I love the inventiveness, but solar cannot power an industrial society, and there is no need, environmental or otherwise to stop using abundant, flexible, and inexpensive hydrocarbons.
I love the inventiveness, but solar cannot power an industrial society, and there is no need, environmental or otherwise to stop using abundant, flexible, and inexpensive hydrocarbons.
I agree with most of your statement. Where I take exception is in your implication that we should be only using abundant, flexible, and inexpensive hydrocarbons. Unlike the environmentalists, who are exclusionists (no coal, no oil, no gas, no nuclear), I'm an inclusionist -- let's use all the energy sources available to us, and in particular let the market decide which methods to use where.
Personally, I don't like depending on just one technology, or a small group of technologies. Geothermal is viable in some places. Water power will be viable in some places. Solar will be viable in some places. WInd power will be viable in some places. Natural gas (and LPG) will be viable in some places. Let's let the local people decide what works for them.
If all USA roads, parking lots and sidewalks were replaced with Solar Roadways, the power generation could be over three times what we currently consume.