Monthly Archives: May 2009

Where Does Oil Come From? (2/5)

We just learned what hydrocarbons are, we want to know where they come from. This article continues the series on Crude Oil. Organic material, like algae and zooplankton, that have died millions of year ago and sank to the bottom of the ocean were slowly buried by silt and other organic material to form layers. [...]
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What are Hydrocarbons? (1/5)

As part of the series on Crude Oil, this article answers the question “What are Hydrocarbons?” Hydrocarbons are combustible chains of carbon and hydrogen atoms. The backbone of these molecules are carbon atoms bonded together to form chains. Hydrogen atoms also bond to the carbon atoms but are never attached to anything else so they [...]
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Algae’s Sugar Daddies Make Biofuel

Reuters had an interesting article (which it recently pulled) about two companies that are working together to make algal biofuels. Algae, which uses sunlight and nutrients commonly found in standing waster to grow, naturally produces a small amount of oil. The amount of oil produced can be increased by various techniques and companies like Solazyme [...]
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Soot From Third World Stoves

A recent NYTimes article titled “Third-World Stove Soot Is Target in Climate Fight” calls out the third world as a major contributor to global warming. After I spent a while researching the topic, I found this article very frustrating and misleading. Black carbon – or soot – is produced from a variety of sources. The [...]
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Use Energy, Get Rich, and Save the Planet

A recent NYTimes article suggests that we “Use Energy, Get Rich and Save the Planet.” Unfortunately, this one is too good to be true. I propose that we use less energy, get rich, and save the planet. The premise of the NYTimes argument is that “as people get wealthier they can afford cleaner water and [...]
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