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#26 2020-09-14 18:18:25

tahanson43206
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Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

For kbd512 re #25

SearchTerm:ChargingRing
SearchTerm:EVCharging

http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 22#p172222

(th)

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#27 2020-09-15 21:03:25

tahanson43206
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Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

This is a follow up to the topic of inline charging facilities ...

When I brought this up a few days ago, I was not aware of how far Tesla has gone in implementing the inline idea.

This evening I tuned into a Zoom presentation by a Tesla owner who drove across the country and took many photographs and made plenty of movies of his adventures.  Out West, it appeared that ** every ** on-the-road charging facility is laid out with the inline format.  The only places where this gent showed back-in charging stalls were business parking lots.

This gent bought when Tesla was offering a free charge for the life of the car option, so his trip cost nothing at all. 

The Tesla automation laid out his trip for him, showing every recharging station along the way.  The automated guide was (is) sophisticated enough so that as the vehicle approached a particular city which had two charging stations, the guide altered the original plan to go to a charging station that was out of the way.  When interrogated, the system explained that the original charging facility was experiencing technical difficulties.

it seems to me that this level of customer service should be (or at least ** could ** be) a standard planners for the Mars adventure to keep in mind.

(th)

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#28 2020-09-16 18:22:38

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

There still appears for the right location and opportunity to make a profitable station in places where none exist...

Since mountains cause a sharp rise in power needs the locations that fill in for those areas in each state could still provide locations to build the charging chains...

One thing that is still wide open is the first stations on mars as we will need an abundant ability to have a universal charging capability to power all of the electrical equipment with even if a blimp solar power unit makes it there first for construction equipment...

Products you didn't know were made by Tesla

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#29 2020-09-22 22:04:04

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

Tesla Battery Day: New 'biscuit tin' battery cells could change everything

Tesla Battery Day: Tesla Promises $25,000 EV in Three Years

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#30 2020-10-20 09:27:41

tahanson43206
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Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

This is a follow up on a recent post by GW Johnson on analysis of SpaceX Starship flight to and from Mars.

In the post by GW Johnson, it was presumed that the starship would refuel in Low Earth Orbit, and then fly to and land on Mars.

The vehicle would (presumably) refuel on Mars.  It would then lift off from Mars, fly to Low Earth Orbit, and (in this scenario) land on Earth after aerobraking.

In thinking about the scenario, I realized there is a business opportunity for space entrepreneurs that is similar to the role played by tugboats in ports around the Earth.  In the space scenario, the working conditions are a bit more challenging.

An example would be to meet an arriving space vehicle which is approaching Earth, and then transfer fuel which the arriving vehicle can use to slow down ahead of arriving at Earth.  Such a scenario would require capability similar to the powerful engines used by tugboats designed for ocean service.

The goal would be to insure that the arriving vehicle can guide itself to a place in Low Earth Orbit, instead of subjecting itself and the passengers and crew to the risk of travel through the atmosphere of Earth.   

The only expenditure would be fuel and the travel time of the tugboat/tanker crew.

(th)

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#31 2020-10-24 10:46:19

tahanson43206
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Re: Business Opportunity

Here is a business opportunity that ** should ** work on Mars (and in transit to Mars) as well as it would on Earth ...

It ** should ** be possible for home owners (and perhaps even some renters with free space)  to grow sod in terrariums using all LED light. LED lighting is now routinely used for growing lettuce (and other crops) in urban "farms".

The occasion for this idea for a small business for home development arises from a situation I'm seeing in the neighborhood.  A homeowner decided to start over with a small 20x20 foot plot of land between the house and the sidewalk.  The first step (after clearing) was to sprinkle a couple of bags of fall lawn mixture on the square.  Sparrows began immediately to scoop up the seeds.

In anticipation that there won't be much to show for that investment next spring, it occurred to me that there might be a market for squares of sod grown over the winter in suitable enclosures indoors.

I'm not sure how to cost out the process ... the equipment would be a one-time investment.  The seed and starter soil would be a one time investment as well, but specific to the season.  Electricity costs would factor in, but I'm assuming they would not be the greater part of the expense.  Water would be needed, although (I'm guessing) not a great deal would be needed.  Perhaps a liter a week would be sufficient.

At Mars (or in transit) the same equipment and supplies would be needed.

