It's all over but for the sweating?

[freebeard]

From the linked article:

"This is an important first step that has great promise as an efficient and cost-effective method of producing fuels," Adams said. "In the future we will refine the process and begin testing it on larger scales."

biochar - Google Search

A solution that was used in antiquity, is scalable and has 'knock-on' benefits.

[NeilBlanchard]

Since we are not factoring in the real costs of fossil fuels, using oil (and coal and gas) is a massive economic bubble. We are "churning" stuff for short term profits, and finding out the hard way that there is no "away" into which we can throw out all the crap we buy.

The Story of Stuff Project

We cannot continue to have factory farming, either. Pouring chemical fertilizer (made from natural gas) onto the soil literally kills off the natural composting processes that build up the soil. The result is erosion - and the 6 FEET of soil in the great plains here in the USA is largely all gone. All that water soluble nitrogen runs off in the first rain, which poisons the water. Combine this with all the silt that causes a huge dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico - and then the nitrogen ends up as nitrous oxide, which is a powerful greenhouse gas. It eventually breaks down - and becomes carbon dioxide.

This nitrous oxide is about 25% of the GHG that we humans produce.

Add to this all the over-pumping of the deep aquifers, and the need to transport this food to the people who eat it, and we have a very large challenge on our hands.

We need to employ people right in our cities and towns, and grow all our food locally, and we get to eat everything in season. It is far more nutritious and tastes much better and we would be far more healthy. We would stop ingesting growth hormones and antibiotics and we would not be using GMO's, either.

http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/

Full employment, better food, much lower carbon footprint, better health, save huge amounts of water - there are only good things that come from this!

[freebeard]

The hippies were right? Who knew?

They were munching granola while the Grateful Dead fronted the 75-ton Wall of Sound.

[Occasionally6]

Originally Posted by freebeard

Agreed; but the '~U$15000/yr' may be true globally, in the USofA it's north of US$50K/yr.

I think it covers providing basic things like running hot and cold potable water, sewerage systems, refrigeration, electric light etc. (implying a reliable electricity supply), reliable and safe food, and shelter.

You can probably figure out what those things cost you. Even in the US, $15K should (at least could) cover providing them at a comfortable, if not luxurious, level.

[freebeard]

The distinction is that past a certain level of material wealth - I have seen reference in a few places to ~U$15000/yr - human happiness does not increase with increased material wealth. After that it only matters that you have more than other people do.

Happiness≠comfort and luxury.

Even in the US, $15K should (at least could) cover providing them at a comfortable, if not luxurious, level.

FWIW I live in that location at that income level and I'm happy; so, yeah.

[NeilBlanchard]

You are rich when you know you have enough.

[freebeard]

^-^
The problem is getting people to know when they have enough. Because, how can you really be sure in a zero-sum world..

[TheEnemy]

State of the Climate | Global Analysis - June 2013

•The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces for June 2013 tied with 2006 as the fifth highest on record, at 0.64°C (1.15°F) above the 20th century average of 15.5°C (59.9°F).
•The global land surface temperature was 1.05°C (1.89°F) above the 20th century average of 13.3°C (55.9°F), marking the third warmest June on record. For the ocean, the June global sea surface temperature was 0.48°C (0.86°F) above the 20th century average of 16.4°C (61.5°F), the 10th warmest June on record.
•The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for the January–June period (year-to-date) was 0.59°C (1.06°F) above the 20th century average of 13.5°C (56.3°F), tying with 2003 as the seventh warmest such period on record.

TSI Data

TSI average about 1361.4

[gone-ot]

Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard

You are rich when you know you have enough.

Uh, I thought the "Rich" criteria was "...not having to ask the price for anything..."

[freebeard]

This is outside my area of expertize, but maybe if you don't have to ask the price for anything, then you know you have enough?