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<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Ted,</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>I
understand some of the "benefits" of He3 are: less energy is lost in the form of
neutrons that escape magnetic containment and the containment mechanism is less
arduous for He3 reactors. He3 is rare on Earth, but abundant on our
moon. I don't know or understand much of this science; a recent
documentary piqued my interest and I visited a few websites. Whatever the
best technology is (will be) there are significant plans being developed by
various nations to mine the moon.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>I do
not expect fusion to cure mankinds appetite for energy and neglect of nature's
balance. I do think it is interesting, the extent in which man will go to
acquire new & better w/o fully comprehending the resulting implications, and
even ignoring problems from past shortsightedness. Mankind seems to
frequently look away from the mirror to find solutions to self-created
problems. Sometimes that works well, but we are want to ignore one obvious
solution - namely don't do what we've been doing.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>As
long as the major litmus test for progress is monetary profit for private sector
investors, I do not hold much hope for environmental & social issues to be
at the fore-front until a crisis is at our door. Even though these
issues offer profit for entrepreneurial investors, it's slow for markets to
change direction.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>Mark</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=359275123-07052007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><A href="mailto:bau@moscow.com"></A><IMG height=62 alt="" hspace=0
src="cid:359275123@07052007-3214" width=112 border=0> <BR><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: agency fb">mark r. seman, architect</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: agency fb"><FONT size=2>
v=928.925.7617</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: agency fb">
f=928.776.9107</SPAN><BR></FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma
size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B>
vision2020-bounces@moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces@moscow.com]<B>On
Behalf Of </B>Ted Moffett<BR><B>Sent:</B> Monday, May 07, 2007 2:25
PM<BR><B>To:</B> mark seman<BR><B>Cc:</B>
vision2020@moscow.com<BR><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Vision2020] the energy cost of
oil sands<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Mark et. al.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I don't understand the big breakthrough in mining the moon for He3 for
fusion over the already planned fusion reactors using fuel already on
Earth. Sure, its a potential future energy source, but from what I have
read on this subject, practical affordable fusion power is decades away,
perhaps as far off as 2050. There are still debates in the scientific
community whether practical affordable fusion power will succeed. He3
fusion reactors from moon sourced He3 will in fact involve the extra
costs of mining the moon and shipping the fuel to Earth. How is
this an advantage over the deuterium/lithium/tritium test-bed fusion reactor
now being built in France, called ITER? The fuel for this
reactor design is already abundant on Earth. And in fact, one of the
articles you listed indicated that He3 fusion is more difficult than
deuterium/lithium/tritium fusion. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Info on ITER in France.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><A
href="http://www.fusion.org.uk/news/n050628_iter.html">http://www.fusion.org.uk/news/n050628_iter.html</A></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>If I have this wrong, please explain. But I do not see how mining
the moon for He3 will do anything to solve the problem of human induced global
warming.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Furthermore, all dominant trends indicate fossil fuel consumption
globally will continue to increase for decades. We can't wait until 2050
for a possible breakthrough in fusion power. Efforts to sequester enough
CO2 to lower output in absolute amounts, or lower fossil fuel consumption in
absolute amounts, face extreme obstacles, for very powerful economic,
political, social and lifestyle reasons. China and India are developing
at a rapid rate, and cheap energy fuels this development. Huge amounts
of cheap energy is an essential driving variable explaining why the USA has
the world's largest economy (using per capita more energy than any other
nation). </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>For example, coal is currently the cheapest energy source for
electricity. The USA has the world's largest coal reserves. If the
USA is serious about reducing CO2 output, CO2 sequestration would
immediately be mandated for CO2 power plants, with a huge investment in
developing and implementing this nascent technology, assuming it can be done
on the large scale required. This would increase the cost of electricity
from coal, which would help competing Green energy sources (wind, solar etc.)
