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Weather: Cloudy. A chance of showers in the morning, then showers in the afternoon. More humid with highs in the lower 70s. Temperature falling into the upper 60s in the afternoon. South winds around 5 mph, becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of rain 80 percent. Wednesday Night: Cloudy. A chance of showers in the evening. Lows in the upper 40s. Northwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30 percent.
- Daily weather briefing from the National Weather Service in Jacksonville here.
- Drought conditions here. (What is the Keetch-Byram drought index?).
- Check today’s tides in Daytona Beach (a few minutes off from Flagler Beach) here.
- Tropical cyclone activity here, and even more details here.
Today at a Glance:
The Flagler County Contractor Review Board meets at 5 p.m. at the Government Services Building, 1769 East Moody Boulevard, Bunnell. Staff liaison is Bo Snowden, Chief Building Official, who may be reached at (386) 313-4027. For agendas and details go here.
Flagler County’s Technical Review Committee Meeting at 9 a.m., first floor Conference Room, at the Government Services Building, 1769 East Moody Boulevard, Bunnell. The Technical Review Committee (TRC) is a quality control committee that provides technical review of project plans. Staff Liaison is Gina Lemon, 386-313-4067.
The Palm Coast Planning and Land Development Board meets at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall. The board is taking on proposed changes–and relaxation of–house-paint color rules.
Separation Chat, Open Discussion: The Atlantic Chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State hosts an open, freewheeling discussion on the topic here in our community, around Florida and throughout the United States, noon to 1 p.m. at Pine Lakes Golf Club Clubhouse Pub & Grillroom (no purchase is necessary), 400 Pine Lakes Pkwy, Palm Coast (0.7 miles from Belle Terre Parkway). Call (386) 445-0852 for best directions. All are welcome! Everyone’s voice is important. For further information email [email protected] or call Merrill at 804-914-4460.
Weekly Chess Club for Teens, Ages 9-18, at the Flagler County Public Library: Do you enjoy Chess, trying out new moves, or even like some friendly competition? Come visit the Flagler County Public Library at the Teen Spot every Wednesday from 4 to 5 p.m. for Chess Club. Everyone is welcome, for beginners who want to learn how to play all the way to advanced players. For more information contact the Youth Service department 386-446-6763 ext. 3714 or email us at [email protected]
The Circle of Light Course in Miracles study group meets at a private residence in Palm Coast every Wednesday at 1:20 PM. There is a $2 love donation that goes to the store for the use of their room. If you have your own book, please bring it. All students of the Course are welcome. There is also an introductory group at 1:00 PM. The group is facilitated by Aynne McAvoy, who can be reached at [email protected] for location and information.
Notably: Can you spot the copyright infringement in the picture above? We passed by the gallery, closed by then, on a street in DeLand last Saturday (the place appears to be called Art Studio 308, not to be confused with the address, which is 122 East Rich Avenue). The charcoalish version of Afghan Girl, as National Geographic’s most iconic cover has (terribly) come to be known, caught my attention. It looked more like a refugee ghost from a Henry James story (you can’t blame his characters from wanting to bail from his asphyxiating pages) than the “girl” herself, whose portrait by Steve McCurry near Peshawar, in Pakistan, in 1984, played on the green of her eyes (the color of hope) and the green peeking through the rips in her crimson kamiz, and that haunted look of fear, just fear. It is unpleasant to read the account of the photograph’s creation, because it is a reflection of imperiousness: From The Wire: “McCurry was a complete stranger, and it is not welcome for a girl of traditional Pashtun culture to reveal her face, share space, make eye contact and be photographed by a man who does not belong to her family. For the photograph, she had been moved to a different location with better light and a clean background. When McCurry entered, he spotted Sharbat Gula’s piercing green eyes, though she made an effort to cover her face. McCurry asked her class teacher to instruct her to cooperate. After being compelled to “let him photograph her… she lowered her hands” – in McCurry’s own words – to uncover her face.” So she had not been pleased to be photographed. She had not wanted to be photographed. It was a violation of sorts. It hasn’t stopped. McCurry hasn’t stopped. (See the video below.) She was later identified as Sharbat Gula, because we can never leave well enough alone. McCurry kept trying to find her on subsequent trips and did in 2002, when she was 30. After using her image for marketing worth tens of millions of dollars, National Geographic paid some of her family’s medical bills and for a pilgrimage to Mecca. She left Afghanistan for Italy in 2021. Imagine her walking down a street in DeLand, maybe with her own children or grandchildren, and seeing that piece staring back at her. I did not see much art in it, though art might have redeemed what I saw: another violation, aged and unforgiving.