How important would a patch of lawn be in a Mars habitat?   It might assist to some small degree with oxygen production and CO2 consumption.  It might assist to some small degree with air filtering.  It might assist with addition of aromatic molecules to the air.

Edit#1: The web page at the link below provides plenty of encouragement for indoor greenhouse growing of sod.

The version of this that I would like to see is one that presumes "no" sunlight, and instead achieves success entirely with LED lighting.

On Mars, as discussed many times on this forum, it should be possible to collect sunlight with mirrors and other light guide equipment to provide lighting sufficient to grow sod.  However, LED lighting would be an attractive option for underground living space, where having growing plants would be a psychological benefit.

(th)

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#32 2020-11-24 13:59:52

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

EV battery basics: All you need to know about kW, kWh, and charging speed

1599px-Chademo-combo2-iec-type-2-connectors-side-by-side-1592x1061.jpg

Generally speaking there are three levels of EV charge rate a grouped by their kW rating.

Slow (standard) chargers are rated at between 3 kW and 6 kW. These are the most basic of chargers and are the kinds of power you get when plugging your car directly into a wall socket.
Fast chargers are rated at between 7 kW and 22 kW. This is the kind of power you get from a dedicated at-home EV wall box, or at destination chargers at shopping malls, and public car parks.
Rapid chargers are rated at 50 kW and up. Some also refer to the super powerful rapid chargers, which are capable of charging at over 100 kW as “ultra-rapid.” It’d be fair to call Tesla’s Supercharger an ultra-rapid charger. There are also some 250 kW CCS chargers, but these are still quite rare and can only be used by a few cars like the Porsche Taycan.

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#33 2020-12-03 18:58:33

tahanson43206
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Re: Business Opportunity

The article at the link below is about NASA's initiative to solicit private partners for the SLS system, but I think that the opportunities for business go far beyond what NASA can support ...


https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/nasa … 45983.html

And just-in-time delivery won't be an option when the next delivery window to Mars is two years away and the trip takes more than six months.

Wiese said NASA is looking for packaging that not only protects the contents from strong G-forces, protects against radiation that can damage electronics and temperature changes that can spoil food, but is lightweight, affordable, reusable or recyclable.

"We need to build the infrastructure, the partnerships, the relationships with businesses and people necessary to continually move supplies from the Earth to the moon," Wiese said.

(th)

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#34 2020-12-16 10:56:30

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

bump
Have moved this topic for lack of a folder that contains just opportunities for business creation.

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#35 2020-12-17 10:04:53

tahanson43206
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Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

For SpaceNut re topic ....

Your new topic for a Snowblowing machine that can operate remotely using teleoperation is worth including in this more general topic.

I'll add a link to it here: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=9777

The title of the new topic is: AI Bussiness opportunity in Snow removal

With the new forum policy, of closing off general admission and implementing by-invitation admission, the chances this topic, and others that encourage achievements by forum members, will draw new members who have the skills and motivations to build businesses into the group.

This forum is fortunate to include members with actual experience building business operations in a capitalist culture.   With the new policy, there is an opportunity to encourage those who might aspire to business leadership.

At present, the only known pathway to admission to this forum is through membership in the Mars Society.

Membership is available for $25 for a student or a senior.  Upon gaining access to the Mars Society member forum, look for SpaceNut and send him a request to be admitted to this forum.

Edit#1: Here is a link to a YouTube video showing a radio controlled (home built) snow blower:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHtsWqoCjq4

The business opportunity I see around this demonstration is a snow cleaning service operated from the comfort of home, using the Internet to communicate audio, video and control signals to the machine.


(th)

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#36 2021-01-17 19:10:33

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

Critical to EV operations is knowing the difference of EV battery basics: All you need to know about kW, kWh, and charging speed

Generally speaking there are three levels of EV charge rate a grouped by their kW rating.

Slow (standard) chargers are rated at between 3 kW and 6 kW. These are the most basic of chargers and are the kinds of power you get when plugging your car directly into a wall socket.
Fast chargers are rated at between 7 kW and 22 kW. This is the kind of power you get from a dedicated at-home EV wall box, or at destination chargers at shopping malls, and public car parks.
Rapid chargers are rated at 50 kW and up. Some also refer to the super powerful rapid chargers, which are capable of charging at over 100 kW as “ultra-rapid.” It’d be fair to call Tesla’s Supercharger an ultra-rapid charger. There are also some 250 kW CCS chargers, but these are still quite rare and can only be used by a few cars like the Porsche Taycan.

