14 Challenges For Next 50 Years

pisces8 SG

The Sunday Times – 17 Feb 08 - 14 Challenges For Next 50 Years

The experts, comprising scientists, entrepreneurs and thinkers from around the world, unveiled a list of 14 “Grand Challenges” on 15 Feb 08 at the annual meeting of the American Association for the advancement of Science in “Boston. If met, the challenges would improve people’s lives, they said.

1 Make solar energy affordable

2 Provide energy from nuclear fusion

3 Develop methods to capture carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels and tackle global warming

4 Manage the rate at which human activity removes nitrogen from the air, worsening global warming

5 Provide access to clean water

6 Restore and improve urban infrastructure while preserving the environment

7 Advance health informatics so that doctors can track carefully patients’ biological information

8 Engineer better medicine

9 Reverse engineer the brain and determine how it works

10 Prevent nuclear terror by finding ways to protect energy sources

11 Secure cyberspace from identity thefts and viruses

12 Enhance virtual reality so that it can be used for training experts and treating patients

13 Advance personalised learning by using internet courses or virtual reality

14 Engineer the tools for scientific discovery

pisces8 SG

The group identified provision of clean energy as one of the priorities. They said that sunshine was a “tantalising source of environmentally friendly power”. But capturing it, converting it into something useful and storing it posed a challenge, they said.

pisces8 SG

Do you know how expensive it is to convert solar energy into electricity for use to power your electrical appliances in your house?

Electricity generated from solar power is much more expensive than you get it directly from the Main in Singapore at the moment.

OceansWorld SG

Protect Earth from Global warming. If we can not hangle that, there are going to have more disaster in the future.

---GlobalRoam---

Deino SG

wtf......no challanges over the rising sea level?

pisces8 SG

The Straits Times – 4 MAR 08

Why no subsidies for solar power

The government will not subsidise solar power, Minister of State (Trade and Industry) S Iswaran said on 3 Mar 08, This is in line with its policy of not helping end-users pay for energy.

However, it is setting aside S$20 million for a Solar Capability Scheme.

The fund will offset part of the cost of installing solar panels in new, green buildings. The Economic Development Board will release more details soon.

Mr Iswaran was responding to Nominated MPs Edwin Khew and Eunice Olsen, who suggested subsidising solar power, which is costlier than energy from more pollutive sources such as fossil fuels.

“Our basic policy tenet,” Mr Iswaran said, “is that energy costs should be borne in full by end-users. We do not subsidise the cost of energy because it will dampen price signals and create the incentive to over-consume.”

He added that the Government should be consistent and not subsidise a specific type of renewable energy.

Otherwise, questions would be raised about why it subsidised solar power but not bioenergy, or why it provided subsidies for energy but not other goods.

It is thus better for the Government to invest in research and developement to develop technologies that will lower the cost of generating alternative energy, Mr Iswaran said.

There would then be no need to talk about subsidies.

Subsidies are also not sustainable in the long run, he said, noting that the Government has instead encouraged competition to put downward pressure on prices.

And consumers have benefited, he said. To back his point, he observed that the price of fuel oil had doubled since 2001, but the electricity tariff for households has gone up by only 14 percent, even though fuel makes up 55 percent of the cost of electricity generation.

Households will also gain when the gas market is further liberalised.

Mr Iswaran noted that tensions and trade-offs between energy security, economic competitiveness and environmental sustainability, but stressed that economic growth is the best response to the current uncertain global energy outlook.

With growth, Singapore will have the resources to secure its energy supply, keep the environment clean and find new solutions.

The Government is also diversifying its sources of energy, such as by importing liquefied natural gas.

It has set up an International Advisory Panel on Energy comprising top leaders, eminent individuals and energy experts from around the world.

To be chaired by Mr Iswaran, the panel will meet for the first time in November as part of the first International Energy Week here.

pisces8 SG

Do not expect any incentive from the Government, if you intend to install solar panel (PV) on top of your house.

Whereas in Korea, the “feed-in-tariff” government policy is driving a rapid growth of PV power plants. Feed-in-tariff for PV - The government compensates the difference between power generation cost and sale price.

aiglosicicle SG

wtf......no challanges over the rising sea level?

if you can counter global warming the sea wouldnt rise

Deino SG

if you can counter global warming the sea wouldnt rise

global warming cannot be countered.....it could only be slowed and stopped.....its not only becoz of the melting ice but also becoz of the expanding water due to rising tempratures too

Go SG

Somethings to look forward

pisces8 SG

The Straits Times – 13 MAR 08

Forum Page - "Subsidies not prudent for renewable energy"

In answering to a letter “Vital to pursue renewable energy policy” (7 Mar 08) by Mr Tan Tze Kiang who says that the Government should subsidies alternative energy, in particular solar power, Ms Lim Bee Khim, Director, Corporate Communications, Ministry of Trade and Industry said:

“Mr Tan claims solar power is “almost free”, and yet he also says there are “relatively heavy start-up costs” which should be subsidised. The fact is that solar power costs two to three times as much as electricity generated through conventional means.”

“This is precisely due to the high upfront cost of installating solar panels, which has to be included in the cost of solar power generated over the useful life of these panels.

“A subsidy will distort the energy market by artificially lowering the cost of solar energy and encouraging its consumption relative to other forms of unsubsidised energy.”