QUICK NEWS, September 2: NEW ENERGY IS 22% OF WORLD ELECTRICITY, & GROWING; ELECTRIC SPEEDSTER CHARGES WIRELESSLY; NUCLEAR FALLOUT AT FUKUSHIMA
NEW ENERGY IS 22% OF WORLD ELECTRICITY, & GROWING Renewable energy capacity grows at fastest ever pace; Green technologies now produce 22% of world's electricity
Terry Macalister, 28 August 2014, (UK Guardian)
“Wind, solar and other renewable power capacity grew at its strongest ever pace last year and now produces 22% of the world's electricity, [according to Renewable Energy Medium-Term Market Report 2014 from] the International Energy Agency…More than $250bn (£150bn) was invested in ‘green’ generating systems in 2013…Hydro and other green technologies could be producing 26% of the world's electricity by 2020…They are already used as much as gas for generating electrical power…But the total level of investment in renewables is lower now than a peak of $280bn in 2011 and is expected to average only $230bn annually to the end of the decade unless governments make increasing policy commitments to keep spending higher…The current growth rate for installing new windfarms and solar arrays is impressive but the IEA believes it is not enough to meet climate change targets…” click here for more
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ELECTRIC SPEEDSTER CHARGES WIRELESSLY How the World's Fastest Electric Car Is Pushing Wireless Charging Tech
Victoria Turk, August 28, 2014 (MotherBoard)
“With the first ever season of Formula E revving up in China next month, it's clear there’s more to electric cars than Tesla…[Traditional race cars] don’t have anything on the speed of Drayson Racing Technology's Lola B12 69/EV, which [smashed the land speed record for lightweight electric cars last year with a top speed around 205 miles per hour, which is a damn sight faster than top Formula E car speeds of around 140mph…[It also uses the kind of power technologies that could one day have applications off the track too—like charging your phone wirelessly…[O]ne of the major breakthroughs in developing the car was wireless power transfer—recharging the car without a cable. To get the land speed record you have to do two runs (one in each direction to cancel out the effects of wind) within an hour, and wireless charging helped juice it up quickly in between…The team developed a charging system with Qualcomm that gets 20 kilowatts into the car with no contact…The system works via a pad on the floor that transfers charge to a receiving unit in the car parked over it…” click here for more
NUCLEAR FALLOUT AT FUKUSHIMA Experts clash on Fukushima radiation effects Some scientists say authorities in favour of nuclear energy tend to deny the negative results of researchers.
John Boyd, 30 August, 2014 Al Jazeera
“In the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on 11 March 2011, the Daiichi nuclear plant in Fukushima was badly wrecked in a series of meltdowns and explosions that severely damaged three reactors and one spent-fuel pool…The accident released enormous quantities of radionuclides (radioactive material)…Three years on, calculating the injurious effects of this radiation on plant, animal and human health has become a matter of controversy…
“A broad scientific study by [the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR)] was widely criticized by independent researchers for its generally benign findings and lack of reference to the negative data cited in a number of specific scientific studies published earlier…[It concluded that accumulated] doses (of radiation over the first two months following the accident) were estimated to have fallen short of levels found to cause observable effects [in plants and animals]…[A] multidisciplinary group of scientists called the Chernobyl + Fukushima Research Initiative (CFRI), relies heavily on field studies for its reports…[It cites] some half-dozen studies indicating the negative effects of Fukushima radiation had been released before the UNSCEAR report…[and says that scientists] in favour of nuclear energy tend to deny the negative results of researchers…” click here for more
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