I had this really strange vision this morning. I saw a billionaire who started a car company making cars that ran on alternate power such as solar/hydro, etc, and gave jobs to Americans, got the U.S. out of debt and gave us our freedom back from being tied so long to the foreign oil countries. Aside from building the cars, they also built service and parts stations and made everything affordable enough so everyone could have this new type of car. In doing so, it would force the old car companies to switch to this more efficient technology.
And I saw the commercials the new car company used. The cars looked much the same as they do now, not futuristic or anything weird and the marketing would be very effective. These commercials would one day in the future become classics, much like the old 1984 Apple Macintosh commercial did. It would completely revolutionize the car industry and make our gas guzzling cars a thing of the past.
I had this really strange vision this morning. I saw a billionaire who started a car company making cars that ran on alternate power such as solar/hydro, etc, and gave jobs to Americans, got the U.S. out of debt and gave us our freedom back from being tied so long to the foreign oil countries. Aside from building the cars, they also built service and parts stations and made everything affordable enough so everyone could have this new type of car. In doing so, it would force the old car companies to switch to this more efficient technology.
And I saw the commercials the new car company used. The cars looked much the same as they do now, not futuristic or anything weird and the marketing would be very effective. These commercials would one day in the future become classics, much like the old 1984 Apple Macintosh commercial did. It would completely revolutionize the car industry and make our gas guzzling cars a thing of the past.
Shit man, if this happened for real, I would let you have your way with me.
Shit man, if this happened for real, I would let you have your way with me.
I saw the commercials in my mind so vividly, it was surreal. It would take too long to describe them but I really hope I was channeling something.
That's the new thing that needs to happen. Computers, TVs, phones and all that other shit has been modernized and brought into the 21st century, now it's time for cars to be updated.
And will someone please invent the flat-screen air conditioner the way we have flat-screen TVs and monitors? I'm still waiting for that. That big AC in my window weighs a ton.
The major problems with cars is getting the kind of efficiency-cost ratios for alternative propulsion methods to something like ye olde internal combustion engine. Those big oil guys and the hedge fund assholes (I'm looking at you, Warren Buffet) who make their money on oil use their pull to keep funding away from groups researching alternative locomotion so the technology remains weak and expensive. The closest thing to something awesome is the Honda Insight, which runs on hydrogen fuel cells, but those are/were being limited to leases in California from what I last remember (which was several years ago...).
The difference between a flat-panel TV and a flat-panel AC is their technologies are completely different. We can make electronics smaller, it works on an atomic scale. HVAC is a different matter, since we're doing thermodynamics and that doesn't scale as nicely. Other than using new designs that increase surface areas for heat transfer, we'd have to figure out a way to transfer heat out of the air in a completely new and novel way. The compressor for the coolant and the fan for moving the air also take up a good bit of space.
The major problems with cars is getting the kind of efficiency-cost ratios for alternative propulsion methods to something like ye olde internal combustion engine. Those big oil guys and the hedge fund assholes (I'm looking at you, Warren Buffet) who make their money on oil use their pull to keep funding away from groups researching alternative locomotion so the technology remains weak and expensive. The closest thing to something awesome is the Honda Insight, which runs on hydrogen fuel cells, but those are/were being limited to leases in California from what I last remember (which was several years ago...).
I was wondering what the fuck was up with those cars I've started seeing around here. Yes, I live in California, and yes they're still out and about, I see quite a few of them.
This post has been edited by Pseudolus: Aug 29 2011, 05:46
Yeah, I saw a commercial for one pretty recently (in between some UFC fight commercials) and I thought to myself 'you know, I've always wanted a hybrid' but I didn't know it worked on hydrogen fuel cells. Though my little Corolla has a loooong life ahead of it, whenever I do get a new car in the future it might just be an Insight. Or a Prius, but DAMN I see Prius' everyfuckingwhere. They're like the roach of cars around Cali man.
Well, they're electric, but they're not "hybrid" cars. They use hydrogen fuel cells (they're being limited to Cali because they have to put in hydrogen refueling stations) to generate electricity, and the byproduct is steam. Fucking water vapor. The output is also higher, so they can support better motors and therefore have better acceleration. They also don't look half-bad compared to the janky little Prius. If I had money, I would totally get a Tesla. Them's be bitchin' rides.
I was looking at the Insight and found it to be a normal car, you probably saw the [en.wikipedia.org] Honda FCX Clarity and confused the name with the [en.wikipedia.org] Honda Insight. If the leasing costs weren't so high I might get one... Maybe in the future when I have a high paying job.
This is just my two cents. Instead of cutting down dependance on oil, America should cut down it's dependance on cars.
Phase One: Increase and improve buses and trains so that you can get anywhere in a city or cities quickly and efficiently.
Phase Two: Increase the legal driving age to 18... at least! The most dangerous part of driving is the driver. Less cars on the road equals less traffic and safer driving conditions.
It's important to do it in that order to decrease the amount of bitchin from teens who can't get to their precious mall or whatever shit kids go to these days. I'd also like to increase the legal work age to 18 to cut down on job competition, even if just a little.
OR go the smart way which will eventually mean free energy to everyone. but like cmal said, the only reason it hasn't happened by now is the oil tycoons. it really is a simple solution, its just a few people in power keeping this country on its knees for their sake.
I was looking at the Insight and found it to be a normal car, you probably saw the [en.wikipedia.org] Honda FCX Clarity and confused the name with the [en.wikipedia.org] Honda Insight. If the leasing costs weren't so high I might get one... Maybe in the future when I have a high paying job.
Yeah, I totally did.
Improved public transportation would be great, I completely fell in love with the rail system when I was in Japan. Too bad it requires a lot of infrastructure. That and America is a car culture. You'd need to get a generation or two to get used to using public transport over personal transport.
I showed my friend the Insight since he is in the market for a Prius, and now he is thinking about which one to buy. I also showed him the FCX Clarity and explained how hydrogen-bonds work and why the emissions are vapor (he has never taken science classes other than in high school). He was all like 'man that would be badass' but then I explained the lease agreement to him. He went sad. As did I.
What was the last thing you thought?, general edition
Aug 28 2011, 05:16