—P.T.
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The Live Calendar is a compendium of local and regional political, civic and cultural events. You can input your own calendar events directly onto the site as you wish them to appear (pending approval of course). To include your event in the Live Calendar, please fill out this form.
April 2025
ESL Bible Studies for Intermediate and Advanced Students
Grace Community Food Pantry on Education Way
Palm Coast Farmers’ Market at European Village
Al-Anon Family Groups
East Flagler Mosquito Control District Board Meeting
Flagler County Commission Evening Meeting
Nar-Anon Family Group
For the full calendar, go here.
“He poses her like an 80s’ glamour shot,” Northrup observes: “shoulder tilted towards the camera, forehead forward, nice light to illuminate the eyes and direct eye contact – something that she would never ever do.” McCurry wanted to take more pictures but Sharbat Gula fled. No part of the written story mentioned her narrative or even her name (which McCurry did not care to find out). He did not take her consent or her father’s to publish the image. When Sharbat Gula finally saw the cover that would make her face world-famous, she felt, she later said, “nervous and very sad”. When the photograph was first published in 1985 and the magazine circulated to millions of readers worldwide, it had only one sentence about her (besides the original caption, ‘Haunted eyes tell of an Afghan refugee’s fears’). It said her eyes were “reflecting the fear of war”. This is false, Northrup says. The fear in her eyes is that of a student interrupted at school by a male stranger invading her space, her personal boundaries and her culture and leaving without even having learned her name. McCurry and National Geographic would sell the picture for enormous amounts. Steve McCurry Studios prices their open edition 20″ x 24″ print of Sharbat Gula for $18,000 (Rs 12.8 lakh). Larger prints have been sold for as much as $178,900 at auctions. Until their return for the follow-up story in 2002, Sharbat Gula received nothing.
–From Ribhu and Raghu Karnad’s “You’ll Never See the Iconic Photo of the ‘Afghan Girl’ the Same Way Again,” The Wire, March 12, 2019.
Jim says
Yesterday, Donald Trump said that Ukraine started the war with Russia. That is a lie.
Yesterday, Donald Trump said that Ukraine should not have defended itself when Russia invaded. That is absolutely un-American and a despicable thing for the President of the United States to say. DESPICABLE.
Yesterday (and previously), Donald Trump said the the Ukraine-Russia war would never have happened if he had been president. That is just a fantasy of Trump’s inflated opinion of himself. There is no basis in any facts nor does Trump (as usual) offer any other explanation of that statement. Much like “they are eating the dogs and cats”, it’s just a fantasy world lie.
Ukraine has fought valiantly to stop the unprovoked attack by Russia. They have shown that Russia is not invincible. And in the process, Russia has murdered an untold number of civilians, stolen Ukrainian children into Russia, tortured civilians and military prisoners, shot captured Ukrainians and published the videos and many other war crimes. Yet the Trump administration is advancing a “peace plan” without input from Ukraine. Trump says Zelenskyy has an approval rate of “4%” when it’s actually 42%. Lies told for no reason other than to push another falsehood about Ukraine. The United States is in the process of selling out a democratic country to Putin and reinstate “normal relations” with Russia. This in no way shows any belief in American values. All it is is “let’s make a deal” like it’s just business. Well, Trump has been bankrupt many times and now he is bankrupting our American values.
And yet, he is president of this country (in name at least). He is dismantling the government as we watch. This is being done under the guise of “ending waste”, “exposing fraud” and getting rid of the “deep state”. Yet there have been zero evidence provided to support any of that. Yes, there are claims of “millions for condoms for Hamas”, for example, that are then shown to be absolutely untrue. Musk was challenged on this and his glib response was “well, I’m not going to be right on everything”. What a guy. Let’s destroy government and if we’re wrong, oh well.
