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Dickinson to Durban » Entries tagged with "Janet Sawin and William Moomaw"

Synergy

Esther Babson Class 2013 According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary synergy is “a mutually advantageous conjunction or compatibility of distinct elements”. Synergy is clearly a very positive term and used as such in relation to everything from the relationship between humans and computers to fitness programs. This idea of two elements working in sync is very helpful and appealing when looking at how to deal with climate change; especially with all of the negative reports climate change tends to give. In a World Watch article by Janet Sawin and William Moomaw called Renewable Revoltuion: Low-Carbon Energy by 2030, the authors, say that renewable energy and energy efficiency need to be used together. Their most powerful argument of the paper is explaining how this “synergy” between renewable energy and energy efficiency occurs in four ways. … Read entire article »

Filed under: Climate Change

Base Load: Where Renewable Energy Resources Fall Short

by Sam Parker ’12 Many, including myself, are demanding a looking for a “renewable energy revolution” and a low carbon economy in this country and the rest of the world.  For the future of our children and our planet, this is something that is an absolute necessity, but often what it lost in this thought is the concept of Base Load or Base Demand.  For those who may not know, Dictionary.com defines base load as “the constant or permanent load on a power supply”.  Essentially, all those things are run all day in your home (i.e. refrigerators, heat, a/c, clocks, etc.), place a demand on energy supply all of the time.  Now, how does a renewable energy system work with base load? Not very well.  At present, our base load energy requirements, as well as peak demand … Read entire article »

Filed under: Carbon Markets, Climate Change, Mosaic Action, Summer Reading Responses