Of course the rates and duration are different when the size of the source is less it will take longer to charge the vehicle.

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#37 2021-01-17 19:19:53

louis
Member
From: UK
Registered: 2008-03-24
Posts: 7,208

Re: Business Opportunity

Set up a marketing company called "First on Mars". This will act as a paid consultant to fix up deals with Space X for people who want to be First on Mars whether it's seeing their automobiles driven on the Mars surface,  having their trainers worn by Mars colonists,  staging the first football match, having the first bank branch open etc etc


Let's Go to Mars...Google on: Fast Track to Mars blogspot.com

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#38 2021-01-26 09:58:36

tahanson43206
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Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

This post is more about the environment (in space) for business, than it is about specific opportunities, although those are at the heart of the article...

https://www.yahoo.com/news/land-rush-co … 17927.html

Miriam Kramer
Tue, January 26, 2021, 5:15 AM

The intrigue: Today, many in the space industry are advocating for a framework governing property rights that isn't based on a "first come, first served" mentality.

Instead of seeing space as a place that should be exploited for gains by one nation, many are starting to think the focus should be on preservation and fairness among many.

"We can find ways to both develop and use resources, and do so in a responsible way," Jessy Kate Schingler of the Open Lunar Foundation told me.

An interesting aspect of the article is the note that China is not a party to the US led Artemis accord, and they are not likely to ever be.

(th)

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#39 2021-02-02 08:17:18

Calliban
Member
From: Northern England, UK
Registered: 2019-08-18
Posts: 3,352

Re: Business Opportunity

One important legal innovation that would dramatically assist development of a Mars colony, would be freedom from Earth patent and intellectual property claims.  Let's say for any object manufactured on Mars for use in any location more than 100km away from the surface of the Earth.  This would allow Martians to manufacture anything that they were capable of manufacturing, without having to compensate an Earth based corporation, simply for having used an idea.  Exceptions would need to be made of course.  If a Mars based corporation were to enlist the services of an Earth based corporation in design services, it must be liable to pay them.  Also, anything delivered to the surface of the Earth that was manufactured using an Earth registered patent would be liable to pay royalties.


"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."

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#40 2021-02-02 08:30:28

tahanson43206
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Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

For Calliban re #39

Thanks for an interesting idea!  I'm reminded of a call for absence of taxes on space related activities.

The local (Earthly equivalent) is the ignoring of patents in one country by residents of another ...

Squabbles over intellectual property have been going on for centuries (that I know of) and there are hints in the literature they've been going on for thousands of years, in the embodied knowledge of military and civilian products which were protected as long as possible by the originators.

I wonder (thinking out loud about the implications of your proposal) if there is a venue where it might be debated.

If there were no patents available for compensation for development of intellectual property, then the only recourse available is to return to the ancient tried and true practice of holding knowledge close.  That way everyone has to re-invent everything, or employ spies to try to ferret out the secrets of processes and formulas from each other.  That is an ancient game as well.

I assume that the patent system was established to try to bring order into a chaotic situation, but haven't studied it in depth.

Edit#1: A solution is to provide a way for patent holders to grant a license to users on Mars so the unpleasantness is avoided.

In that case, the debt to the originator of the patent is acknowledged, and (if done properly) any refinements or improvements could be fed back into the patent system on Earth with any proceeds shared with the original patent holder for the duration of the patent.

A friend is an engineer with experience in the gas industry.  Among his interests is helping to collect gas engines and related artifacts, and to maintain a Power Museum at a location on Earth.  His tours of the facility are filled with details about the results of the patent system.  All sorts of strange designs for engines came into being in the United States, to defeat English patents, or to circumvent American ones.  It was an innovative time in the history of technology, and squabbles over intellectual property were a prominent feature.

(th)

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#41 2021-02-02 13:24:23

tahanson43206
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Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

Virtual Employment Corporation

The above is a ** possible ** name for a new kind of company ...

It is an evolution of the existing (and largely successful) Internet businesses that offer consulting services.