While claiming Biden “weaponized the government”, Trump and his appointees are doing exactly that. Musk has billions of dollars of contracts with the US government. His companies are under investigation (at least 18) and the inspector generals involved in those have been fired. His DOGE team has access to Social Security, Treasury and the IRS. That’s pretty much 100% access to all the data about every US citizen. The White House says Musk is “self-censuring” from involvement in anything that might be considered an ethics issue. Really? How? Who’s monitoring that? Let’s see some information and facts to show that is actually happening. Right now, what is really happening is a billionaire who gave Trump over two-hundred million dollars during the campaign has been given free reign through the government. All while not being an employee of the government, not having a security clearance (Chinese concerns there) and no experience with anything he’s rampaging through. Pam Bondi, the new AG, leads a department that’s seen multiple long time prosecutors resign or be fired for crimes such as investigating Trump or the J6 defendants but that’s not weaponization. Now, the mayor of New York is in the process of having his charges of corruption dropped – not because the evidence doesn’t support those charges – but because Adams is willing to do anything and everything Trump says so the charges will be dropped. But that’s not weaponization either. Kristy Noem is firing hundreds of Department of Homeland Security employees. What will that do to our security stance? Does anyone think this is making us safer?
We are destroying our relationship with all our traditional allies. That’s going to bite us badly when we need to form a coalition in support of an American cause. I wonder how much support we’ll get when we go to war with China. I don’t think our allies will be standing in line to get on board. But, hey, America first, right?
I could go on but what’s the point?
To all of you who voted for Trump, I have no doubt you are just happy with everything I’ve pointed out here. How you can do that and be aware of the facts is beyond me. Do I want government waste and costs reduced? Absolutely. But doing it this way is illegal and just plain wrong on so many levels. I fear the country that we are left with will be but a shell of what it should be. But on the bright side, very soon we won’t have to guard the border with military troops. No one will want to come here anyway.
Pogo says
@FWIW
As stated
https://www.google.com/search?q=dwelling+on+the+past
“I always pass on good advice. It is the only thing to do with it. It is never of any use to oneself.”
― Oscar Wilde, An Ideal Husband
Endless dark money says
Hey people voted to end amerikkka so it died when convict felons gutted democracy and the government for power. Will we go full blown Nazis and send people to our concentration camps or will we remove the treasonous traitors before it’s too late? Republicons are domestic terrorists!guess we gonna find out but don’t see this ending very well, but that’s what people wantI suppose.
ray says
So true all of what you wrote here Jim.
Pogo says
@Jim (Reply out of order)
Even the freaking NY Post calls trump (with Fla pet weasels rubio and waltz at heel) a butt boy for putin. Ike and Churchill are rolling over in their graves — along with every American war cemetery in Europe.
Russia, Russia, Russia
https://www.google.com/search?q=ny+post+trump+selling+out+ukraine
Ray W, says
Thank you, Jim and Pogo.
Can it be argued and supported that if one has to lie to support a point, it follows that the point lacks validity?
Jim says
Further, now Trump is calling Zelenskyy as “dictator”. I ask you Trump supporters to step up and explain how you can support this guy.
Here Ukraine is fighting and dying to be a free democracy and our president is sh—– all over them as he and his cronies fall all over themselves to kiss Putin’s ass. He is lying to all of us and it seems no Republicans are willing to stand up and say this is wrong. If you won’t stand up, you are complicit and you truly should be ashamed of yourselves.
And don’t tell me that Europe should take the lead on defending Ukraine. It’s not that I disagree completely with that statement. But the fact is that Europe isn’t ready to do that and taking the course that Trump is taking all but guarantees Russia will defeat Ukraine and, then, when they can rebuild their forces, they’ll move forward into Europe. Hopefully, Europe sees the writing on the wall and goes all out to prepare for that coming war. And, sadly, any of you with children or grandchildren may end up seeing them fight in that war as well. And all this could be prevented if the US would stand up for Ukraine and put the Russians in their place. They will not fire nukes at the west. That guarantees their total destruction. We will not invade Russia. But what we should do (and should have done in 2022) is provide Ukraine everything it needs to defeat the Russians. A weakened Russia is in the West’s best interests. Trump is letting them off the hook and opening the whole world for an even bigger conflict in the future.
Not everything is a “transaction”.
This country has never been less of a leader of the free world then it is right now. And very soon, there will be one saying that the US is the leader of the free world. They’ll say the US is no better than Russia or China. Just another country looking to get all they can from countries with less resources and military forces.
I am ashamed of this government and all the people in this country that cheer this bullshit on. You ought to review what being an American has meant all these years and see if you are even in the same ballpark. I wonder what US vets of WW2 would think of us now?
Ray W, says
The Hill recently published an article headlined: “Falling costs drive US toward green energy — even as political tides shift.”
