Final Presentation Topics
Assignments: (will be posted, first come first served)
A body of newpaper articles are
organized by topics on
Resouces; each list in rough reverse chronological order
You are not restricted to these suggestions. But you must check
any topic with us to protect you from known disaster topics. The list
starts with topics never before taken as they did not exist last year.
They are brave but relevent.
TAKEN
algae biodiesel -- Dustin
LED lighting -- Josh
colonization of mars / terraforming -- Gary
magnetic confinement fusion -- JonathonS
alternate space propulsion -- BrandonS
laser-induced fusion -- KrisS
nuclear terrorism -- Richie
automobile safety / crashworthiness of automobiles -- GarrettK
genetic engineering of plants -- NickP
automated highways -- Reza
forecasting volcanos / Mt St. Helens / Yellowstone -- NickD
superconducting electricity transmission -- JohnN
Chernobyl now -- Gyorgy
clean diesel engines -- Kyle *
OTEC = ocean thermal energy conversion -- JonathanY *
oil from tar sands & shale -- BrandonP *
plasma trash gasification -- Owen *
concrete houses -- JohnO *
HIV in Africa -- Cole *
disappeared:
ChrisU
JonathanW
Braver Topics
Frackkafuture: Shale gas -- esp., in Pennsylvania; implication for Ohio
Candadian oil and gas for US
Changes in inspection and maintenance of nuclear plants
Changes in extending operating licenses of nuclear plants - world.
Lesson from Fukushima 1: multi-disaster effect on design and operation
Lesson from Fukushima 2: monitor radiation and local implications
Lesson from Fukushima 3: can industry and governments be trusted: data
Material scarcity 1: effect on cost estimate of new power sources
Material scarcity/danger 2: building recycyling and model change into costs
(low energy lighting, electric cars, electronics)
Are there zero net water or zero net energy buildings (e.g., in NYC?) or
cities (e.g., Las Vegas?). How could this be possible? You might
concnetrate on aspects of the effort, using solid references with
verifiable numbers.
Local Topics
How green are local building: compare, for example, two new campus
buildings -- RPAC (246) and Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center
(191) -- with renovation of a former department store building downtown
(Lazarus).
Topics that have worked
biodiversity in the food supply --
forecasting earthquakes (March 11 and National Capital area)
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/
forecasting secondary effect of volcanos/earthquakes --
methal hydrates --
oil spills -- really a Brave topic these days
rare earth metals: resources & consumption -- see Brave topics
superconducting energy storage --
topsoil erosion --
POTENTIAL CHOICES
automobile exhaust technology
carbon sequestration
deep-well geothermal power
dioxin
earth-sheltered homes
el nino / la nina
flywheels
forecasting tornados
influenza/bird flu
KERS (Formula-1 hybrids) --
mercury pollution
overgrazing
rainforests & deforestation
retirement of nuclear reactors -- Brave topics
using ice cores to measure historical climate
urban planning / "smart growth"
Note: This will be cleaned up with a short list of links to
resources in Resources section. But wait until I get it organized.
If you can't find one of these links, ask; some are hidden in
Resouces/BAK/Essays/..
Iinks to topics above and new ones you may invent and sell us.
- See also Links
under Essays
-
Do nations go to war over water?
Water use globally per year: one m3 of water to drink,
100 m3 for washing/cleaning, 1000 m3
to grow food we eat. But when locally the water grows scare, do we go to
war? Generally not but why?
Making US climate change law
What challenges lie ahead as the United States tries to construct a
working system for greenhouse-gas regulation? Jeff Tollefson reports.
- Nuclear Power may be in early
stages of a revival. (But are the facts true -- for example, can a
Florida
utility charge for nuclear plant not yet supplying energy?)
- Ultrathin solar
cells; see
news and views first.
- Century of Ammonia syntheis
changed the world, role of ammonia in agriculture (and also
warfare), broader effect and unanticipated environmental consequences.
- Energy lessons from the
'70s How nuclear energy outperformed so without new plants it is
still important contributor to electricity supply.
- Norway's Efforts to Contain
Greenhouse Gases Move Forward -- and Backfire How higher taxes work
better than lower ones.
-
How basic research can meet future
energy
needs
- Little Indian scrub could be biofuel
source in 11 Oct 2007 Nature;
see also Nature editorial Kill king
corn.
- WSJ Energy
Report 15 Sept 08; see articles on persistence of gas engine,
emission tradings, simple tips on saving gas, videos for alternative
cars; non-car topics include: LED for lighting, clean coal abroad,
quirky views on oil (executive flight, venture capitall, UK thinking
green); alternate car fuels: what, deals, and paying to pollute.
Use them as source of references.
- Friendly invaders, Do
exotic species really cause substantial extinction of native species.
- Spreading Dead Zones and
consequences for marine ecosystems, R J Diaz and R Rosenberg, Science
321, 926-929 (2008) [ignore first page];
Histogram
of Dead zones with time (shortest supplement to review article).
- Nuclear Power may be in early
stages of a revival. (But are the facts true -- for example, can a
Florida
utility charge for nuclear plant not yet supplying energy?)
- Ultrathin solar
cells; see
news and views first.
- Century of Ammonia syntheis
changed the world, role of ammonia in agriculture (and also
warfare), broader effect and unanticipated environmental consequences.
- Energy lessons from the
'70s How nuclear energy outperformed so without new plants it is
still important contributor to electricity supply.
- Norway's Efforts to Contain
Greenhouse Gases Move Forward -- and Backfire How higher taxes work
better than lower ones.
-
How basic research can meet future
energy
needs
- Little Indian scrub could be biofuel
source in 11 Oct 2007 Nature;
see also Nature editorial Kill king
corn.
- WSJ Energy
Report 15 Sept 08; see articles on persistence of gas engine,
emission tradings, simple tips on saving gas, videos for alternative
cars; non-car topics include: LED for lighting, clean coal abroad,
quirky views on oil (executive flight, venture capitall, UK thinking
green); alternate car fuels: what, deals, and paying to pollute.
Use them as source of references.
- Hockey stick holds up:
2000 climat
e
- Friendly invaders, Do
exotic species really cause substantial extinction of native species.
- Spreading Dead Zones and
consequences for marine ecosystems, R J Diaz and R Rosenberg, Science
321, 926-929 (2008) [ignore first page];
Histogram
of Dead zones with time (shortest supplement to review article).
- News & views: Artic Carbon Count
full article C Beer (Nat. Geoscence
1, 567 (2008). Importance of Artic soils organic content as
climatee warms.
- Update on Yucca Mtn. Nuclear Storage
- Future
Transports Editor
ial