Bill Gates trying to spark nuclear revolution - invests millions into nuclear biz

[conehead433]

"Gates -- a father of the personal computer' WTF BS. So as an inventor of an operating system he is the father of the personal computer. I guess we can thank him and Al Gore for the world in which we live today.

 

[Fear No Evil]

Man why is everyone such a downer here, I for one look forward to our future possibilities.

Because the eco-kook Democrats will never allow nuclear power. Obama talks about it, but I guarantee we will not get a single new power plant under his watch because his own base would kill him for it. So he will talk the talk and he'll just keep using the 'it takes time' to get a plant built and approved excuse, and it will never happen.

 

[Munky]

LOL, we'll run out of uranium by 2013? Just like we ran out of oil by 1999?

And besides, we'll only need enough to last until 2012...

 

[Ozoned]

Concept to producing power=25 years for new plant. Better figure on adding on to existing plants to shorten up the time frame.

& don't forget that we live in a NOW society.

 

[werepossum]

Because the eco-kook Democrats will never allow nuclear power. Obama talks about it, but I guarantee we will not get a single new power plant under his watch because his own base would kill him for it. So he will talk the talk and he'll just keep using the 'it takes time' to get a plant built and approved excuse, and it will never happen.

I dunno, he seems pretty committed to it. He did that big loan guarantee for Southern Corporation/Duke Power. Granted, it could be all part of his master plan to bankrupt the country and create a shiny new Marxist nation from its ruins - but he could do the same thing and keep his base happy with social spending or alternative energy programs. And his base is livid about a lot of things. Hell, Obama may end up moving to the center to get re-elected.

Of course, even if he's a two-termer we may never know whether or not his fellow libs will kill it, simply because it takes so very long for permitting. (Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the stakes are high.) Also, the more nuclear plants built the faster the nuclear bombs are repurposed to fuel, and you know he hates nukes.

I'll take him at his word unless and until I see evidence of a different intent.

 

[Moonbeam]

Science
Breakthrough Makes Ethanol Production Cheaper Thanks to Orange Peels, Newspapers
Shane McGlaun (Blog) - February 18, 2010 6:36 PM

Finally a use for tobacco that is good for the environment

Not all research into alternative energy for vehicles centers on batteries or solar power. A lot of research time and money around the world is being allotted to finding new, cheaper, and cleaner fuels that can power internal combustion engines like hydrogen and ethanol.

Ethanol is typically thought of as a fuel made from corn, but other plant matter can also be turned into ethanol. The USDA issued findings in August of 2009 that watermelons that would normally be thrown away could be used to produce biofuels. There are already a number of vehicles on the road that can burn E85 ethanol and as production costs come down, it makes the price per gallon cheaper for consumers. Cellulosic Ethanol from POET is targeting a price of $2.35 per gallon.

Scientists are also pursuing new methods of creating ethanol from other types of plant materials. Professor Henry Daniell from the University of Central Florida has made a groundbreaking discovery in the production of ethanol from waste products like orange peels and newspapers. According to Daniell, his technique is cheaper and greener than methods currently used to create ethanol today.

The breakthrough isn't limited to fruit peels and newspaper though, Daniell says that the process can also be applied to other non-food products being used for biofuel production like sugarcane, switchgrass, and straw.

Daniell said, "This could be a turning point where vehicles could use this fuel as the norm for protecting our air and environment for future generations."

The technique was developed with funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and uses a plant derived enzyme cocktail to break down orange peels and other waste products into sugar, which is then fermented into ethanol. Current processes for making ethanol include using cornstarch that is fermented into fuel, but the ethanol produced with this method produces more emissions than normal gasoline.

The method Daniell has discovered produces much less emissions than gas or electricity. One major point with the method Daniell has discovered is that the process can be used on many waste products to produce ethanol without affecting the world's food supply. Discarded orange peels in Florida alone can produce as much as 200 million gallons of ethanol each year.

Daniell and his team used techniques to clone genes from fungi and bacteria that cause wood to rot and produced the needed enzymes in tobacco plants. By producing the enzymes in tobacco plants, the process of creating the enzyme is much cheaper than producing the enzymes synthetically. The enzyme cocktail has more than ten enzymes that are required to turn the biomass into sugar.

"Dr. Henry Daniell's team's success in producing a combination of several cell wall degrading enzymes in plants using chloroplast transgenesis is a great achievement," said Mariam Sticklen, a professor of crop and soil sciences at Michigan State University.

 

[BrownTown]

Concept to producing power=25 years for new plant. Better figure on adding on to existing plants to shorten up the time frame.

& don't forget that we live in a NOW society.

The last few plants in Japan had construction periods around 36 months, not 25 years. building a nuclear plant is not different than any other sort of large construction project. It is relatively easy so long as you can cut through the red tape. A nuclear plant is much less technically advanced than a modern coal plant for example, the only reason cost and schedule are more than a coal plant is because you need 2 people doing paperwork for every 1 person doing real work (and that is not an exaggeration in the slightest).

 

[Fear No Evil]

The last few plants in Japan had construction periods around 36 months, not 25 years. building a nuclear plant is not different than any other sort of large construction project. It is relatively easy so long as you can cut through the red tape. A nuclear plant is much less technically advanced than a modern coal plant for example, the only reason cost and schedule are more than a coal plant is because you need 2 people doing paperwork for every 1 person doing real work (and that is not an exaggeration in the slightest).

It took what, 10 years to put a man on the moon? Thats when the technology to do so didn't even exist. Agreed that the problem is red tape and not any actual requirement. This is how Obama will not keep his promise.. just say 'Oh yeah, we are giving them a loan' and just keep it stuck in red tape for 10 years+ by then he'll be out of office.

 

[frostedflakes]

Really that's a problem with any big project these days, even "green" energy like solar. Can't even build solar in the freaking desert without a two year study on how it would effect the native wildlife.

 

[Zorkorist]

Not to mention, if a constrction worker steps to the side and pisses.

1st class bio-hazard - ALARM - ALARM - ALARM

-John

 

[Zorkorist]

We have engineers that can design Nuclear Power plants in their dreams, but politics don't allow them to do it. And that's sick.

-John