The theme of the article is that President Trump has announced that he intends to roll back green energy initiatives passed by Congress and signed into law by former President Biden. To that end, President Trump has signed a number of executive orders that may or may not reduce crude oil and natural gas prices.
The gullible among us think the executive orders will beyond all doubt reduce oil and gas prices; they think that oil and gas are national commodities and any increase in national supply, should levels of demand stay the same, will automatically lower the price.
The more informed among us know that oil and gas are international commodities, with prices set by international market conditions in all their infinite and ever-changing variables.
Increasing national supply does not automatically mean that international prices will drop. For example, certain sectors of the Chinese economy are in a deflationary state right now and long-term predictions for Chinese crude oil import needs foresee a continue downturn in energy demand by Chinese heavy industry. International reserves of crude oil are in a condition of glut already, yet prices remain high. If international demand for crude oil drops further, the already existing glut of already set levels of production (in 2024, U.S. crude oil extraction averaged a record 13.2 million barrels of oil per day) will increase. But will that bring down prices?
To the gullible, a glut means that prices will drop. But OPEC+ has been manipulating the supply of crude oil since February 2021. No matter how much oil America produced, prices remained high because OPEC+, through its manipulations, would not let prices drop too low.
Multiple industry journals posit that Saudi Arabia, which could easily produce more oil than it currently extracts, desires crude oil prices at roughly $80 per barrel. At this price level, Saudi governmental fiscal needs are entirely met by oil revenue. It is widely reported that OPEC+ will soon meet to discuss whether to increase production or to continue to maintain its voluntarily set reduced level of production.
As an aside, President Trump has asked U.S. oil extractors to increase production; they politely declined. So, President Trump then asked Saudi oil ministers to increase production. They, too, declined.
No one can predict what the future will bring, but it is beginning to look as if Drill, baby, drill is not going to happen. American oil companies like the profits coming from $75-$80 prices for each barrel of their oil. Can it be argued that American oil extractors have decided that profit and shareholder return come before consumer gas prices at the pump?
OPEC+’s level of excess production capacity, meaning unused capacity, is already at record levels. OPEC+ has long been idling some of its production capacity in order to keep international oil prices high.
With this foundation in mind, the article focuses on the dropping cost of solar-produced electricity.
“‘The power sector is, year on year, adding a lot more renewables, and in particular solar. Solar is getting cheaper and its adoption is scaling,’ said Thomas Rowland-Rees, head of North America Research at Bloomberg NEF.
“Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Professor Christopher Knittel agreed that the low cost of solar will be ‘driving a lot of adoption, because it’s just a cheap source of electricity.’
“The unsubsidized cost of solar dropped almost 85 percent between 2010 and 2023, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Solar’s economics are now being bolstered by the IRA, whose generous tax credits for low-carbon power sources are being eyed for potential cuts by Republicans.
“Some GOP lawmakers have pushed to retain at least some of the credits, however, and it’s not clear whether Republicans will be able to get the intra-party consensus they need to make such cuts — or which power sources, if any, will ultimately be impacted.
“But even if those credits are repealed or shortened, Rowland-Rees says solar power is here to stay.
“Without the IRA, he said, ‘build is less than it would have been, because obviously there’s not an incentive to support it, but it is not as impacted as you might think.
“What the tax credits are doing is giving you 2030 economics in 2027, it’s just bringing forward when the technology is economically viable.”
MIT Professor Knittel argues that should the Trump agenda come to fruition, the increase in natural gas production may lower domestic natural gas prices, a position that, ironically, most likely will result in damage to the coal industry.
“Over the next four years, I actually expect the reduction in coal generation to speed up because of Trump’s victory. … What he’s going to effectively do is provide us with a lot of cheap natural gas, and the closest substitute for natural gas is coal generation.”
Make of this what you will.
Me?
Solar is coming fast to our grid. The price for solar electricity continues to drop as technological breakthroughs improve the least costly form of generating electricity and as scaling of production capacity drops the costs of manufacturing panels.
Laurel says
Jim: Unfortunately, most all WWII veterans are gone, along with their memories. They fought with their lives and limbs to keep us free of the very shit storm that is happening with Trump, The Federalist Society, and the Heritage Foundation, right now. There is absolutely nothing “conservative” about the current Republican Party anymore. We’re watching brats overthrow the U.S. government right before our eyes, and the Republican politicians are spinelessly ushering it in like toddlers opening a cage of jackals.
