SENTINEL WATCH April 6, 2009 Issue

SMART SOLUTIONS TO TOUGH ENERGY PROBLEMS

CHANNING WALKER

TUCKED INTO THE BACK of a recent book on reinventing energy is a section covering some of the longest of long-shot possibilities to become usable energy sources. To mention just one: a wind-powered generator tethered to the ground but airborne and in the jet stream at 35,000 feet. The winds there are a hundred time faster than close to the ground (see Miriam Horn and Fred Krupp, Earth: The Sequel: The Race to Reinvent Energy and Stop Global Warming, p. 238). For me, that hints at the numberless creative ideas coming from the divine source, a source regularly highlighted in the pages of this magazine.

Those creative, problem-solving ideas might seem commonplace. Or, they might seem the longest of long shots. Either way, it is God-derived inspiration that, in the final analysis, clears off what is not useful and forwards what is. We might say that spiritual inspiration acta as an underpinning to human innovation that is in som degree expressive of the Divine.

To me, this inspiration has been at work in the search for a better answer to issues with the electric grid in the United States. Some background: Over the decades this grid has grown piece by piece and is now a patchwork of 3,000-plus utilities. Each focuses on its own service area, but remains largely unmindful of utilities in adjoining service areas. While this grid is reliable, it isn't efficient. It isn't what you'd call "smart."