response to getting the most from energy

Like I said before, it wasn't about wind power, but it was about why we need it. There was a lot of data in this article, all of which was kind of disappointing. For example, an incandescent light bulb only gives off less than 5% of the energy it produces, the rest is wasted away as heat. I liked that it mentioned that people have changed some of their ways, and  also that people need to except the idea of new things for efficiency to make any progress. 

Getting the Most from Energy

This article wasn't so much about wind power, it was more about all the reasons we need to create an efficient alternative way to produce electricity, which is just as important.

The United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan have done studies showing a 'correlation between access to useful services and growth in income.' This means when people have easy access to things like natural gas for heating houses and water, it makes life easier.

The United States takes half as much energy to produce one unit of GDP, Gross Domestic Product as it did 30 years ago. Even though that is good news, the overall efficiency of the country is a whopping 13%.Also, people are becoming more conscious about the impact they have on the environment, we buy efficient light bulbs and washing machines.

response to compressed air.

I think technology like this is really amazing. Its good that people are working on solutions for all the of the flaws wind turbines possess. Maybe once they are all solved, or at least there have been lots of modification's on current wind turbines, people will become more open to them and the idea of large wind farms wont sound so foreign.

compressed air

Obviously, it isn't always windy. This is a problem when is comes to turbine's ability to produce electricity. With a new technology known as compressed air energy storage, or CAES, there could be a solution to this small technicality.
This new technology uses electricity to compact air and force it underground. When the air gets released, it's burned with natural gas which makes it expand, this drives the turbines and creates electricity.
Compressing air is done when there is an 'excess of cheap electricity.' For example, when the wind is blowing in the middle of the night when no ones lights are on, that energy can be released on a hot summer day when everybody wants their air conditioners.
Compressed air is already being stored in Alabama in a salt dome. Other states such as Iowa, Texas, Ohio, and New Jersey are exploring the possibilities. Germany also has a compressed air plant.
However, there are many reasons this idea hasn't caught on, says Samir Succar, an energy analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council. One of which is a "culture of risk-aversion among utilities," also "complications in the way electricity markets are structured."