tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9959776.post3963720131491787275..comments2024-02-15T04:42:41.606+00:00Comments on James' Empty Blog: Just do itJames Annanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04318741813895533700noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9959776.post-17368840773085775142008-01-14T02:19:00.000+00:002008-01-14T02:19:00.000+00:00Hank,I think by far the biggest issue is still pro...Hank,<BR/><BR/>I think by far the biggest issue is still production costs - if these come down (even at the cost of lower efficiency) then perhaps including solar in integrated roofing panels would be more attractive.<BR/><BR/>Ice,<BR/><BR/>It seems to me that we have a great opportunity here while oil prices are high and before the tar sands and even more coal comes into play. While people are quite happily burning oil at $100/barrel it is hard to argue that renewables are far too expensive. Even with current technology and take-up, solar is borderline competitive in Japan.James Annanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04318741813895533700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9959776.post-13236220137582569172008-01-13T19:24:00.000+00:002008-01-13T19:24:00.000+00:00I know solar photovoltaic is more efficient when c...I know solar photovoltaic is more efficient when cooled, and that extracting heat for hot water is the simplest use of solar energy. I've asked before and been told nobody builds a combination panel.<BR/><BR/>I know prebuilt roofing panels are available -- but only structure plus waterproofing, nothing with heat or energy collection built in.<BR/><BR/>Japan's seemed to me the place someone's most likely to put this all together, to sell a structural roofing panel that can go right onto the house framing and provide the insulation, heat collection and transfer, and waterproofing topped by photovoltaics.<BR/><BR/>Maybe it's impossibly complicated, but I sure see more potential for failure when each layer is being nailed on individually by a different carpenter or installer, one after the other.<BR/><BR/>> largest reactor right on top of<BR/>> a major fault (which they <BR/>> lied about) ...<BR/><BR/>Nobody seems to have taken the studies of risk perception, gambling addiction, and the failure with age to perceive payback as the brain starts to fail after age 50 or 60, and correlated that with the behavior of top management and government in infrastructure decisions. I wonder why not.<BR/><BR/>Hey, casinos, fission plants, they're all fun for the whole family. Build then everywhere.Hank Robertshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07521410755553979665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9959776.post-38420742812152511042008-01-12T10:35:00.000+00:002008-01-12T10:35:00.000+00:00I wonder how much of that official "cutting down e...I wonder how much of that official "cutting down emissions" spirit nowadays rely on the increasing price of fossil fuels and energy; that is, wether we'd have any climate policy at all (we have very little actually :-)) if energy prices were staying as low as they used to be ?ICEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13099679682895985843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9959776.post-84286550488184438662008-01-12T07:29:00.000+00:002008-01-12T07:29:00.000+00:00The last straw was building the country's largest ...The last straw was building the country's largest reactor right on top of a major fault (which they lied about), insufficiently strong to resist the earthquake that happened last summer.<BR/><BR/>Mr Google found me <A HREF="http://www.enecho.meti.go.jp/english/energy/index.html" REL="nofollow">this interesting report</A>, which has all the numbers you could possibly want buried within (although perhaps not in the most accessible manner). The summary seems to be that there is a lot of hydro (10%ish), but the other renewables are currently pretty insignificant on the national scale.James Annanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04318741813895533700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9959776.post-33123315323256381652008-01-12T05:05:00.000+00:002008-01-12T05:05:00.000+00:00The Japanese nuclear industry would probably have ...The Japanese nuclear industry would probably have a better reputation if they didn't set off fission reactions outside of the reactors by accident.<BR/><BR/>But I was windering, what is the state of wind and hydro there? And do any of the volcanoes provide geothermal?C W Mageehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09706100504739548720noreply@blogger.com