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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LindyBill who wrote (88618)	11/29/2004 12:50:25 PM
From: D. Long	Respond to of 793882

Interesting alternative energy research being funded by the Department of Energy. Uses solar energy to power Sterling Engine generators. Sterling engines: travel.howstuffworks.com Story: eet.com ----------------------------------------------------------- PORTLAND, Ore. — EEs are turning a 19th-century invention into a 21st-century alternative-energy source. The last leg of a two-decades-long effort by the U.S. Energy Deaprtment to unleash superefficient solar power by 2011 is homing in on the so-called Stirling engine, which is being used to drive solar generators. DOE test site measurements suggest the setup could bring the cost of solar power on a par with traditional fossil fuels and hydroelectric sources — assuming the project engineers can balance the separate power feeds from farms of thousands of simultaneously online 25-kilowatt Stirling solar dishes. The heart of the design, the engine itself, was invented by the Scottish minister Robert Stirling in 1816. "The Stirling engine makes solar power so much more efficiently than photovoltaic solar cells can," said Robert Liden, chief administrative officer at Stirling Energy Systems Inc. (Phoenix). "That's because the Stirling solar dish directly converts solar heat into mechanical energy, which turns an ac electrical generator." The bottom line, he said, "is that large farms of Stirling solar dishes — say, 20,000-dish farms — could deliver cheap solar electricity that rivals what we pay for electricity today." Under a multiyear Energy Department contract that started in 2004, Stirling Energy Systems will supply Sandia National Laboratories with solar dishes for integration into full-fledged power-generation substations capable of direct connections to the existing U.S. power grid. Right now about 20 EEs, including more than a dozen from Stirling Energy Systems, are working full time at Sandia to create the electrical-control systems to manage these sunshine stations. By the end of 2005, they plan to have six dishes connected into a miniature power station capable of supplying enough 480-volt three-phase electricity to power about 40 homes (150 kW). The next step, in 2006, is a 40-dish power plant that will transform the combined output of the farm from 480 to 13,000 V, for distribution of industrial-level power to an existing substation. From 2007 to 2010, the program proposes mass-producing dishes to create a 20,000-dish farm supplying 230,000 V of long-haul power from its own substation directly connected to the grid. If the project succeeds, the DOE predicts that by 2011, Stirling solar-dish farms could be delivering electricity to the grid at costs comparable to traditional electricity sources, thereby reducing the U.S. need for foreign sources of fossil fuels. Eventually, according to DOE estimates, an 11-square-mile farm of Stirling solar dishes could generate as much electricity as the Hoover Dam, and a 100 x 100-mile farm could supply all the daytime needs for electricity in the United States. By storing the energy in hydrogen fuel cells during the day, Stirling solar-dish farms could supply U.S. electrical-energy needs at night too, as well as enough juice for future fuel-cell-powered automobiles, the DOE believes.

To: LindyBill who wrote (88618)	11/29/2004 12:59:43 PM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793882

Russert would probably be a good choice. Rathergate Russert anchoring the news? Filed under: General— Kevin Craver @ 11:45 am Several regulars at Rathergate.com suggested earlier this month that cBS whistleblower Bernard Goldberg would be the best choice to replace Rather and try to restore credibility to cBS “News". Newsweek, Fox News and RatherBiased are reporting that a buddy of Goldberg’s may be in the race. Newsweek is claiming that Meet the Press host Tim Russert is being wooed for the job, as is Today host Matt Lauer. The liberal weekly newsmagazine reports that cBS is seeking outsiders to reinvent the lagging news show. Despite the fact that cBS “News” is beyond saving, I think Russert’s hiring would be an interesting coup. Goldberg devoted a chapter of his book “Arrogance: Rescuing America from the Media Elite” to an interview with Russert, who Goldberg champions as a journalist who does it right and understands how bias is killing mainstream credibility. I do not believe cBS has any desire to truly restore political balance, but Russert’s hiring would be a good ploy at face value. After all, Goldberg made a bundle exposing cBS’ slanting of the news and other dirty laundry for all to see. To see a journalist that cBS’ arch-nemesis considers one of the good ones sitting in Rather’s seat could score the corrupt “news” network some seriously-needed points. Some people may not see Russert’s hiring as a good thing. His name scores 645 hits on the Media Research Center site, which is a place where journalists’ names are rarely listed for a pat on the back. However, having read Goldberg’s book, I feel that Russert would do the best job he can to bring both sides of the story to the news. I sure as hell don’t want to see Lauer behind the desk. In-house candidate John Roberts is almost as biased as Rather, and fellow newsman Scott Pelley is a relative nobody who would be a long shot at bringing back viewers. cBS “News” needs outside blood untainted by Memogate to anchor the show. Russert could be their best choice, if he can escape his NBC contract. THIS JUST IN: Rather Biased is reporting that Matt Drudge said Rather resigned after top cBS brass got a progress report on the Memogate investigation. Drudge said on his Sunday radio show: “I was told that last Monday the preliminary report on the Rather document matter was given to management at CBS. This is before the Rather announcement, and I’ve got immaculate sources at CBS. So it must not be good. CBS News President Andrew Heyward is now in the bullseye. They can’t let too many people go, they don’t have that many left.” rathergate.com