Ray W, says
Last week, President Trump, when speaking about reciprocal tariffs, said that the EU had already lowered its tariffs on cars. Yesterday, the EU, through its subsidiary commission, issued in a statement that “any tariff reductions must be mutually beneficial and negotiated within a fair and rules-based framework.”
Make of this what you will.
Me? The EU says it hasn’t even made a specific offer yet to reduce tariffs on cars, much less having already lowered them. The gullibly foolish among us face yet another conundrum. Continue accepting more and more of Trumps outright lies or better themselves by seeking out the truth. There is a professional lying class at the top of one of our two political parties. Their MO is to issue lies in hopes that the gullible among us will spread them. This is called disinformation laundering.
BillC says
Trump is a traitor to democracy!
Kathleen Duffy says
If your exit from Vietnam was a blot in our history and our exit from Afghanistan another smear — the tossing of our ally Ukraine after the multitude of Russian abominations they have endured during this war STARTED by Russia — is something that will go down in history as the event equivalent to Nero’s fiddling while Rome burned. It is a stain that will have the historical consequences equivalent with our early embrace of slavery and areas of the country which fought to keep it. Treaties (which we are famous for not keeping, one has only to ask a Native American on this topic) and international agreements which now seem to only matter for 4 years (our election cycle). We are no longer a world leader. A number of years ago, Tony Blair was called an American Lap Dog…. it would appear that American is now A Russian pet (a lizard is the image that comes to mind) and the America’s word on ANYTHING is not worth the paper it is printed on — aka Trump who never met a contract or a law that he thought was worth the paper it was written upon as long as he could hire more lawyers than the other side.
Ray K. says
TO: Laurel-Nixon was a Boy Scout compared to now. Wish for The return of the Grand Old Party, NOT the party of Trump. Just ask yourself-What would Washington and Lincoln say about what is going on now.? Trump has a plan, remember when he said get out and vote one more time and you’ll never have to worry about it again !!! Well, here we are. I pray democracy hold. Congress needs to have the balls to do their job. To now be afraid of this guy. We’ve seen this movie played many times before in world history and it never turns out well. 240 yrs. of democracy. How ever would we get it back if I’m afraid we’re going to loose it?
Ed P says
The “liar liar pants on fire” chant no longer works. Even World leaders see Trump’s unorthodox/ bombastic/bizarre comments as out of the box ideas.
It’s a fact, all politicians lie. Some more than others. Trump is not a traditional politician but he’s learned their craft well. Maybe too well, he appears to be flipping the script.
That doesn’t preclude anyone from not fact checking, correcting, or criticizing. However, it’s always going to be old news to call him names. Results matter. Improvised solutions seem to be working. Conventional leadership has been replaced, at least for the next 4 years. Embarrassment is not ever lasting. We’ll get over it.
After the first 30 days, I believe that no one should over react immediately. It’s a dumb look. A couple of days to wait and see appears to be good advice.
I have to admit that it’s riveting and engaging. Similar to reading the left leaning comments on FL.
I spend an inordinate amount of my “news” time on the left. Primarily print, podcasts and television. Social media is a waste. Unfortunately, if you want to watch all the Republican cabinet, VP, or Presidential interviews in their entirety, Fox is a must. They have it all, like Netflix, Amazon and all pay per views on one channel. (Sarcasm)
If you peel back a few more layers of the onion, the Ukraine/Russian debate that has surfaced over the past 72 hours has some merit. The next 10 days will bring clarity to Trumps comments. His rational is not completely off base. Biden and Zelenskyy had some harsh words and tensions for a reason as well.
FlaPharmTech says
We the sane must figure out ways to support our friends in Ukraine, in vocal spite of our felon in charge. My heart bleeds for Ukraine. President Zelenskyy deserves our respect and support, not a trumpdump indignity to a democracy, Ukraine, fighting for its existence.
Ray W, says
A couple of months ago, Autoweek reported on a Department of Energy grant of $50 million to be spread over five years to a number of labs and universities to develop sodium-ion batteries.
Here are some bullet points:
– The Argonne National Laboratory will head the effort, alongside Sandia Lab and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and five other universities.
– The goal is to decrease reliance on any one battery chemistry, as one dominant chemistry would “create vulnerabilities.” Sodium, or table salt, being “an abundant element, can reduce risk and increase supply chain resilience by providing a wider variety of cost-effective options.”
