During a five-month internship with Renault, a href="http://www.coroflot.com/public/individual_details.asp?individual_id=239333&" target="_blank">Damien Grossemy designed this imaginative airship, powered by solar panels that are part of its 'sail' surface. Propulsion is through an electric propeller that can swing to either side of the ship. There is also a controllable wing-rudder to steer it, though we have reservations about sailing them through the Alps.
"Accenture’s survey showed that six out of 10 consumers are more likely to buy a hybrid or electric vehicle only when it is superior to gasoline-only models in every way, so while automakers are increasingly focused on addressing the demand for greater fuel efficiency and economy they should also address those areas that continue to influence the consumer. ‘Green’ is not enough by itself."
Survey Question
Germany % of Respondents
France % of Respondents
Italy % of Respondents
U.S./Canada % of Respondents
More likely to buy a hybrid or electric vehicle that is better than a fuel-only car in every way
74%
55%
46%
65%
Rate the fuel efficiency of a hybrid or electric car very good to excellent, but rate ride, performance, style and maintenance as good
59%
64%
45%
74%
More likely to buy a hybrid or electric vehicle in the next two years
29%
51%
62%
31%
More likely to purchase a hybrid in the next two years
67%
63%
71%
70%
More likely to buy an electric car in the next two years
17%
22%
19%
5%
Everyone should own a hybrid or electric car
21%
39%
57%
26%
Would pay nothing more for a hybrid or electric car compared to a fuel-only vehicle
45%
52%
46%
56%
Desire a payback time for a hybrid or electric car purchase to be five years or less
64%
83%
73%
82%
Assuming a hybrid or electric vehicle could run on an electric charge for 200 miles, want the driving distance between re-charging points to be every 11 to 50 miles
An EV World reader sent us the following YouTube video of what appears to be a 'free energy' electric motor. Devices like this have proven to be fraudulent in the past, so there is no reason to expect this one to be any different. However, it would appear from the video that the device and its inventor recently demonstrated it in an academic setting. The problem is the narration is in a language we don't recognize. If you do, we'd appreciate learning not only what language, but better yet, what the narrator is saying.
Send your comments and, if possible, translation to editor@evworld.com.
Exeter University (UK) undergraduate Lionel Badal went looking for an interview for his dissertation with a still-unidentified official at the International Energy Agency (IEA) Paris, France, and found himself thrust into the middle of one of the hottest controversies of modern times: the reality of peak oil.
The Ecologist reports on its own interview with Badal, revealing the story behind the uncovering of what could be a worse cover-up than Watergate.
[In July 2009] Lionel had managed to arrange a meeting between himself, the IEA official and the MEP Corrine Lepage, a former French environment minister and well-known figure in French politics. Clearly pleased to meet such a respected figure, the IEA official became much more open about the downplaying of peak oil concerns at the agency.
"He told her reports had been modified and that there were pressures on the IEA from the US not to make too pessimistic predictions," Lionel remembers. "He said just as peak oil theorists claimed, there was a big problem with oil."
You can argue all you want about the reality of climate change, what you can't deny, if you give any credence to science whatsoever, is that the Arctic is thawing, and this not only will allow oil tankers to navigate from Russia to Japan via the Arctic Ocean this summer, but also means a vast shelf of Siberian methane is steadily bubbling gas into the atmosphere.
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After Katrina, New Orleans is Going green
Among green programs, urban organic farming has gained momentum and new bicycle lanes are being planned for the city. -- Associated Press
White Roofs = 600 Million Less Cars
Use of white roofing materials increases buildings reflectivity similar to role of polar ice caps. -- Climate Progress
