The people who operate Master Resource believe to the bottom of their pocketbooks that hydrocarbons are THE prime energy product. They often attempt to disguise their assumption; here is their explanation of the etymology of their chosen blog title: MasterResource is a blog dedicated to analysis and commentary about energy markets and public policy. Precisely […]
Climate change
Doubt – confusion leads to inaction and benefits status quo
When there is an enormous revenue stream at stake, actions taken to delay making any changes can produce a good return on investment. There is no doubt in my mind that people interested in prolonging fossil fuel dominance over the world economy have taken action to insert doubt in the public consciousness about the hazard […]
Why is Al Jazeera worried that Asia is becoming “addicted” to nuclear energy?
A regular Atomic Insights reader sent me a link to a program produced by Al Jazeera English titled 101 East – Asia’s nuclear addiction that offers an interesting, if somewhat disturbing, point of view about nuclear energy development. About half of the program describes an effort to site a nuclear power plant in Indonesia and […]
Soft hearts should not be accompanied by soft heads
Yesterday, Vermont Governor Peter Shumulin appeared on Democracy Now to talk about the effect of Hurricane Irene on his Green Mountain State. Twice in the interview, he used the words irrational, but throughout the interview he and his interviewer were remarkably illogical. Though many parts of his state were being washed away by raging floods […]
Decarbonise South Australia and Brave New Climate visit The Atomic Show
On August 13, 2011, I braved the 13.5 hour time difference between Adelaide, South Australia and Lynchburg, VA to record an interview with Ben Heard, the force behind Decarbonise SA and Dr. Barry Brook, the well respected climate scientist who blogs at Brave New Climate. Aside: I used the phrase “braved the time difference” because […]
False media balance – radiation health risks contrasted against climate change
An Atomic Insights reader pointed me to Joe Romm’s recent post titled False Balance Exposed: BBC Gives Too Much Weight to Fringe Views on Climate Change, Independent Review Finds. Duh. In that post, Joe discusses how an outside reviewer has determined that the BBCs strong desire to show impartiality can result in providing poor information […]
Another blogger for nuclear energy – Decarbonise SA
I have just spent a pleasant hour perusing a fascinating site called Decarbonise SA (where SA = South Australia). Ben Heard, an Australian who operates a consultancy named ThinkClimate Consulting is the force behind the site. He is a man on a mission – to move South Australia’s electric power system to zero carbon dioxide […]
“Green Nukes” – Important climate change mitigation tools
Adam Curry interviewed Curt Stager, the author of Deep Future: The Next 100,000 Years of Life on Earth for his Big Book Show. During the interview, Curry and Stager spent several minutes discussing the potential for “green nukes” to be an important climate change mitigation tool. Aside: Adam Curry interviewed me four years ago about […]
APPA Detailed Study on Effects of Switching From Coal to Natural Gas For Electricity Generation – Not a "Bridge Fuel" Strategy
The American Public Power Association (APPA) has released a detailed, 95-page study titled Implications of Greater Reliance on Natural Gas for Electricity Generation (4.8 MB PDF) that analyses the costs, required rule changes, and risks of replacing a major portion of the coal fired electricity in the United States with natural gas. APPA is the […]
The Atomic Show #090 – Talking nuclear and climate change with Mark Seall of TalkClimateChange.com
Mark Seall and Rod Adams talk about nuclear power, its role in fighting climate change and poverty, and Mark’s growing understanding of the risk tradeoffs associated with energy production systems. Mark Seall is a Brit living in Switzerland who has developed a strong interest in environmentalism and in the European activities aimed at reducing the […]
The Atomic Show #52 – Climate change controversy
Shane and I discuss our understanding of human activity’s effects on global climate. As two geeks not trained in climate science, but comfortable with complex systems, our approach is unique. Unless you live under a rock, you have an opinion about whether or not man’s activity is causing a coming global catastrophe. Two recent films […]
The Atomic Show #046 – CEO’s request mandatory federal greenhouse gas limits
Leaders of at least ten major corporations have requested mandatory federal greenhouse gas limits Shane and I talk about the somewhat counterintuitive request by the heads of ten major US corporations (Including GE, FP and L Group, PG and E, Duke Energy, Caterpillar, Alcoa, DuPont, BP America, Lehman Brothers, PNM Resources) for the federal government […]