increase their presence in the marketplace. This basic "no brainer" step
to seriously address global warming is not happening now in the USA. And
if the USA cannot implement this change, what are the chances that China with
its huge coal reserves will also implement this approach? </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Perhaps if the recent attempts to get the EPA to regulate CO2 are taken
seriously, given that the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of EPA regulation,
the USA will start to implement CO2 sequestration for coal sourced energy,
along with CO2 taxes for new motor vehicles (England already does this, with
the CO2 tax increasing as the gas economy goes down) and increased CAFE
standards. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>If CO2 sequestration for large scale coal energy generation is not
practical, well... Either don't use coal, or risk extreme global warming,
given the reliance on huge coal reserves for cheap energy in the USA, China,
and elsewhere. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Perhaps a practical affordable breakthrough technology, that could win
the 25 million dollar prize billionaire Richard Branson recently offered for
atmospheric processors that can remove CO2 directly from the atmosphere, will
be developed. I would not count on this, though, to justify the
continuing increases in CO2 emissions, with the potential disastrous
consequences from global warming we are risking. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Serious proposals are being discussed to inject sulfur into the upper
atmosphere to block sunlight to slow global warming, mimicking the cooling
effects of volcanic emissions. Placing large numbers of "mirrors" in
space is also proposed. These efforts would be very expensive, and
perhaps have serious side effects or unexpected long term consequences,
but if global warming becomes the disaster predicted, desperate measures
may be adopted. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Ted Moffett<BR><BR> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=gmail_quote>On 5/6/07, <B class=gmail_sendername>mark
seman</B> <<A href="mailto:fcs@moscow.com">fcs@moscow.com</A>>
wrote:</SPAN>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=gmail_quote
style="PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid">
<DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>If we can survive global
warming for another decade or two by changing our energy
production/consumption habits, it looks like we'll be mining the moon of its
He3 resources for fusion energy here on earth. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN></SPAN><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/05/02/914/"
target=_blank>http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/05/02/914/
</A></FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=201211"
target=_blank>http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=201211
</A></FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="http://www.americanscientist.org/template/BookReviewTypeDetail/assetid/50749;jsessionid=baa9"
target=_blank>http://www.americanscientist.org/template/BookReviewTypeDetail/assetid/50749;jsessionid=baa9</A>...</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>and many
others.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>Mark</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><A onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="mailto:bau@moscow.com" target=_blank></A><IMG height=66 alt=""
hspace=0 src="cid:359275123@07052007-321b" width=110
border=0> <BR><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: agency fb">mark r. seman,
architect</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: agency fb"><FONT size=2>
v=928.925.7617</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: agency fb">
f=928.776.9107</SPAN><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=e id=q_112650437a560a68_1>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original
Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> <A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="mailto:vision2020-bounces@moscow.com"
target=_blank>vision2020-bounces@moscow.com </A>[mailto:<A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="mailto:vision2020-bounces@moscow.com"
target=_blank>vision2020-bounces@moscow.com</A>]<B>On Behalf Of </B>Ted
Moffett<BR><B>Sent:</B> Sunday, May 06, 2007 5:55 PM <BR><B>To:</B> Mark
Solomon<BR><B>Cc:</B> <A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com"
target=_blank>vision2020@moscow.com</A><BR><B>Subject:</B> Re:
[Vision2020] the energy cost of oil sands <BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Mark et. al.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>The irony! </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>As some promote nuclear power to substitute for CO2 emitting fossil
fuel energy, we read this suggestion to use nuclear power to
assist in fossil fuel development and use, and thus facilitate increased
CO2 emissions... </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>We hear the skeptics about human induced global warming talk about
the uncertainties of climate science, questioning the necessity of taking
dramatic action to reduce CO2 emissions. Of course, if the Earth's
climate was being considered for an insurance policy against damages, and
there was a 50% chance of the estimates of damage from human induced
global warming predicted by the IPCC coming true, no insurance company
would offer protection, or the price would be astronomical. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>This website below at first struck me as a extremist and unscientific
analysis of the threat of human induced global warming, but after careful
reading, it now seems like a warning from the point of view of a worst
case, though possible, scenario, backed mostly by credible
climate science. There is a section on the damage to the
insurance industry from severe climate change: </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><A onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="http://www.planetextinction.com/"
target=_blank>http://www.planetextinction.com</A></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>------</DIV>
<DIV>Ted Moffett<BR><BR> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=gmail_quote>On 5/4/07, <B class=gmail_sendername>Mark
Solomon</B> <<A onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="mailto:msolomon@moscow.com" target=_blank>msolomon@moscow.com</A>
> wrote:</SPAN>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=gmail_quote
style="PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid">
<DIV>
<DIV><TT><FONT color=#000000>Extracting the oil from the bitumen is so
energy intensive that nuclear plants may be built to power the
refineries.</FONT></TT></DIV>
<DIV><TT><FONT color=#000000><BR></FONT></TT></DIV>
<DIV><TT><FONT color=#000000><A
onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)"
href="http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=24103fc4-5c"
target=_blank>http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=24103fc4-5c
</A><SPAN></SPAN>c5-4161-894c-de070a035c77&k=98326</FONT></TT></DIV>
<DIV><TT><FONT color=#000000><BR></FONT></TT></DIV>
<DIV><TT><FONT
color=#000000>m.</FONT></TT></DIV></DIV><BR>=======================================================<BR> List
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