[supercat]

"Ethanol yields roughly 26% more energy than it takes to produce it, according to a just-published study by the University of California at Berkeley. That's because corn grows using free sunlight and because farming has gotten very efficient. Gasoline provides only about 84% of the energy required to produce it, the study says."

I suspect the latter figure means that every 100MJ worth of raw energy extracted from the ground, plus a certain amount of labor and expense, will have a net yield of 84MJ worth of gasoline. By contrast, the former figure means that every 100MJ worth of "refined" energy, plus a certain amount of labor and expense, will yield 126MJ worth of gasoline. To determine which type of fuel is more economical, it's necessary to know both the cost of labor and expense, and the relative values of raw and refined energy.

[Enduring Freedom]

If ethanol has the potential to displace Middle East oil imports in America, even if we must process ethanol refinery by nuclear energy, it will be worth it.

Your life may depend on it.

But any winning energy idea must:

1. Allow cheap conversion of existing automotive engines;
2. Never let drivers get stranded without fuel stations close by;
3. Have reasonable cost, mileage and performance equivalence to gasoline;
4. Permit the infrastructure of new fuel stations to grow over time.

New flex-fuel engines, a cheap conversion to existing gasoline engines, are available RIGHT NOW.

Flex-fuel engines ALREADY CAN alternate between gasoline and E85 fuel at the flick of a switch.

Welcome to the future.

And say goodbye, Mohammad.