The ones that I am familiar with include Upwork and Fiverr, but I suspect there are others.

The title given to this post is for a version of these companies that would offer operators of equipment at remote locations as an employment service.

The potential for successful implementation of this business model is strengthened by the global pandemic.

The idea I have in mind is NOT to go to pure robots for a great variety of activities, and NOT to continue using human beings for menial tasks that are beneath their capability.

Instead, people would sign up with Virtual Employment, receive training on how to operate various machines over the Internet, and then bid on opportunities that would be posted by job creators.

The potential reach of such opportunities would include manufacture of systems in space, such as the Large Ship of RobertDyck.

There would ** certainly ** be more than one of those, as the advantages of Mars level gravity inside the ship become apparent.

(th)

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#42 2021-02-02 13:35:22

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

IP will never be for free use until we stop trying to make money off from it....Most everything brought to mars made here on earth will be with strings attached for its use in leu of payments of full price for its use there.

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#43 2021-02-22 19:20:23

tahanson43206
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Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nm-firms-hyd … 00694.html

That includes customers who want to lease or buy BayoTech's mobile units, or receive hydrogen deliveries from units that BayoTech will directly operate in local markets. The company is now working to establish two such production centers in California.

BayoTech says its generators can produce hydrogen at $2 per kilogram, compared with $12 or more at today's large, centralized production facilities. And its mobile units can operate on site for customers, or in strategic hubs for vehicle fueling or delivery services, reducing or eliminating transportation and storage costs.

Apart from capital backing, investment newcomer Fortistar can also offer critical assistance in building fueling stations.

The price differential seems noteworthy.

If anyone has insight into how this company is able to achieve such performance, I'd be interested.

The service seems best suited to the growing hydrogen fuel cell vehicle market, but it might apply to home power generation as well.

(th)

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#44 2021-03-07 09:24:45

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

Ah picked the correct topic...
President Biden hopes to build 500,000 new electric car chargers by 2030. We talked to five experts about how to make that happen.

BB1ekFLP.img?h=364&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f


Thats a green installation since its solar powered...

The charging stations plus vehicle cost is the problem when a gasoline powered only vehicle is so much cheaper to purchase.

Going all electric is also a learning process on how to watch the battery indicators as well.

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#45 2021-03-24 10:38:55

tahanson43206
Moderator
Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

The following is an edited version of a message just posted to the web site of a US Senator ...

If any other forum member (or a reader for that matter) is so inclined, you are welcome to copy and paste this message for delivery to your Senator (if you are a US citizen) or to your local representative if you live outside the US.

Please add this note of appreciation to Senator <> for his support of the latest $1400 check to qualifying citizens of <> (and the US).  The previous payments were helpful to take care of immediate needs. However, ** this ** one I am investing in another attempt to create a business.  If only a tiny fraction of US citizens use the generous support from the government to attempt to create new products and services, the results could (and hopefully will) repay the government many times over.

Regarding the Infrastructure package you (Senator <> and staff) are working on ... With Pete Buttigieg in place, there is a chance we (nation) can go big and bold.  I would like to suggest you consider a massive change of how work is done.  I'd like to recommend we embark upon conversion to Teleoperation in all industries.  The way forward is shown by the response to the Covid 19 pandemic.  Those who are able to perform intellectual activities are able to do so using Zoom and laptops (or equivalent alternatives). I'd like you to stretch your thinking to imagine most work done as our military are now performing drone operations in the Middle East.  Electronics vans are the workplace for officers of the military and the CIA.  The Internet and specifically satellite networks are the pathway for commands and feedback. And the equipment in drones is able to respond to commands and to provide onsite data back to the operation.

If you (acting as a member of the <> leadership) will nudge President Biden just a bit, I trust he will agree that placing electronics pods in rural American, using SpaceX Starlink as the communications pathway, and supporting manufacturers around the nation to convert to remote teleoperation will place the Nation on a competitive path with respect to our major competitors in the global economy.

We will reduce pollution by reducing travel.  We will reduce expense by consuming less fossil fuel.

We will create literally millions of decent paying jobs at all levels of society as we roll out this new infrastructure.

(th)

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#46 2021-03-24 17:39:00

SpaceNut
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From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

While charging stations are build able its the cost of the vehicle which is stopping sale plus the battery replacement cost as we are owning cars longer.
Even the better electric bikes and other non car vehicles that are electrically powered cost to much for what they are.