– The currently dominant liquid-state lithium-ion battery chemistry relies on “critical elements of lithium, cobalt, and nickel.”
– The next generation of battery chemistry right now is lithium-ferrous-phosphate (LFP), which possess a higher tolerance for fast charging and a far greater capacity for multiple recharging cycles at a lower manufacturing cost.
– Should a sodium-ion battery chemistry be developed that does not use cobalt or nickel, that battery will be lighter and less dependent of energy heavy manufacturing methods. And it would be less damaging to the environment. Finally, a sodium-ion battery is not susceptible to “thermal runaway” that often results in fires.
Make of this what you will.
Me?
I recently commented that two Chinese EV manufacturers have begun selling sodium-ion battery-powered cars. A third is nearing completion of its LFP battery factory.
Other recent articles list liquid-state lithium-ion batteries as having energy densities ranging from 240 to 300 watt-hours per kilogram, compared to 120 to 150 watt-hours per kilogram for sodium-ion batteries. But salt batteries are cheaper and lighter than liquid-state lithium-ion batteries.
As an aside, per a 2020 article, lead-acid batteries have an energy density range of 30 to 50 watt-hours per kilogram. Some of the literature holds that a lead-acid battery is good for only 200 deep cycle recharges. Many FlaglerLive readers may know that lead-acid batteries last only a few years in hot weather climates before they no longer hold a charge. A friend of mine who lived in Phoenix before moving to higher ground in the Arizona mountains told me that lead-acid car batteries last about a year in Phoenix. Here, five or six years seems to be the limit. A nickel cadmium battery has a range of 45-80 watt-hours per kilogram. Lithium-ferrous-phosphate batteries have a range of 90 to 160 watt-hours per kilogram. I have seen higher energy densities for LFP batteries in more recent articles.
– Right now, concludes the author, “Several years of development of improved electrolytes and high-energy electrode materials are needed to make sodium-ion tech more viable.” I agree.
Pogo says
@Ray W
100%
This, is directed at others: the gullible, the guilty, the truly malignant…
DOGE baby DOGE
https://www.google.com/search?q=did+mussolini+make+trains+run+on+time
Ray W, says
This is a follow up to my comment on this thread about energy densities for various battery styles.
In January of last year, Tech Xplore published an article about a new cathode material that replaces cobalt in liquid-state lithium-ion batteries. An American-based research group produced a carbon-based cathode material known as TAQ (bis-tetraaminobenzoquinone) to form a layered solid-state cathode structure.
The new cathode material was cycled in the lab 2,000 without incident and allows full charge-discharge times in as little as six minutes. Battery energy density is as high as any other cobalt-based cathode.
“[R]esearchers are optimistic that they could enable the high-energy, long-lasting, and fast-charging batteries needed to help speed a global transition to a renewable energy future that’s cobalt- and nickel-free.”
Make of this what you will.
Me?
Once again, an American laboratory team has unveiled a new technology that would benefit from additional testing and potential scaling up to mass production. The question is whether America is ready to take advantage of it ingenuity and inventiveness. An American lab developed LFP batteries, but companies decided to focus on liquid-state lithium-ion battery technology. The LFP effort failed during the Obama years and a far-sighted Chinese battery company bought the intellectual rights to LFP technology. The company finalized the development of the technology and now produces LFP batteries at scale. The battery is cheaper to make and uses to cobalt or nickel. It outperforms liquid-state lithium-ion batteries, and it is considered a second-generation rechargeable battery. Now, American car companies are paying CATL for the rights to build LFP batteries.
I will say this over and over. The professional lying class of one of our two political parties spent decades lying to their gullible followers. They still lie to their followers. Internal combustion engines are not the future. According to Ford’s CEO, America is 10 years behind Chinese battery manufacturers. We develop the technology and then let it slip away for pennies on the dollar to companies that can better see the future.
Will yet another American invention be allowed to wither here so that the Chinese can scoop it up for pennies and then sell it back to us once we realize what it is worth?
Ray W, says
The same lab I mentioned in a previous comment about TAQ cathode technology spent a year adapting the TAQ cathode technology to sodium-ion batteries. The Princeton University-based lab found that the TAQ cathodes enhanced the energy density of sodium-ion batteries, too.
Chemistry Professor Mircea Dinca, the Princeton-based lab leader, said:
“Everyone understands the challenges that come with having limited resources for something as important as batteries, and lithium certainly qualifies as ‘limited’ in a number of ways. …
“It’s always better to have a diversified portfolio for these materials. Sodium is literally everywhere. For us, going after batteries that are made with really abundant resources like organic matter and seawater is among our greatest research dreams.
