<DrumBeat: June 5, 2006The Oil DrumDrumbeat 2nd Monday Open Thread>

87 comments on Rick Dworsky: A Warm Bath of Energy -- Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

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MicroHydro on June 5, 2006 - 5:56pm Permalink | Subthread | Comments top
I have always liked the idea of OTEC, and this is the most balanced discussion of it I have seen.  The issues of corrosion, chlorine use, and petrochemicals in these projects was appropriately addressed.  (Of note, biofouling of nuclear plant seawater intakes with zebra mussels and such is always an issue requiring attention.)  

For Rarotonga, this could be the way to go.  But OTEC won't play any significant role during the world energy crash and dieoff.  It is too late in the game.  OTEC will be a technology adopted by some of the dieoff survivors.

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Cherenkov on June 5, 2006 - 11:43pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
The intermittent injection of minimal amounts of chlorine to prevent bio-fouling of the warm water intakes, and the leaching of metal particles and other materials via erosion/corrosion would probably be environmentally insignificant.

I love it when the techno worshippers say "probably." It usually means the new process, chemical, or machine will destroy yet another vast part of the ecosystem.

The sad thing is, they will probably do it -- right along with the coal and nuclear and burning our food crops.

Why not use our intelligence to get us out of the techno-fix business and work on devolving our tech and reducing our population?

Of course, that will not happen.

Great article, by the way, on the evolutionary basis of war and competition for natural resources at: Evolutionary Psychology, Memes and the Origin of War.

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smekhovo on June 6, 2006 - 12:33am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
I'm interested to know how intelligence would help to drastically reduce population. I assume you don't mean conceiving and executing schemes of mass extermination.
For the intelligent to avoid having offspring of their own is very feasible, of course. The problem would be getting everyone on earth to do the same. How would you set about it?
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kgmqt on June 6, 2006 - 8:04am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
I went out to one of those sites that calculates your footprint on earth, and then tells you how many planet Earths we would need if everybody lived that way, and I thought of a new take on Population control.

First, everybody is required to fill out the questions to determine their footprint - not so much how they live, but how they 'pledge' or 'promise' or 'contract' to live in the 'new world'.  After you make your contract agreeing to how you will live, it figures out your expected foot print.  From there you are entered into the 'lottery', with your odds of 'winning' the lottery equal to 1:<your footprint>.  If it is determined that you will live with in a foot print that is sustainable you automatically win.  If you want to live a lifestyle that is 1:30, well, only 1 in 30 will win, and the others are made into fertilizer.  If you break your contract, you have the same fate.

Kevin

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light299 on June 6, 2006 - 12:36am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Well, I agree with your sentiment, but I feel one must be realistic. You suggest population reduction. I suggest that if you believe so much in such a solution you should start by reducing yourself out of the population. I agree, the earth has a carrying capacity, and we are probably above it, but to suggest murder of fellow human beings is abominable.
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mr f on June 6, 2006 - 1:59am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
ummm, I think he just meant trying to get our societies on a steady negative fertility rate, not a holocaust...
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Oil CEO on June 6, 2006 - 2:23am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Are you sure? You must be new. He's just getting warmed up. Give him a chance to horrify you. Negative fertility rate. What the fuck is that? Is that like retroactive abortion?
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Liam on June 6, 2006 - 7:52pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
No, its like keep it in your pants, or withdraw, or get a snip, or take a pill. Hop off that soapbox, the acoustics seem terrible up there.
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Oilrig medic on June 6, 2006 - 1:36am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Cherenkov,
   Sodium Hypochlorite can be made on location and quickly reacts with organic material to make sodium chloride.  Since the source material is in the seawater your killing plankton in EXTREMELY small quantities.  As for reducing the population will you promise not to breed?  For the sake of the world I mean.
  Matt (AKA Bubba)
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