Muse

If Only The Future Were Visible...

At first glance, this is a compelling development in environmental innovation. As I read the article, however, I had some questions, some to which I found no answer to date:

How much energy does this device USE (the answer - in the FAQs of the company’s site - is the equivalent of 5% of that captured, whch seems eminently fair to me).

If it costs $30K to make one unit, what is the mass production savings on the apparently required 6,000,000 units? I am assuming considerable.

What happens to the “sequestered” CO2? If we are simply talking about more pollutant storage, this does not strike me as a good solution.

Where would these be placed? (6,000,000 is a big number. I’m thinking we eliminate the ubiquitious unidirectional - or at best bidirectional - billboards that pepper our nation, and replace them with an equal number (1,000,000) of strategically placed 360 degree billboards…these things look like billboards in the making, no? The rest can sit atop buildings, much as A/C units on commercial properties…)

As a species, are we dumb enough to think our problems are solved by this device, and now we have free rein to get rid of the rest of the world’s trees?..I worry about that point, given our track record of limited common sense.