dasunt
dasunt t1_ja4mw2q wrote
Reply to comment by bitfriend6 in How Much Land Would It Require To Get Most Of Our Electricity From Wind & Solar? by BlitzOrion
There's probably some stuff we could do over the course of a decade or two that would help mitigate the battery issue.
For example, modern water heaters can keep water hot for a decent amount of time - oversize them, and there could be a setup that heats water during the day for use at night. Fridges could be similar, but with cooling. And infrastructure at work could allow EVs to charge during the day. Cooling is another area.
Heating will likely be a problem though. Even with heat pumps, a large amount of electricity will be used. In theory, one could build energy efficient homes with thermal mass. In practice, homes tend to have longer lifespans - unlike appliances, the average home should last for decades before being replaced.
We're going to need something to provide electricity at night, be it wind, hydro, etc.
dasunt t1_iudlkcq wrote
Reply to comment by Lotharofthepotatoppl in TIL that when the French first arrived in North America they met the Ojibwe Indians who introduced them to other tribes but used nasty names. The Lakota/Dakota people were called "Nadowessiwag," which became Nadouessioux in French, then Sioux in English. It means "little snake." by marmorset
Reminds me of a trip I took recently that we through a place named Grand Marais.
The name translates to "big swamp".
Sounds much better in French!
dasunt t1_jdiwoi2 wrote
Reply to comment by MunWombat in TIL Daylight Saving Time (DST) was first used in 1908 in Port Arthur, Ontario (today's Thunder Bay). While Germany and Austria were the first countries to use DST in 1916, a few hundred Canadians beat the German Empire by eight years. by dremonearm
Depends if you value more sunlight before work, or after work.
DST just makes the sun rise an hour later in summer, and set an hour later.
As someone who is not a morning person, I prefer DST.