“Energy density is something on a lot of people’s minds because you can equate it with how much juice you get in a battery. The more energy density you have, the farther your car goes before you have to recharge it. We’ve answered quite emphatically that the new material we developed has the largest energy density, certainly on a per kilogram basis, and competes with the best materials out there even on a volumetric basis.”
TAQ cathode technology is “insoluble and highly conductive.” It is organic. It’s “performance is close to a benchmark known as the theoretical maximum capacity.” It is stable against air and moisture, withstands high temperatures, is environmentally sustainable, and has a long lifespan.
“The binder we chose, carbon nanotubes, facilitates the mixing of TAQ crystallites and carbon black particles, leading to a homogeneous electrode. … The carbon nanotubes closely wrap around TAQ crystallites and interconnect them. Both of these factors promote electron transport within the electrode bulk, enabling an almost 100% active material utilization, which leads to almost theoretical maximum capacity.”
Make of this what you will.
Me?
A salt battery that is organically safe, that uses no lithium, cobalt or nickel, that is stable and energy dense, is one potential future energy path among many different types of batteries.
Almost any metal can be made into a battery. Stripping electrons away from atoms is nothing new.
A rust battery uses iron. Electrons stripped away from the iron during discharge results in ionized rust detaching into the electrolyte. When the iron is recharged, the rust disappears from the electrolyte and reattaches to the iron. Rust batteries are too heavy for cars, and they slowly charge and discharge, but they work for stationary purposes.
Ford’s CEO says that today’s battery technology is at the Model T stage of development. He says ICE technology has reached its technological limits, with only incremental gains left to exploit. To him, those who look to ICE technology are looking backward, not forward. Those who focus on battery technology will make the future.
I am going to say this over and over again. Because of the many lies spread by the professional lying class of one of our two political parties, American inventiveness, American ingenuity, have repeatedly been left to wither on the vine. How many trillions of dollars in productivity have we just given away to the Chinese because our political leaders are too stupid to recognize what they are throwing away. We led the world in solar technology 25 years ago. No more. We invented the battery technology that Ford now calls the future. We are paying the Chinese to use what we discovered because we slavishly devote ourselfs to crude oil and natural gas producers.
Egg prices rise and the gullibly stupid among us blamed Biden. Avian flu was the culprit. Eggs are now being shipped into the U.S. from Turkey. Imagine that?
Beef prices rise and the gullibly stupid among us blamed Biden. Drought and heat were the culprits.
Gasoline prices rise and the gullibly stupid among us blamed Biden. OPEC+ voted to phase in production cuts in February 2021. Those cuts are still in place. OPEC+ has been manipulating our gas prices for four years now, perhaps in collusion with U.S. shale oil producers who refused to raise production even though prices were high. One of those CEOs told a reporter that he didn’t care if prices hit $200 per barrel, his company was going to stick to a plan of limited expansion. Corporate profits were more important than low consumer gas prices at the pump.
Ray W, says
“ourselves”
Ray W, says
The Pogo-endorsed The Cool Down published a summary of the results of an in-depth study by an international, multi-institutional team of researchers of 300 million vehicles, both ICE and EV, between 2005 and 2022.
Here are some bullet points:
– EVs are more reliable, being 12.6% less likely to fail for each successive year of production.
-EV lifespan is now at 18.4 years and 124,000 miles, compared to gas vehicles, which are now at an average mileage lifespan of 116,000 miles.
– EV fire risk is proven to be lower than that for gasoline powered cars, a common misperception that was first set straight by Motor Trend and other publications.
– Battery ranges are increasing. Charge times are dropping. Battery costs are expected to soon plunge by 50%. A different publication reported that battery pack costs should fall by 2030 to under $5,000, which would be similar or less than the cost of a gasoline engine rebuild, depending on the gasoline engine.
– The annual harvest of minerals to power EVs is expected to rise to around 30 million tons, which is far less than the 16.5 billion tons of crude oil that is extracted each year.
– Even though EV initial production processes are more pollutive than ICE production processes, the overall pollutive impact for EVs over the vehicle’s lifespan is much less than the pollutive impact of ICE cars.
Make of this what you will.
Me?
EVs are the future.
