NOVA | Car of the Future | Open Content | PBS

[jm764]

hydrogen\electric is the best way to make a car run (expecialy if you can convert the leftover water back into H2 and O to reuse again making it an unlimited resourse).

[dragg17]

I think electric cars are the best way for the future because we can have an unlimited supply of power through various engenius ideas such as geothermol plants(which work through turning unlimitied earth heat into electricity). Also have you guys seen a recharging system that doesn't require plugging into. I have one for my sonic care tooth brush at home. You can place these wireless recharging systems everywhere around the city for a car so that you could recharge your vehicle while parked.

[jardo5000]

i think we should stop calling them alternative vehicles and really bring cars like the water powered car mainstream

[thatlittleweirdkid]

I think you're talking about the ones with hydrogen cells, correct? if you are, the reason they are not mainstream, among other problems, is because it would be overwhelmingly priced and only the rich could buy it, and they don't care about gas money anyways. It would be a lose/lose for the manufacturers. But when they do fix it and it's cheaper, it will completely get rid of the electric car, which was a bad idea to begin with. what if you run out of power? you can't just fill, it has to charge

[ajhnubia]

All forms of energy have a place, people seem to think one technolgy will replace oil, it wont, we will have a mix, ruled by local market conditions. Eg Iceland is well on the way to become the worlds first hydrogen economy, because it has an abundance of hydro-elecric to make it. In the same way Brasil rules on etanol. what happens in the rest of the world depends on local recoreses and economy. What I am saying is give new technologies a chance, there is no need to knock one or the other.

[coquivagabundo]

I saw that show. just whatch when one of GM's VP is told Who The ^# needs 500HP in their car. First she thinks hes joking and when he repeats himself her whole facial expresion changed from heaven to hell, not to mention that somebody tried to shut up the TV show host by trying to put his arm around the TV show host mouth. Way to go GM nothing like tryng to supress the truh, I guess they knew where he was going to. they dont have the "Batt technology" for the Volt but do for polluting hummers

[crazycatfguy]

Ethanol is grain alcohol. It is in the beer I am drinking right now. It is a viable energy source when made from high sugar sources like sugar cane or sugar beets. Using corn or soybeans just takes food out of the mouth of the poor so we can drive our SUV's.

[Rickdeckard2020]

Hi there Allen,

imo Ethanol is not a viable alternative;

When you consider the energy and soil/water strain, needed to grow, harvest, process, store and transport the eth, the amount of net energy you get from it is underwelming.

But the millions in subsidies, time, effort, media coverage that are being spent on Ethanol for political reasons(farming subsidy, less of a threat to Big Oil), are not going to a far more efficient alternative(plugin EVs with solar panel roof)

[filmmonk]

There are viable options in biofuel, in Arizona they are working on a patented method to harvest algae into biofuel. they reuse most of the water and it doesn't even need to be clean. Algae doubles in size every 24 - 48 hours, so you could be harvesting every week. it doesn't need soil, just dirty water and lot's of sunlight. And it won't be cutting into food supply, unless you are really weird and like algae.

[Reverseflush]

..or drink beer

[anmoose]

Fantastic idea. Just as open source development has resulted in some of the world's best software, open source video could produce amazing results. Thanks to Nova for taking this step!

Moosie

[Rickdeckard2020]

Im usually not overjoyed by advertizing, but I will check the nova site for the video

about car of the future;

Ethanol is a scam. Hydrogen is a decoy and a scam

plug in electric with batteries is the way to go, having solar panels on you houses roof its even better.

If GM had not been scoundrels in the 90s by acquiring the EV1 battery patents only to sell them to Texaco while desttroying the evidence, electric cars would be the cars of the present!

[McSoustenfrugal]

PBS is the only hope in American television.

[Rickdeckard2020]

"PBS is the only hope in American television."

PBS has censored my message critical of Ethanol and Hydrogen

Im apparently not at liberty to explain why imo Electric cars are the way to go (and should already be on the road today) and that Ethanol and Hydrogen are a distraction

(Im not even sure this diluted comment will make it past censoring)

[Rickdeckard2020]

they had a technical problem, it wasnt censorship afterall, sorry for the reapeated statement

[HaoSci]

I have run out of patience, when can we have these futurist cars? I mean, it's been many years that I have heard solar panel cars, electric vehicles, etc. But It never came true, at least it never got popular.

[libertyerian]

most polution comes from elutriate and it is cheaper to reduce it there than in cars