Sarkozy attacks EU carbon targets – Financial Times. “The fact that France opted decades ago to stake its future energy needs on carbon-free nuclear power – which today provides almost 80 per cent of French electricity needs – should be taken into account when setting overall targets, he suggests.”
Tiny Car, Tough Questions – The Washington Post. “There must be a way to reconcile mass car ownership with global warming, but, at the moment, we haven’t found it.”
The Other Nano – New York Times op-ed. “We know now that gas-driven automobiles do terrible damage to the environment, and the notion of loosing millions upon millions of new carbon emitters on our planet is not something to celebrate. So while we admire Mr. Tata’s business and engineering acumen in creating the Nano, we ardently wish that he would focus his talents elsewhere: creating transportation that is both affordable and doesn’t emit ever more greenhouse gases.”
Global Advances Challenge U.S. Dominance in Science – New York Times. “The United States’ position is especially delicate, the agency said, given its reliance on foreign-born workers to fill technical jobs…. Many Americans remain ignorant about much of science, the board said. Many are unable to answer correctly when asked whether Earth moves around the Sun (it does).” [Thanks, NYT, but we had already googled the answer....]
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re Sarkozy: They should take it into account for sure. Good point. Just build a fleet of nuclear powered cars, that will solve all the world’s problems.
I can see the nuclear 2CVs rolling off the production line now!
On the Tata and small car angle, the company is also investing in an even greener, if perhaps chancy, car. It’d run on air. Compressed air, that is, with of course clean exhaust and, given powerplant reform to run the compressors, probably a small carbon footprint. Just Google “Tata air car” and see…
Re: US science dominance.
India’s prime minister Manmohan Singh has announced unprecedented funding for science education and research, saying it is a top priority for his government. He has announced a range of schemes to attract students and replenish government agencies’ shrinking pool of scientific personnel.
From http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080109/full/451112b.html
India is engaging in a strong move to use compressed methane as a vehicle fuel generated via anaerobic digestion of renewable biomass.
Combine this with the fact that the Tata vehicle is intended to, at the very least, replace the existing smoke belching two stroke motorcycles, resplendent with Dad, Mum and four kids precariously balanced atop.
Perhaps the NYT’s time could be better spent analyzing trends in it’s own homegrown batch of Hummer driving rednecks instead.