Laurel says
Ray K.: It was the Republicans who told Nixon to resign! Times have changed. The GOP is no more.
Now, we have a Mafia style president who threatens all who do not fall in line. The current politicians saw Republican Jeff Flake, who early on tried to warn us, lose his seat. Bone spurs Trump, who has changed his party affiliation five times, condemned war hero, and Republican, John McCain, and refused to go to the ceremony of the naming of the battleship USS John McCain, named after Senator McCain’s father and grandfather. We also watched Republicans Liz Chaney and Adam Kinzinger lose their seats, because they stood up to Trump’s grifts and lies, and afterward, Trump claimed he would go after them further.
Politicians are scared to death of Trump and his threats. The reason being, Trump is still duping the public, and they still support this Mafia style behavior.
Laurel says
Ed P.: God awful behavior watered down by people who don’t want to see it. People who ignore facts. People who are easily duped. All those poor and middle class victims for which the billionaires will be their retribution. You call people who still see the lies, and find them unacceptable, a “dumb look.” Embarrassment may not be everlasting, but the world no longer respecting, or especially, trusting us, may be. Our relationship with our allies will never be the same.
Now, we can sit back, calmly wait and see how firing American workers from American “jobs!,” “jobs!,” ” jobs!” will make it all good. Trump, and citizen Musk, will clear out all the corruption of the Federal Park Rangers, and save us from their evil nature speeches, and no longer protect idiots from trying to take pictures of their kids on the backs of wild bison. That’s some real serious thinking outside the box.
The problem with what you promote is that this is not how our country was formed, nor how our country works. This is how our liberty is stolen from us, as fast as it can be done, with distractions and lies, and real fraud.
Ed P says
Can we really know what Putin might be willing to do given the weakened state of his economy, military, and approval rating in and out of Russia?
Ray W is correct that Putin has already lost. However…..
When any injured animal is cornered, they strike back and fight. Could this unhinged madman be on the verge of using weapons of mass destruction or nuclear? He is only concerned about his own survival/power and legacy. That has to be understood.
If Ukraine was given weapons and enough support to retaliate beyond their borders and corner the madman, what do you think the end play would be? Putin is not rational and understands only one thing- strength. He has a nuclear arsenal.
It’s been a balancing act by the Ukrainian Allies, costing possibly more lives/casualties than world war 2. Do we need WW3?
Putin can not admit to the Russian people that His War was for naught. He won’t. Don’t expect it.
Not a trap. Just reality.
Ray W, says
Hello Ed P.
What to do?
Do we appease because we fear a cornered rat that might spread rabies? Does it matter whether the rat is rabid?
Do we oppose, do we defy, cornered rats because cornered rats will always be cornered rats? To Churchill, from the early rise of Hitler, he, often alone and often ridiculed, pointed out the rat for what it was.
Has fear of the cornered rats among us become our new national mantra?
Ed P says
Ray W,
We both agree history has lessons. It has to be examined in it context/setting.
Hitler’s primary allies were Italy and Japan.
Putin’s primary allies are China, Belarus, N. Vietnam and Iran.
Todays Rat (Putin) has control of the worlds largest nuclear arsenal with a majority targeting the United States. Hitler had none and we had 2.
Let’s pretend Putin is not completely stupid but he decides to use his proxies.
Putin has hypersonic icbm that can given to Kim Jong Un or the Iranians. Would they use them? Jong Un already “donated” 10,000 soldiers. What’s the quid pro quo?
You see it as appeasement for Ukraine to give up even 1 square meter. Appeasement as a Russian settlement occurred with the Crimean annexation. Too late to tell Putin the world never accept.The feckless Europeans and United Kingdom is as much to blame as Obama administration.
Now you want a titanium spine? That shipped sailed. The bully knows that.
A negotiated settlement could end the butchering and destruction of indiscriminate Russian bombing currently being conducted. Does that have value? Land for life.
As part of that settlement, the rest of the world has to sanction Russia to continue to degrade their military and economic strengths. Both China and Russias economies are sputtering. The time to tighten the noose is now.
It might appear to be appeasement, like the world is sacrificing a queen in a chess match, but check mate is only 2 moves away. A win that will endure for 50 years if all possible economic sanctions are respected by India/Pakistan along with Europe, United Kingdom, and the United States.
To insure Russias compliance, threaten to cut off all energy purchases from Russia. Their economy crumbles. Tariff China into submission as well.
This is where the titanium spine is needed.