New Renewable Plants Are Cheaper Than New Fossil Fuels In Australia

Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) in Australia has discovered that renewable energy is cheaper to produce than conventional fossil fuel sources, even without the subsidies.

The study found that electricity generation cost for a new wind farm is US$83 per MWh, compared to US$148 per MWh for a new coal plant and US$120 per MWh for a new gas plant, including the cost of emissions under the Gillard government’s carbon pricing scheme. However even without a carbon price wind energy is 14% and 18% cheaper than new coal and gas, respectively.

Few reasons driving the lower cost in building new renewable power plants:

(1) The cost has fallen by 10% for wind generation and 29% for solar photovoltaics since 2011.

(2) New coal is made expensive by high financing costs. Banks are unlikely to finance new coal without a substantial risk premium due to the reputational damage of emissions-intensive investments.

(3) New gas is expensive as the massive expansion of Australia’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export market forces local prices upwards.

(4) Carbon price adds further costs to new coal- and gas-fired plant and is forecast to increase substantially over the lifetime of a new facility.

BNEF’s analysts conclude that by 2020, large-scale solar PV will also be cheaper than coal and gas, when carbon prices are factored in. By 2030, dispatchable renewable generating technologies such as biomass and solar thermal could also be cost-competitive.

Of course, the new wind is cheaper than building new coal and gas, but still cannot compete with old assets that have already been paid off.

Source: http://blog.cleantechies.com/2014/01/07/unsubsidized-renewables-now-cheaper-than-subsidized-fossil-fuels-in-australia/

10 Things You Might Not Know About Caffeine

When come to caffeine, a lot of people would think of coffee and know that it will make you feel more alert. In moderate doses, it can boost memory, concentration, and mental health. But how much do we really know about caffeine?

Here are 10 lesser-known facts about caffeine:

(1) Decaf isn't the same as caffeine-free. Decaf coffees still contain caffeine ranging from 8.6mg to 13.9mg, compared to 95mg to 200mg in regular coffees.

(2) It takes 30 to 60 minutes for caffeine to reach its peak level in the blood, and 3 to 5 hours for our body to eliminate half of it. The remainder can linger for 8 to 14 hours.

(3) Caffeine affects people differently. Women generally metabolize caffeine faster than men. Smokers process it twice as quickly as nonsmokers do. Women taking birth control pills metabolize it at perhaps one-third the rate that women not on the Pill do. Asians may do so more slowly than people of other races.

(4) One might think that energy drinks would pack loads of caffeine. On the contrary, they contain considerably less than an old-fashioned cup of black coffee. An 8.4-ounce serving of Red Bull, for instance, has a relatively modest 76 to 80mg of caffeine, compared to 95mg to 200mg in a typical cup of coffee.

(5) Dark roasted coffees have less caffeine than lighter ones. This is because the roasting process burns off caffeine. So if you prefer less caffeine then you might opt for dark coffee.

(6) Caffeine is found in more than 60 plants. Tea leaves, kola nuts (which flavor colas), and cocoa beans all contain caffeine.

(7) All coffees are not created equal. It varies from brand to brand. For example, McDonald's coffee had 9.1mg per fluid ounce, while Starbucks' contains 20.6mg per fluid ounce.

(8) 80% of American adults consume caffeine each day, with average intake of 200mg, equivalent to 2 five-ounce cups of coffee or 4 sodas.

(9) Finland takes the crown for the country with the highest caffeine consumption, with the average adult taking 400mg each day. Worldwide, 90% of people use caffeine in some form.

(10) You can intake caffeine not just from drinks. Even though more than 98% of caffeine intake comes from beverages (like coffee, cola, etc), certain foods, such as chocolate (one-ounce milk chocolate bar contains about 5mg of caffeine), and medications can also contain caffeine.

Source: http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/healthy-drinks/10-surprising-facts-about-caffeine

23% Of 2012 Global Electricity Generated By Renewable Sources

National Renewable Energy Lab, U.S.A, reports that in 2012 23% of global electricity (4,892 TWh) was generated from renewable sources. Among all countries, Germany led in cumulative solar photovoltaic installed capacity, U.S.A. led in geothermal and biomass installed capacity, China led in wind and Spain led in solar thermal electric generation.

Few key findings are:

(1) The installed global renewable electricity capacity almost doubled between 2000 and 2012 (from 748 GW to 1,470 GW).

(2) In 2012, renewable electricity accounted for 14% of total installed capacity.

(3) Between 2000 and 2012, wind energy was one of the fastest growing renewable electricity technologies. Global wind electricity generation increased by a factor of nearly 16.

(4) Top countries with installed renewable electricity capacity:
      - China
      - U.S.A.
      - Brazil
      - Canada
      - Gremany

(5) Below graph shows the leading countries in various renewable technologies:

Are Vitamin And Mineral Supplements Necessary?

A lot of us are taking vitamin and mineral supplements every day thinking that they would help to keep us healthy and vigorous. Supplement industry is a huge and fast-growing market in U.S.A. and Europe. It has reached annual sales of US$28 billion in U.S.A in 2010. Supplements may be a very popular source of nutrients, but according to an article published on December 16 in Annals of Internal Medicine, they are nothing but a huge waste of money.

Most supplements do not prevent chronic disease or death, their use is not justified, and they should be avoided. In some cases, multivitamin supplements could even cause harm.

There were 3 parts to the study:

(1) Clinical trials carried out on 450,000 people found that it has never been scientifically established whether long-term vitamin use prevents heart disease and cancer.

(2) A 12-year study of 6,000 male physicians age 65 and older showed that those who took a multivitamin were no more likely to retain cognitive function than those who took a placebo. In fact, some supplements even cause harm, such as beta-carotene that increases the risk of lung cancer in smokers, and high doses of vitamins A and E that may increase risk of death and cause harm.

(3) A 5-year study done on 1,700 people who had record of heart attack before, with part took high doses of minerals and vitamins and part didn't. No difference found on the rate of heart attack on these 2 groups.

The study recommends that establishing healthy dietary habits is more important than ever. Supplements are not a replacement for the vitamins and minerals that come from eating a well-rounded, nutrient-rich diet on a regular basis.

Source: http://www.treehugger.com/health/multivitamins-and-dietary-supplements-are-waste-money-doctors-say.html