Rob Herbertson

 As the world’s leader in overall energy consumption*, where do we [USA] get our energy?  How do we manage to use more energy than countries with several times our population?  How sustainable are our energy sources?  What is the cost of replacing non-renewable energy sources with renewable ones? *

Since the 1950’s, our primary energy source has been petroleum, mainly for transportation. The upward trend in the use of petroleum, natural gas, coal, and nuclear energy appears to grow in accordance with Kurzweil’s “law of accelerating returns”. Perhaps the next interim energy source will be nuclear power once we deplete our petroleum reserves.

 We need more efficient energy sources coupled with more efficient utilization of these resources.  Rather than shift demand to other energy sources, look for alternatives which could lower the demand for energy.  We have failed to harness, on a large scale, free solar energy, even in the face of modern, cheap, and efficient photovoltaic cells. Why?