Monday 28 June 2010

Holiday!

I am off on my holiday until the 8th. Woop! The next question will be on the 12th of July, when I return, with the answer on the 19th.

See you soon.

Issue #2 - Eye Wonder


Where does light go after entering the eye?
Asked by: Adam Ellison

After going for an eye test, in which a photo of my retina was taken, I got thinking about where light goes after entering the eye. Does it bounce off the retina and back out again? Or does it bounce around the eye? Which would surely result in a confusing display of multiple images. The answer to both of these questions is a simple no. Now my question may have been a silly one, as the blackness of the pupil highlights the fact that no light is escaping, but this only makes me ask, why? What stops the light from leaving the eye?

The main reason light does not leave the eye is due to the layer that sits both behind the retina and the front of the eye. This layer is made up of the choroid, a vascular connective tissue, which supplies oxygen and nourishment to the outer layers of the retina, ciliary body and the iris. The choroid forms the uveal tract, which contains melanin, a reddish-blue, almost black pigment, that improves the contrast of images on the retina by absorbing excess light and blocking light that may get through the sclera (the exterior layer of the eye or ‘white of the eye’). However in Albino humans melanin is absent, resulting in poor vision as light reflects around the eye, creating a blurred image. In many animals the low levels of melanin (and tapatum layer) contributes to their ability to see well in the dark.

There is one exception to the rule, where the eye is unable to control excess light. It is known as the red-eye effect, which can ruin many a good photo. A quick flash of light, when used in a low light condition, will enter a wide-open pupil and, because the eye is too slow to react, it reflects off the retina. This is how the Optometrist was able to take a photo of my retina. After administering tropicamide eye drops, my pupil dilated, allowing the flash to bounce of my retina and into the eye of the camera.

Who's In Charge



Spot the Tiger is holding an exhibition with a collection of the lastest pieces created for the project. My illustration for the question 'Should employment strikes be banned?' will be featured in the exhibition taking place at the Dreamspace Gallery from July 5th - 16th. You can also purchase a print of my piece at the Spot the Tiger's online shop along with many of the other talented fellow illustrators.

Monday 21 June 2010

Out of the Question #2


Q: Where does light go after entering the eye?

Check back on Monday the 28th for the next issue of Out of the Question.

Issue #1 - Will Renewable Energy Save the Day?

Is it possible to provide enough energy for the entire population of Earth using only renewable sources, without the further development of Fusion technology, before fossil fuels run out?
Asked by: Jake Blanchard

When exactly will fossil fuels run out? This is one of the most debated questions on this subject, and peak oil theory is gaining more ground within politics and the scientific community. Peak oil is when the maximum rate of global oil extraction is reached; afterwards the amount of oil produced enters an inevitable decline. In 1956 M. King Hubbert predicted that the United States oil production would reach peak in 1969, but today politicians and oil companies insist that oil has yet to peak and that we can expect it around 2020,-2030. ZERO CARBON BRITIAN 2030, the latest significant energy strategy report for the UK, states,

‘Non-renewable fossil fuels are clearly finite and so cannot last forever... The point at which global production of conventional oil reaches its maximum is generally called “peak oil”. As it depends on many factors, it is extremely hard to determine precisely when it will occur, or how steep the ensuing descent will be.’

This also applies to coal and natural gases, with predictions for coal to run out in around 250 years and natural gases between 40-70 years. The companies in charge of mining and drilling add extra years to their calculations, in the hope that new technology will bring greater supply. Unfortunately at the moment the answer to this question is we don’t know exactly when they will run out, it could be somewhere between 4-250 years, with oil being the first to go. Meanwhile, the world is becoming more and more fossil fuel hungry.

As it currently stands the world uses around 12.5 Terawatts of energy (12 X 1012) and this is set to rise to around 16.9 TW by 2030. Based on the statistical reviews from BP and REN21 in 2006, renewable sources produce 8.24% of this needed energy, with fossil fuels being the greatest contributor at 85% (Oil 37%, Coal 25% and Gas 23%). The use and popularity of renewable energy has increased since 2006, but still has a long way to go before it can give fossil fuel a run for its money.


So is it really possible for the wind, the tide and the sun to power the Earth?

According to scientist Mark Z. Jacobson and Mark A. Delucchi this is not such a far-fetched idea.

