Essays & Other Articles

This section archives articles and essays on topics that don’t quite fit into the other categories on energy. They include articles on high-mileage vehicles, chain-reaction accidents, our neighbors, Tule fog, and . . . well . . . other subjects.

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Serendipity or How We Survived a Thunderstorm and Ate a Delicious Bear Claw

By

Paul Gipe

We’re continuing our Pandemic Peregrinations to explore our region of California. To that end we try head out most Thursdays for day trips in our Chevy Bolt. On this trip we drove to Mount Pinos in the Los Padres National Forest. It’s the closest place you can go to escape the sweltering heat of Bakersfield in August.

Alan Simpson’s Insightful Views on Energy Policy and British Politics

By

Paul Gipe

Alan Simpson, as he likes to say, is a ‘recovering politician and lapsed economist’. You can his find stinging critiques of energy policy, the lack thereof in Britain, and British politics in general at Alan Simpson–News from Somewhere Else.

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When Slide Rules Ruled

By

Paul Gipe

I don’t remember how slide rules came up in a conversation recently. It may have been when Nancy recalled her dreaded chemistry classes in college and noted that she never learned how to use the complimentary slide rules they were given in the class.

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Stick It to Putin–Drive Electric Now

By

Paul Gipe

You can—and should–do more to help Ukraine than waving a digital flag on social media. You can stick it to Putin, weaken his war machine, and drive a stake through the heart of oil oligarchs, wherever they are, by going electric. Ditch the diesel truck, park your polluter, get yourself an electric vehicle (EV) and drive on 100% American-made electricity.

WWEA and Global100RE call for renewable energy equipment for immediate humanitarian relief in Ukraine

By

Stefan Gsanger

In order to help civilians, the World Wind Energy Association WWEA and the Global 100% Renewable Energy Platform Global100RE, supported by Global100RE Ambassador Ruslana, are calling for donations of equipment which can supply power independently from the national grid, after all small and stand alone solar systems including batteries, power banks etc.

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A German View on the Invasion of Ukraine

By

Hans-josef Fell

The geopolitical upheaval surrounding Ukraine are in part the result of the EU’s dependence on fossil fuels and the faltering transition to renewable energy.