Renewable Energy: An Interdisciplinary Problem Solving Course
Alan H Mcgowan
This paper describes a new intermediate course given in the
Environmental Studies Program at The New School. It
incorporates research activities by the class as a whole, in
the process of which the class learns a great deal about the
science and technology of non-fossil fuels, their promises
and difficulties. Since ameliorating human influenced
global climate change, educating and training students in
the skills necessary to accomplish the necessary transition
is essential. The course embodies a class project on which
everyone works, entitled “Fueling America,” whose
purpose is to determine what technologies deployed in what
manner and in what quantities can eliminate the use of
fossil fuels in the United States by a date certain. Knowing
that it was impossible, we nevertheless chose an early date,
2030, so that it seemed reachable for the students. The
project resulted in a technical paper, which included an
economic analysis. In addition to alternative energy
technologies, the technologies of energy efficiencies were
also included. Full Text
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