"A large-scale wind, water and solar energy system can reliably supply the world’s needs, significantly benefiting climate, air quality, water quality, ecology and energy security”
November 2009 Scientific American Magazine ‘A Plan to Power 100 Percent of the Planet with Renewables’

Jacobson and Delucchi’s push for a greater increase in renewable energy sources using currently existing technology would transform the world’s energy system in which the 16.9 TW prediction for 2030 would be reduced to 11.5 TW due to electrical energy being more efficient than combustion. Here are their plans explained:


The Break Down

Solar 41% This would include two forms of solar energy generation. An increase in Solar Photovoltaic Panels -the cellular panels we are increasingly familiar with - that could be situated on roof tops both domestic and commercial, and a massive investment into the newer Concentrated Solar Plants - a field of mirrors which focus the light to a single point to generate heat, which is transferred into energy. Jacobson and Delucchi predict around 89,000 Photovoltaic and Concentrated Solar Plants, producing 300 megawatts apiece, will be needed to meet this target.

Wind 50% To generate the required amount of energy, there would need to be 3.8 million large wind turbines, all producing at a rate of 5 megawatts, with the worldwide footprint of the wind turbines being 50 square kilometers (smaller then Manhattan).

Water Energy 9% 900 hydroelectric stations worldwide are needed to produce the sufficient amount of energy, but with 70 percent of these plants already in place we are well on our way to meeting this target.

(Scientific American Magazine ‘Powering a Green Planet: Sustainable Energy, Made Interactive’)


A Rosy Outlook?

The debate rages on whether renewable energy can really be scale up to the magnitude needed, efficiently. Conservation biologist Jesse Ausubel argues that the increase of renewable energy would lead to the ‘rape of nature’ (New Scientist 2006) and that ‘the best energy solution is increased efficiency, natural gas with carbon capture, and nuclear power.’ Some have criticized Ausubel comments as being exaggerated and inflammatory, but his opinionated paper ‘Renewable and nuclear heresies’ does raise some important issues around the effectiveness of renewable sources. Issues that also concern Stewart Brand, in his argument as part of the debate ‘Does the world need nuclear energy?’ at TED, Brand commented on the efficiency of renewable energy.

‘Wind is wonderful... But one of the things we're discovering is that wind, like solar, is an actually relatively dilute source of energy. And so it takes a very large footprint on the land’

Adding,

‘…to get 13 clean terawatts of energy from wind, solar and biofuels, [the] area would be roughly the size the United States, an area he refers to as "Renewistan."’

Governments are trying to increase the production of renewable energy and decrease CO2 to meet the Kyoto agreement. If ZERO CARBON BRITAIN 2030’s case is successful we will see Britain meeting Mark Z. Jacobson and Mark A. Delucchi plan and hopefully putting the renewable energy critics to bed. The road to a world powered by renewable energy will be bumpy, and we may never get there completely if Fusion or Nuclear can have anything to do with it. I believe, for what it is worth, that we will never truly run out of fossil fuel, because as supply declines, prices will increase and so will alternative energy sources, leading to people becoming less and less reliant on fossil fuel and use of energy becoming more and more efficient. Let’s hope!


If you have anything to add, disagree on or rant about please leave a comment below.


The future of renewable energy?

news.bbc.co.uk - Science and Environment article
www.physorg.com
www.ted.com - Ted Talk/Saul Griffith/On Kites As the Future of Renewable Energy


References

Scientific American -Powering a Green Planet
www.zerocarbonbritian.org
www.ren21.net
www.beyondzeroemissions.org
www.bp.com
New Scientist - Renewable Energy Could Rape Nature
Scientific American.com - A path to Sustainable Energy by 2030
www.stanford.edu - Mark Jacobson
www.ted.com Debate Does The World Need Nuclear Energy

Sunday 20 June 2010

Monday 14 June 2010

If you can think of it, there is a Dubstep remix of it!

I just thought I had invented a new form of Dupstep, Disney Dubstep, when I combined the words in casual conversation. Alas it has already been done! Those Dubsteppers are always one step ahead.

Out of the Question


Today marks the beginning of 'Out of the Question'

Out of the Question is a weekly/fortnightly online zine answering the pointless, poignant and perplexing questions thought up by Adam Ellison and any participating ponder.’

So get thinking and send any of your questions however sensible or silly, to me at adotellison@googlemail.com.

We hit it off with a little question put to me by illustrator Jake Blanchard.

Q: 'Is it possible to provide enough energy for the entire population of Earth using only renewable sources, without the further development of Fusion technology, before fossil fuels run out? '

A: Check back on Monday 21th of June for issue #1 of Out of the Question.

Tuesday 8 June 2010

Fountain Head



A little google treat for you. (via adlibs.paloaltoonline.com)

Thursday 3 June 2010

Computer Arts


I have been lucky enough to be featured in the latest issue of Computer Arts in their exposure section. Check it out!