interview between Ronald Stein and Armando Cavanha in Brazil. It’s shocking that the public has bought into the … [Read more...]
Why Can’t Renewables Power Modern Economies? Physics
Image: Creative Commons under Unsplash To understand why wind and solar power, even with battery backup, will not be sufficient in the near future to supply the electric power needs of any modern industrial economy, much less an economy the size of the United States, one must first understand how the electric power system works. Note: I’m not talking about costs. Although the media regularly reports demonstrably false claims that wind and solar power are cheaper than traditional power … [Read more...]
Those Attacks on Gas Stoves Aren’t Really about Health
Image: Creative Commons under Unsplash Earlier this year, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced that indoor gas stoves emitted harmful pollution. Several studies claim that the use of gas can cause respiratory illness. The CPSC is considering restrictions on gas stoves, including possible bans in new residential construction. But attacks on gas stoves are based on questionable science and are largely driven by concerns not related to health. The CPSC has reportedly been … [Read more...]
New Cobalt Mine in Idaho Could Start a Trend Good for People and the Planet
Regardless how stringent climate policies are, or how rapidly we move from internal combustion to electric vehicles, increasing battery needs around the world presage a huge increase in demand for cobalt. Right now, as Ronald Stein and Todd Royal demonstrate in their book Clean Energy Exploitations, most of the world’s cobalt comes from mines with very low environmental protection standards and huge human rights problems—child and slave labor in highly toxic settings, sometimes at the point … [Read more...]
