The world's largest auto market has a way of dictating the issue.

[sendler]

Energy is not just heat. It's everything. Watch Nate Hagens.
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https://youtu.be/YUSpsT6Oqrg
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[Xist]

What is this "need" you speak of.

How many people in the south use the heater despite you saying they do not need it? Have you told them they did not need it?

They do controlled burns throughout the year in the Show Low area. Dad used to have some contacts and always pushed to thin the trees, chip it, and sell the chips.

Make money and reduce forest fires?

Apparently they prefer starting forest fires instead.

I do not know much about the population outside of the U.S., but https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/22/u...h.html?mcubz=1

One idea is to move people from places that do not grow food to places that grow food. You can try saying "No kids for you!"

Let me know how that works out.

An acre is a statistic. How many people can visualize how large 1/640th of a square mile is?

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Seems like the Chinese government is aiming toward ethanol, and likely to increase its local production by 2020. Since it's stockpiling corn in order to control the prices, turning that into ethanol sounds like a good option. I'd just be curious to figure out how they would use the distillation grain...

[sendler]

That would be a very foolish move going forward.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by sendler

That would be a very foolish move going forward.

Not so foolish. Going all-electric is not so easy, and there are many agricultural residues and crop surpluses that can be repurposed into fuels. At least it's more effective as a measure to close the carbon cycle instead of just letting it rot away releasing methane which has a longer half-life than CO².

[sendler]

If it is done with byproduct and not food. Ok. But the bigger motivation is to get the smog out of the cities. The air there is notorious.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by sendler

If it is done with byproduct and not food. Ok. But the bigger motivation is to get the smog out of the cities. The air there is notorious.

The distillation grain can still be used as a protein source. Anyway, considering the worldwide trend toward a reduction on the carbohydrates added to processed foods, it makes sense to turn some of these into ethanol. BTW there is at least one soybean processing plant in Brazil looking to use the soybean molasses that come as a byproduct of concentrate soy protein as a feedstock for ethanol, and it's also worth to remind that soybean is another staple of Chinese cuisine.

[niky]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

I don't think they care about the air quality, if anything they like it as it keeps people from getting old. Otherwise they would be making old people into Soylent Green or something.
I think developing countries skipped landlines because of cost, not because it's better or cleaner technology. If you don't already have the lines it just costs more to add them then cell towers. Cost will always be the driver in developing countries.

China's wealth comes from industrial production.

Healthy workers means better production.

Air quality is one of the big problems the government is tackling and taking seriously.

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Cabled internet and... errh... cable... is more reliable and quicker than wireless.

Landlines are not more expensive (on the consumer side). It's just that a smartphone is more useful as a communications device than a landline.

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A bit like: "Why would I still want to install a telegraph when I could have a telephone, instead."

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Back in the 80's, our only means of intertown communication was via CB radio. Landline telephony didn't reach our town then.

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I just had a phone installed. An actual, honest-to-goodness telephone. After living in this country for nearly thirty eight years.

One of the great barriers to information infrastructure (in this country, at least) is transport infrastructure. It's hard to string out a cable or erect a cell tower when there are no roads going where you want to set it up.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

The most noticeable advantage that I have noticed when it comes to cellphones and wireless internet is that it seems less prone to weather damage and resumes operation quicker after any occurrence.