I was at a technology conference last week in Boston, the high point of which was attending a Toyota Prius 'tear-down'. That's techno-geeky-speak for taking something apart and showing the audience the nitty-gritty that makes it work. In this case, CalCars (http://www.calcars.org), a non-profit group from California, was showing off - and discussing the engineering behind - their conversion of a Toyota Prius to plug-in mode. This is pretty cool, and you can check out the amazingly simple engineering behind the conversion on Cal Car's web site, but the point of this blog isn't so much the technological magic as the implications behind it.
The purpose of creating a hybrid that can recharge its batteries by plugging in to a home electrical wall socket is to give the car longer battery life by using a more powerful cell, and to minimize the overall carbon emissions (the reason our climate is in turmoil) of recharging it by plugging into the electrical grid (for an explanation of this concept, visit (http://www.calcars.org/faq.html#1). But in the words of the engineer from Cal Cars who presented the converted Prius' "guts" and the rationale behind its engineering, the project is also about the social and environmental implications of our driving choices. And that's a fundamental shift in our consumer-driven American mentality.
Thinking about our choice of automobile - or our choice of any consumer product - in terms of its implications for the rest of the world goes something like this: the car I drive, how much fuel it uses and how much CO2 and other pollutants it spews, impacts you, impacts the planet your children will inherit, and the environment children on the other side of the globe will inherit. For a long time many of us have been living a 'bubble mentality' that says, "as long as my little bubble of existence is protected, as long as I can afford to gas up my SUV, that's all I need to worry about." But of course, that's not how it works. Because our children and grandchildren (and their grandchildren) will be stuck with the state of the planet we create right now, and that starts with the car we choose. So the next time you're shopping for a new car, or thinking about ditching the gas-guzzling one in your driveway, do something good for your kids and the planet. Think about making the choice that will leave them - and the rest of the kids and animals - a happy, healthy planet.
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Living in the bubble mentality of “as long as I can gas up my SUV, that’s all I need to worry about” is a terrible state of mind that many Americans are in now. People need to realize that their actions do matter, and in their decision of what kind of vehicle they want to dive, they should realize that a car that gets better gas mileage can help save the environment. I feel that a lot of people don’t really believe that their vehicle choice has an effect on the environment but if you were to calculate the amount of gallons of fuel you could save every year by driving a car that is eco-friendly and fuel efficient, such as a hybrid, you would save over a hundred gallons of gas a year. Even if you don’t drive your vehicle very much, your saving will be quite substantial. Choosing a car that gets 20 miles per gallon verses one that gets 40, it adds up very quickly. If you dive an average of 20 miles a day, in one year you could save 180 gallons of gasoline if you had the fuel efficient hybrid.
The mentality of consumers needs to change in order to reserve the environment for our future generations. If consumers quit buying cars that are inefficient, that will lead the large car companies to put their resources into finding alternative ways to power our vehicles and to make them more environmentally friendly. If consumers ban together they can force car companies to lead the way in car design on the future. People alone do not have the available resources to change the way our cars are powered but if large companies do. Companies such as Toyota have already introduced hybrids such as the Camery and the Prius. However, the Camery only gets 35 miles per gallon. I believe that this is far from what could be achieved with a little persuasion from consumers.
With a little innovation I believe that we could create a vehicle that produces zero emissions and is more dependable than conventional vehicles. Vehicles need to be lighter, safer, more efficient, convenient, durable, and have an overall have the highest quality. People need to realize the potential for these improvements and push for them.
AA
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