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#47 2021-03-25 06:01:40

Calliban
Member
From: Northern England, UK
Registered: 2019-08-18
Posts: 3,352

Re: Business Opportunity

SpaceNut wrote:

While charging stations are build able its the cost of the vehicle which is stopping sale plus the battery replacement cost as we are owning cars longer.
Even the better electric bikes and other non car vehicles that are electrically powered cost to much for what they are.

Indeed.  Why do politicians feel that it is sensible for them (rather than engineers) to make technical decisions?  At a time when US government, corporate and private debt is already through the roof?  A better use of public money would be to upgrade public transportation in the US.  If Biden is serious about the green new deal, then trains and trams are more efficient use of expensive electric power than BEVs that few people will be able to afford ten years from now.

Left to their own devices, most car manufacturers would choose to develop hybrid vehicles.  These use a much smaller and more affordable battery to achieve 80% of the emissions reductions that a pure battery electric car would achieve.  The remaining fuel consumption could be blended with biofuels and synthetic fuels to reduce emissions further.  Heavy trucks are not good candidates for battery electric.  But even here, there are other options like hydraulic hybrids, solid oxide fuel cells, LPG, compressed natural gas, biofuels, biochar, etc.

Many people are drawn to purist and revolutionary solutions that appear elegant to them.  But there are often compromise solutions that accomplish just as much at a lower cost.

Last edited by Calliban (2021-03-25 06:03:14)


"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."

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#48 2021-03-25 17:55:31

SpaceNut
Administrator
From: New Hampshire
Registered: 2004-07-22
Posts: 28,747

Re: Business Opportunity

When the price of the change in vehicles and fuels put the price tag out of reach to the average income and less than. Things will not change.

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#49 2021-03-30 06:22:25

tahanson43206
Moderator
Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,746

Re: Business Opportunity

The report below shows (as I interpret it) innovative thinking on the part of the Board of Directors of a hydropower company. 

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/1-pl … 16686.html

UPDATE 1-Plug Power, Brookfield Renewable to build green hydrogen plant
Tue, March 30, 2021 7:42 AM
(Adds background, details)

March 30 (Reuters) - Fuel cell maker Plug Power Inc said on Tuesday it planned to build a green hydrogen production plant in south-central Pennsylvania with Brookfield Renewable Partners.

Hydrogen has taken off this year as the future green fuel of choice, with governments and businesses betting big that the universe's most abundant element can help fight climate change, worsened by the use of fossil fuels. (https://reut.rs/3u54x6L)

Green hydrogen is hydrogen extracted from water using electrolysis powered by renewable energy. It is being touted as a way to decarbonise emissions from heavy industries and transport sectors.

Plug Power's Pennsylvania plant, which will use renewable energy from Brookfield's hydroelectric facility in Holtwood in the same state, is projected to produce about 15 metric-tons of emissions-free liquid hydrogen per day.

Plug Power's plant is expected to be online by late 2022, with construction slated to begin by the first quarter of 2022.

Last month, Plug power announced the construction of a green hydrogen production facility and electric substation in New York, joining the company's existing plant in Tennessee. (Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

This report is similar to the one posted earlier in this forum, about conversion of nuclear fission power plants to hydrogen production.

Persons with financial responsibility are looking at the future and trying to steer their organizations away from pitfalls of current practice, and toward long term stable returns.

***
As a side note ... I cannot confirm this, but I have read that Google (and no doubt other AI based Internet servers) tries to supply items to the new feeds of their customers based upon past selection patterns, or perhaps based upon search strings.

It is entirely possible that I am seeing announcements of companies converting operations to hydrogen production because I've been actively looking for them for some time.

Recently I had a "conversation" with the AI at Google about it's response to my request for a sophisticated result.  I could have sworn I could see it adapting with every attempt to meet the request.  Perhaps it was an interactive process, because I was telling the AI what I did ** not ** want to see in the results, as well as what I did want to see.

Extrapolating from my experience, I suspect we (humans across the planet) are "training" that AI with every interaction.

