German @ Oxley

The Future Of BMW’s cars

05frankj — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 00:14:05 +0000

The future looks very bright indeed with the new Coupe Mille Miglia Prototype made. This is a great example of waht cars will look like in the future. This website shows how the design process of the car has gotten to the stage that it is at now.

Solar Power

05mcaull — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:07:57 +0000

At the equator, the sun provides about 1000 watts of energy per a square metre
In general, direct solar power involves a single transformation of sunlight which results in a usable form of energy.

Sunlight hits a photovoltaic cell creating electricity.
Sunlight warms a thermal mass.
Sunlight strikes a solar sail on a space craft and is converted directly into a force on the sail which causes motion of the craft.
Sunlight strikes a light mill and causes the vanes to rotate as mechanical energy, little practical application has yet been found for this effect.
In a direct solar water heater the water heated in the collector is used in the domestic water system.

In general, indirect solar power involves multiple transformations of sunlight which result in a usable form of energy.

The History Of the BMW (Bavarian Motor works)

05frankj — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:05:51 +0000

I was looking up the history of the BMW and found out that BMW were first of all famous for making aeroplanes rather than cars tiwas known as when it was making aeroplanes however it was called Bayersiche Flugzeungwerke or BAvarian aeroplane works. After this they made a motorcycle for their first In 1928 the first BMW car was made however this model of car was not very famous. The most famous pre-war sports car the BMW 328 was introduced in 1936.

Solar Energy

05vilda — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:03:29 +0000

Solar power won’t shine for a while
Solar power is great and cheap. It is environmentally friendly and the by-product is oxygen and water. Ask your parents if you can convert to ‘green energy’ or make your own.

Hydro is the way to go!!!!!!!!!!!

Guess what...im a bucket — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:57:22 +0000

an alternative to price soaring and dirty petrol are cars powered by using hybrid technology or hydrogen. unlike most other cars which emit Co2, these cars can emit water vapour which is much less harmful then carbon dioxide. right now power cells are not as effiecient and a tad costy future developments we may soon see will be having much more effieciency and less cost. even though creating hydrogen as a fuel soucre it may well be a start we nee to lower co2 emissions.

Nuclear Power:Effects on the Environment

05mcaull — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:53:22 +0000

Non-radioactive water vapour is the significant operating emission from nuclear power plants.[56] Fission produces gases such as iodine-131 or Xenon-133. These primarily remain within the fuel rods, but with some postulated fuel failure, small amounts of the gases can be released in to the reactor coolant. The chemical control systems isolate the radioactive gases which have to be stored on-site for several half-lives until they have decayed to safe levels. Iodine-131 and Xenon-133 have halflives of 8.0 and 5.2 days respectively, and thus have to be stored for a few months to decay to safe levels.

Nuclear generation does not directly produce sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, mercury or other pollutants associated with the combustion of fossil fuels (pollution from fossil fuels is blamed for many deaths each year in the U.S. alone[57]). It also does not directly produce carbon dioxide, which has led some environmentalists to advocate increased reliance on nuclear energy as a means to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (which contribute to global warming).

Like any power source (including renewables like wind and solar energy), the facilities to produce and distribute the electricity require energy to build and subsequently decommission. Mineral ores must be collected and processed to produce nuclear fuel. These processes are either directly powered by diesel and gasoline engines, or draw electricity from the power grid, which may be generated from fossil fuels. Life cycle analyses assess the amount of energy consumed by these processes (given today’s mix of energy resources) and calculate, over the lifetime of a nuclear power plant, the amount of carbon dioxide saved (related to the amount of electricity produced by the plant) vs. the amount of carbon dioxide used (related to construction and fuel acquisition).

Several life cycle analyses show similar emissions per kilowatt-hour from nuclear power and from renewables such as wind power. According to one life cycle study by van Leeuwen and Smith from 2001â€“2005, carbon dioxide emissions from nuclear power per kilowatt hour could range from 20% to 120% of those for natural gas-fired power stations depending on the availability of high grade ores.[58] The study was critiqued by World Nuclear Association (WNA), rebutted in 2003, then dismissed by the WNA in 2006 based on its own life-cycle-energy calculation (with comparisons).[32]

In 2006, a UK government advisory panel, The Sustainable Development Commission, concluded that if the UK’s existing nuclear capacity were doubled, it would provide an 8% decrease in total UK CO2 emissions by 2035. This can be compared to the country’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 % by 2050. As of 2006, the UK government was to publish its official findings later in the year.[59][60]

Berlin’s Polar Bear

Montana — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:52:31 +0000

Berlin’s little Polar Bear Cub

Knut, Berlin’s little Polar Bear Cub, was born in a zoo but his mother rejected him. The animal rights group believe he should be put down as he will not grow as a normal polar bear. This is stupid. Even if his mother had not rejected him he would still be living in a zoo. He’s SOOOOOOOOOOO cute!!!!!!!!!

Change the World for 10 bucks

05vilda — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:48:44 +0000

A small 100 page book with 50 brillliant ways to make the world a better place. It costs only 10 bucks and is really worth while. Big changes start with small actions and build up as everyone else realises we really need to do something.

Countries Coal Reserves

05mcaull — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:45:38 +0000

Countries coal reserves

Interesting Links for Friday, 23 March

tmarch — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 10:58:52 +0000

Because there was interest in global warming, here is an interview with Hans von Storch is one of Germany’s leading researchers on climate change. One of the main points made is this:

At best, limiting the temperature rise to two degrees is just about possible, according to optimistic estimates. That’s why we should spend more time talking about adjusting to the inevitable and not about reducing CO2 emissions. We have to take away people’s fear of climate change.

What do you think about Mr. von Storch’s views?

Another article, titled Germany Plans Boom in Coal-Fired Power Plants — Despite High Emissions, gives background on a situation that has similarities to Australia. What’s the most interesting fact or statement you found in the article? What about this quote?

While emissions are practically zero in the case of nuclear energy, and while a natural gas-fired plant produces just 428 grams of CO2 emissions per kilowatt hour, a black coal power plant churns a solid 949 grams of CO2 into the atmosphere. The figure for lignite or brown coal — 1,153 grams — is even worse.

On the water pollution fron, the story, The Not-so-Blue Danube, paints a drab picture for Europe’s longest river. Many people see dam’s as a problem. Did you know that:

Only 21 of the planet’s 177 longest rivers run unhindered by dams and other human alterations from their source to the sea.

Finally, you might want to take a look at these sites in German:

Klima & Energie(Kids) - from GreenPeace 4 Kids
Eine unbequeme Wahrheit - Offizielle Website (deutsch)
Erneuerbare Energien in Deutschland (Renewable Energies in Germany, in English)

Here are some interesting political cartoons as well: