Saving the world from fossil fuels.

We have all heard of global warming. Most of us understand that the primary culprit for causing global warming is the burning of fossil fuels. The science is simple: whenever carbon based fossil fuels are burnt, carbon dioxide is produced. This is a greenhouse gas – that is, a gas which helps trap heat, in the atmosphere and prevent it leaving into space. Carbon dioxide acts as a kind of blanket on the Earth, warming it up.

Now, we live in challenging times. All around the world developing countries such as India and China, Indonesia and Brazil, are racing to “catch up” with the West, specifically America, in energy consumption and “lifestyle”. There seems to be the belief that the best way to live, the only way to live, is to somehow adopt the extraordinarily energetically wasteful lifestyle of the modern American. Everyone wants to be an “American”. They even style their cities after American ones (that is filling them with skyscrapers, “freeways” and shopping malls).

Yet, there is a problem with this. The Earth cannot support several new Americas. In fact, if the truth be known, the Earth cannot support even ONE America. The American way of life is a destructive one. It is a way of life which opposes and undermines life on Earth. To live like an American, is to destroy the world. If the world’s developing economies continue to attempt to emulate the American way of life, the world is headed for complete disaster, in a very short order. It is impossible for the billions of people, in the developing world, to start using the amounts of energy and resources that Americans do, without hastening an environmental disaster that threatens life on Earth. Quite simply: for the developing world to “catch up” with America, it would have to burn enormous quantities of fossil fuel: oil, coal and natural gas, to furnish the energies for this lifestyle. Or at least, that would be the most obvious way of doing it. The problem with this, is that the CO2 concentrations in the Earth’s atmosphere would rise rapidly, pushing up global temperatures, changing weather patterns, causing desertification, crop loss, flooding and an untold number of changes, all of which would make life more challenging on this Earth, not only for humans, but for all life.

The developing world needs to learn a lesson that America, itself, has yet to learn: a wise use of energy and resources. The developing world needs to look at the American way of life and society and realize that America is one big mistake. The developing world needs to look at America and understand, by its example, how NOT to structure a society and an economy. These are the kinds of lessons that could save the world.

It is perfectly possible to have a very high standard of life, without using American sized energies. Typical Europeans, for instance, use about half the energy of Americans. As an example, the average UK citizen, uses 3,918 kilogrammes of oil equivalent, per annum. The average American uses 7,795 kilogrammes of oil equivalent, per annum. Now, the lifestyle of the typical UK citizen is more than adequate enough. It is needless to pursue an American path, with twice the energy, to attain a decent life. Presently, China is using 1138 kilogrammes of oil equivalent, per capita, per year. (All figures from 2003). Again, the Chinese lifestyle is pretty good and there seems no need to seek American sized energies, for its populace. It is both unnecessary, and would be too damaging for the Earth.

Instead of all the world’s economies racing to maximize development and become as alike the USA, as they can, by digging the world’s fossil fuels up, as fast as possible, there should, instead, be a different kind of race, underway: a race to leave the fossil fuels in the ground. That is right. A wise world would be racing AWAY from the use of fossil fuels – all of them – as fast as possible. In a wise world, governments would be racing to developing 100% renewable energy infrastructures, dependent on hydroelectricity, wind, solar, geothermal, primarily, along, perhaps with biomass and waste reprocessing. A 100% renewable energy infrastructure is one that is minimally polluting. It is also one that may be sustained indefinitely. Renewable energy infrastructures, will not only save the planet from global warming – but they will also save economies from collapse, when fossil fuels run out.

Thus, the world’s economies should now be competing to be as unlike the United States as possible. The world should be competing to be as free of fossil fuels as possible. That would be the wisest path. It is also the ONLY path that leads to a survivable Earth future.

To achieve this proposed alternative renewable economy, the world’s nations should be racing to implement a fully renewable alternative energy infrastructure as FAST as they can. This will protect them from rising fossil fuel prices and at the same time, will reduce the rate of global warming. The ultimate aim should be to wean the world’s economies off fossil fuels as early as possible and to end up LEAVING billions of tons of fossil fuels IN THE GROUND, NEVER TO BE USED.

Now, it is clear that the world’s oil companies will fight hard to persuade people to buy their oil – and so too the coal miners and the natural gas purveyors – however the world should resist. There should be no burning of fossil fuels. The only use of fossil fuels should be in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, pesticides, plastics, fertilizers and the like. It should no longer be used as fuel.

What is needed is a 100% renewable energy infrastructure around the world with electric cars, trains and buses for transport. In no part of this system, should fossil fuels be used for energy.

Some will object that this is too difficult an aim to achieve. However, it must be realized that fossil fuels are running out, so the proposed system will eventually be the ONLY real possibility, if we are to sustain a semblance of the present way of life. It is better to implement this system, now, whilst the fossil fuels remain and ensure that much of the remaining fossil fuels are never burnt. This will reduce global warming and make it more likely that humanity will survive the inevitable climate changes to come.

So: leave the fossil fuels in the ground – and ensure that all the energy used, in society, is from a renewable source. That is the simple recipe for saving the world from fossil fuels – and global warming.

Posted by Valentine Cawley

(If you would like to support my continued writing of this blog and my ongoing campaign to raise awareness about giftedness and all issues pertaining to it, please donate, by clicking on the gold button to the left of the page.

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To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

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Texas Governor Rick Perry should not be President of the United States.

Texas Governor Rick Perry has come out saying that he doesn’t believe in global warming.

"I think we're seeing almost weekly, or even daily, scientists that are coming forward and questioning the original idea that manmade global warming is what is causing the climate to change,", he assured New Hampshire voters Wednesday.

He went onto to say that he didn’t want to spend billions or even trillions of dollars because of an “unproven theory”.

Now, I don’t know about you, but it is quite clear that the world is warming up. I just have to compare memories of my childhood to the world as it has become, to see that. Furthermore, it is well known that we are pumping historically high levels of CO2 – a greenhouse gas which induces planetary warming – into the atmosphere. Most climate scientists are of the view that recent global warming is man made, as a consequence. The connection between CO2 and global warming is clear, strong and simple. The science behind it is well known and not difficult to understand. Yet, Rick Perry is a global warming denier: he refuses to see and to accept responsibility for (as a race) the changes taking place in the world. Therefore, if he ever became President, it is obvious that Rick Perry would do NOTHING to mitigate the human impact on global warming. America would continue to be, as it is, among the world’s most irresponsible countries, in the face of global warming.

Normally, I ignore American politics, since I have an instinctive dislike for the juvenile theatrics it represents. However, in the case of Rick Perry and his “I won’t do anything about global warming” stance, I feel that I have to comment. Don’t elect Rick Perry as President of the United States. To do so, would be to ensure that America continues to do irreparable harm to the future of the planet Earth and put in question, thereby, the fate of the Human Race, itself.

Mankind faces many problems in the coming decades. Global warming is just one of them. Peak oil, is another. Global food shortages are likely to be a third dire problem. The people of the world do not need a US President, who is able to deny the reality of these problems and deliberately do nothing about them. Rick Perry should not be President of the United States, because he simply doesn’t grasp the issues he would face, as President. It does seem likely, given his remarks, that, again, Rick Perry is not a very bright candidate from the Republican Party. America seems to specialize in dumb politicians: are there no intelligent people interested in being leaders in the USA – or are they all deselected, at some early stage, so we never get to see them?

An intelligent candidate would err on the side of caution, in the global warming situation. That is, an intelligent candidate would consider it wise to do everything possible to reduce the human contributions to global warming – that is CO2 release – simply because the risk of doing nothing, is simply too great. The possible consequences of unrestrained global warming, could put the whole human race in jeopardy. It is foolish to play political games, or to seek the business vote (through “not spending billions of dollars”), when the consequences of inaction are so severe.

The USA and the world do not need a global warming denier as President. What the world really needs is an ENVIRONMENTALIST, as President of the United States. So, definitely don’t vote in Texas Governor Rick Perry as President of the United States

Posted by Valentine Cawley

(If you would like to support my continued writing of this blog and my ongoing campaign to raise awareness about giftedness and all issues pertaining to it, please donate, by clicking on the gold button to the left of the page.

To read about my fundraising campaign, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-in-support-of-my.html and here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-first-donation.html

If you would like to read any of our scientific research papers, there are links to some of them, here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/02/research-papers-by-valentine-cawley-and.html

If you would like to see an online summary of my academic achievements to date, please go here: http://www.getcited.org/mbrz/11136175

To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

There is a review of my blog, on the respected The Kindle Report here:http://thekindlereport.blogspot.com/2010/09/boy-who-knew-too-much-child-prodigy.html

Please have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.

You can get my blog on your Kindle, for easy reading, wherever you are, by going to: http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/B0042P5LEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284603792&sr=8-1

Please let all your fellow Kindlers know about my blog availability - and if you know my blog well enough, please be so kind as to write a thoughtful review of what you like about it. Thanks.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at:http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/

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Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is athttp://www.genghiscan.com/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.).

A bioluminescent "green" future.

I was very heartened by some news I read yesterday. It wasn't truly new news, as a quick surf revealed, but it was new to the Daily Mail and new to me.

The development is a simple one: scientists, from Cambridge, have made a "biobrick" of genetic material that can transport the capacity for bioluminescence from one organism to another. This allows organisms that are not naturally bioluminescent - as fireflies are - to become so. They had in mind a rather appealing idea: to make trees bioluminescent, so that they would glow in the dark, then to plant them on roadsides, instead of street lamps, so that they would light up cities AT NO ELECTRICITY COST.

I thought this a brilliant and very hopeful idea. It would also be rather a beautiful idea, too. Should cities begin to glow at night, naturally, they would take on the kind of imagery not seen out of the pages of Tolkien's elven forests (as I imagined them). Cities would become otherworldy places of great nightly beauty. So, too, they would save a lot of the world's electricity. In the USA fully 34 per cent of all electricity used is consumed by lighting. The global average is 19%. Nevertheless the prospect of saving one fifth of the world's electrical power is a very appealing one. The implications for global warming are worthy of note. Not only would the trees save one fifth of global electricity consumption - thereby making it needless to make such electricity in the first place, which would reduce carbon pollution from the (mostly) fossil fuels used to produce it - but, the trees themselves would absorb carbon as they grew, acting as carbon sinks. Thus, there would be a "double whammy" for global warming were this idea implemented globally.

I can, however, foresee a few problems. Would old established trees at the sides of roads be cut down to make way for the new genetically modified ones? I hope not. For if this were so, something terrible would happen: the biodiversity of our tree stock might be reduced, as many different tree types were cut down to be replaced by this new artificial one. That peril must be avoided. I would suggest that any new bioluminescent trees should be planted IN ADDITION to existing trees, and not to replace them. There is usually plenty of space, in most cities between the trees that line roads. Those spaces could be filled with bioluminescent trees.

There are other possible problems with such trees. One would have to be careful where they were planted, because wherever they grow, so would light follow at night. This could lead to considerable light pollution, were they to spread into areas that one would naturally wish to be dark. Consideration might also have to be given to whether the trees were sterile. However, I would prefer them not to be for this reason: I would like this technology to survive any fall of civilization (which may occur in a post oil world), so that there is, at least, lighting at night, in such an unfortunate world. There should, therefore, be no impediment to breeding the trees naturally - such an impediment could be to the considerable detriment of future man.

As I understand it, bioluminescence is possible in many colours. This could lead to the creation of very beautiful gardens and parks that glow at night - and for the building of cities the like of which Man has never seen. It is a beautiful prospect and one I hope comes to fruition.

One other issue though, should be considered: as the trees grow, so would their light. It may be, that trees would grow too bright for their purpose. This, however, is simply remedied with a bit of judicious tree surgery. It seems to me, that it would be far cheaper to manage the growth of the trees, than to be perennially replacing street lamps and maintaining electrical systems...so it would, overall, be an improvement for cities, everywhere.

Another advantage is clear: communities that are "off grid" and have no electricity, could have lighting, at night, for the first time. This would be of greatest benefit to the least developed of communities and the most rural of areas.

It is exciting that this technology could soon be available, for it has the potential to solve one fifth of our power problems, as a civilization, in one single step forward. It is a simple idea, but one which has as much power to transform our lives, as the invention of the electric light bulb did in the first place. That it is also an eminently "green" solution to the lighting problem is another attractive feature.

Incidentally, the same idea could be adapted to create glowing algae which could provide lighting inside homes, at night. Thus, it may be possible, soon, to replace ALL lighting, with bioluminescent alternatives. When the technology becomes available, I would urge anyone and everyone to adopt it, so as to reduce world energy needs, and consequent carbon pollution.

Here's to a glowing future!

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 4, this month, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

There is a review of my blog, on the respected The Kindle Report here: http://thekindlereport.blogspot.com/2010/09/boy-who-knew-too-much-child-prodigy.html

Please have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.

You can get my blog on your Kindle, for easy reading, wherever you are, by going to: http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/B0042P5LEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284603792&sr=8-1

Please let all your fellow Kindlers know about my blog availability - and if you know my blog well enough, please be so kind as to write a thoughtful review of what you like about it. Thanks.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at: http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/

Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/

Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is at http://www.genghiscan.com/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

Hailstones at the Equator.

Kuala Lumpur is not far from the Equator. It is bathed in perpetual sun and is never less than sweltering. It is the last place one would expect to see ice. Yet, yesterday, that is exactly what I saw: hailstones falling from the sky.

I heard a rattle on the rooftop, outside my bedroom window late yesterday afternoon. I had just come upstairs and the last thing I expected to hear was the sound of solid objects hitting a solid roof. I looked outside and could not believe what I saw: there were hailstones melting on the roof and new ones bouncing off it, in a rapid machine gun rattle. It was the most unexpected weather phenomenon one could possibly have, in Malaysia, of all places.

I asked Fintan to go get a camera, and tried to photograph it, but the results were disappointing and did not capture what my eyes saw: the gloom required a flash and the flash reflected off the window in between obscuring vision.

Well, I spent the next half an hour watching ice fall from the skies, though the temperature outside was, no doubt, in the thirties (degrees centigrade). How bizarre.

The ice melted very quickly and became a stream gushing off the roof - but it lasted long enough to see what it was. Most of the hailstones were only about a centimetre or less in diameter, but a few were much bigger - perhaps two or more centimetres. These ones lasted quite a long time.

I know I have written of the weather recently and I didn't really want to do so again, so soon - but I felt that this strange day had to be marked by a post - because I have never seen weather so odd in all my time near the Equator (about a decade). So, the day had to be marked with a post: the day that hail fell beneath the Equatorial Sun.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 6 and Tiarnan, 4, this month, please go to:
http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at: http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/
Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/
Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is at http://www.genghiscan.com/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

Merry Christmas, 2009

Merry Christmas, wherever you are in the world!

This year, we find ourselves in a new country, for Christmas. We didn't really expect this, last Christmas...but events led us overseas, in the course of the past year. For those who haven't been reading recently, we are now in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This is a big city, compared to Singapore (in area and feel) and one that, we feel, has more to offer us, just now. As yet, I am new here, so I am forebearing to comment on many things, until I understand, better, what this country is all about. However, I have seen much, so far, that is promising. I think our time, here, shall prove interesting.

The biggest surprise is that Christmas is actually celebrated in Malaysia, when it is a widely known Muslim country. In every supermarket, there are Christmas trees and crackers, Christmas pudding and mince pies - and every traditional accompaniment of Christmas is available on sale. I think this is a hopeful sign for the nature of the society in which we find ourselves. It is an effort at inclusiveness that the festivals of other religions should be openly celebrated and supported. Indeed, in the newspapers, a Malaysian politician was quoted as encouraging Malaysians to spread the Christmas spirit! It is quite refreshing to see such inclusiveness. I hope it is more than skin deep, for, if it is, then Malaysia will prove to be a society that welcomes others from all over the world. I shall wait to see if this is so, in the months ahead.

The only thing that is missing from Christmas, in Malaysia, is snow. But then, I very much doubt whether Malaysia has snowed for many thousands of years, if at all. So, we shall have to do without snow, this December. However, I should note that, though White Christmases were common in my childhood, they have become rarer in the land of my birth, in recent years, since global warming took hold. Indeed, I don't think any of my children have ever seen snow. In a way, that is sad, because snow provides memories of wonder, in most childhoods of my generation. I hope, one day, then, that my children have a White Christmas and get to build their own snowman. Here's hoping.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

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Earth Hour: Singapore dims the future, symbolically.

Earth Hour is quite a poetic idea. It is a memorable image to make us all consider the effect of our energy usage on the Earth and global warming. It is a pricking of the global conscience regarding the grave issue of climate change. All in all, the idea of darkening the world's cities, to enlighten all as to the imminent dangers of global warming and excessive energy usage, is a timely and impactful one.

However, not all cities complied in the spirit of Earth Hour. Singapore was one of them. In a letter to the Today newspaper, a reader pointed out that the testing of the Formula One night lights, for the F1 night race, occurred around Earth Hour. If this is, in fact, so, it is very disappointing. Symbolically, it would mean that Singapore values Formula One racing and the right to move as fast as possible, more highly than the future of the Earth. An entertainment is not, and can never be, as important as the issue of climate change and excessive energy usage.

Singapore's leaders speak of the importance of the environment. However, the actions of Singapore are not always in agreement with those expressed sentiments. Earth Hour was one such clash between word and action.

People tell themselves that they won't live to see significant climate change - and so they ignore it. This is deceptive thinking. Climate change is happening fast. Everyone alive today who is middle-aged or younger, should live to see its effects (unless we do something about it). Moreover our children will live out their latter days in a world utterly transformed, for the negative, by our actions or inactions today.

Earth Hour should be respected - for what it represents is the attitude that the future of the Earth matters...and should matter now, to us all.

The next time there is an Earth Hour, I hope to see nothing but darkness across Singapore - and all other nations, too. Perhaps then, we might know, that people are thinking of how to make the world of tomorrow, a better one.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and one month, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and seven months, and Tiarnan, two years exactly, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)