(th)

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#50 2021-03-30 10:42:44

kbd512
Administrator
Registered: 2015-01-02
Posts: 7,361

Re: Business Opportunity

Calliban wrote:

Indeed.  Why do politicians feel that it is sensible for them (rather than engineers) to make technical decisions?  At a time when US government, corporate and private debt is already through the roof?  A better use of public money would be to upgrade public transportation in the US.  If Biden is serious about the green new deal, then trains and trams are more efficient use of expensive electric power than BEVs that few people will be able to afford ten years from now.

Left to their own devices, most car manufacturers would choose to develop hybrid vehicles.  These use a much smaller and more affordable battery to achieve 80% of the emissions reductions that a pure battery electric car would achieve.  The remaining fuel consumption could be blended with biofuels and synthetic fuels to reduce emissions further.  Heavy trucks are not good candidates for battery electric.  But even here, there are other options like hydraulic hybrids, solid oxide fuel cells, LPG, compressed natural gas, biofuels, biochar, etc.

Many people are drawn to purist and revolutionary solutions that appear elegant to them.  But there are often compromise solutions that accomplish just as much at a lower cost.

Calliban,

It's more empty "virtue signaling" by people who have no virtue.  The politicians lecturing everyone else about climate change are the very same ones flying around the world on their kerosene-powered private jets.  They will then travel in-country using their private gasoline-powered limos as they hunt for their next piece of beachfront property that they claim will be under water in ten years.  You have to be a fool to believe that they believe what they claim on TV.  Unfortunately, there's no shortage of fools who are easily separated from their money.  As such, they say absurd things to people on TV that they then directly refute off-camera, because they know most people are stupid, so that's how they treat the people they're supposed to work for.  Since the people keep voting for them, they keep doing what they're doing.

Apart from over-glorified golf carts, battery powered vehicles are an utter waste of time and resources, given current battery energy density, which is why all billionaires except Elon Musk (he has to promote his own company's products, after all) drive around in gasoline-powered limos (and even Elon Musk does this, though I don't fault him at all or ever for using the most practical transportation available).  They don't waste their own money on battery powered aircraft or limos, specifically because they know it's a waste of time and money.  When you start seeing rich people purchasing fleets of battery powered cars and aircraft for the corporations they run (and I'm not talking about personal toys purchased for virtue-signaling purposes), then you should take note and follow suit as finances permit.  These people don't make gross mistakes with their money, which is why they became billionaires to begin with.

Example:

Paris Hilton riding around in her personal Tesla means very little, apart from demonstrating that she's a rich girl who can afford to throw a little of her money at an impractical car to virtue signal to her peer group and everyone else who envies her.  Paris Hilton purchasing a fleet of battery powered airport shuttles means she thinks the technology is sufficiently reliable and cost-effective to warrant replacing her hotel chain's existing fleet of gasoline powered vans.  The astute would take note that nothing of the sort has happened yet, because it's grossly impractical and too expensive.  Similarly, when we see solar panels covering the rooftops of her hotels, we'll know that solar power was selected as the most affordable and practical solution to providing electricity for those facilities.  Since the one thing a rich girl fears most is losing her wealth, you can bet your last dollar that she makes such decisions by carefully weighing the pros and cons of every available transportation and electric power provisioning solution.  Furthermore, a single hotel in the chain using solar panels or battery powered vans is likewise indicative of very little, apart from a virtue-signaling publicity stunt.

If we see a major corporation like Wal-Mart replace all or most of its fleet of diesel powered semi-trucks with battery powered semi-trucks, that's not a publicity stunt, that's a business decision.  Until we see that happen, that means the technology isn't ready for prime time for that particular application.  The ignorant public may be easily bedazzled by publicity stunts, but when you go to a Wal-Mart and see a bunch of diesel powered trucks parked at the loading docks, the difference between a publicity stunt and a business decision should be pretty obvious.

Google's own virtue-signaling indicates that they've been "100% carbon neutral since 2007", which is just another way of saying they burn coal or gas when the Sun don't shine and the wind don't blow.  Why not "100% renewable energy"?  You, I, and the executives at Google all know the answer to that perfectly well.  It's so simple that it can't be papered over with any amount of pseudo-environmentalist religion.  That's a pipe dream with current technology and everybody who is intellectually honest admits to that.  The problem lies with the growing number of intellectually dishonest people who refuse to acknowledge the central role played by fossil fuels in their "renewable religion".

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