Environment and Energy

A popular book by David J.C. MacKay Published on paper, 2 December 2008. Also available for free online. See the book's website [If that doesn't work, there's a local copy here] You may also enjoy reading The Truth About Phone Chargers and other thoughts in the Sustainable Energy - without the hot air Blog. On July 2nd 2009 I gave a talk for CityForum describing a possible road-map for UK energy to 2050. There is a paper ("Plan C", pdf) and a small set of slides (html). This road-map includes timescales and build-rates. For enthusiasts: One hundred pages of further notes on topics cut from the book while finishing it - including carbon, climate change, and strategies used for misleading people.

• Energy Crisis Cheat Sheet version 1 (postscript) | (pdf)
• Energy Crisis Cheat Sheet version 2 (postscript) | (pdf)

Kite.ps. Kite.pdf.

`Kite Power (notes) '.

TideEstimate.ps. TideEstimate.pdf. abstract. | <- UK |

` Under-estimation of the UK Tidal Resource '.

Lagoons.ps. Lagoons.pdf. abstract. | <- UK |

` Enhancing Electrical Supply by Pumped Storage in Tidal Lagoons '.

Erg06.ps.gz. Erg06.pdf. abstract. | <- UK | Canada -> | Erg06.ps.gz. Erg06.pdf. abstract.

` Ergodic Pumping: a mechanism to drive biomolecular conformation changes '.
by Robert S MacKay and David J C MacKay

Web-pages on various energy issues

• What's the highest efficiency a Solar-thermal power system could have? (Notes written in 2005)
• Phone chargers - the truth (Written Dec 21 2006.)

• Useful figures showing greenhouse gas pollution by country

  I think these are rather beautiful diagrams

Other useful resources on this website

• Introduction to Solar energy by John J. Hopfield and Jerry Gollub (1978)