[huskerlug] Re: A 100 watt laptop requires 960 lbs of coal per year!
- From: "Charles Leslie" <charles.leslie@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: huskerlug@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:28:29 -0500
Actually turning off your laptop won't make a relevant difference, I
would argue.
Alternatively you could run your laptop off of a charge from a solar
panel or other renewable energy source. But you'll see why it's a
moot point here in a minute...
Here's some more technical information on how much energy a laptop uses...
http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000562.html
So as you can see, simply turning it off doesn't solve that problem if
the battery is charging/discharging.
But wait... In fact most consumer electronic devices consume power
even when they are not powered on. Here's an interesting article on
that...
http://wcco.com/consumer/plug.in.appliances.2.372422.html
So as you can see, you can't enjoy a modern lifestyle and still be
100% eco friendly unless you make some seriously drastic changes that
most average people aren't affluent enough or willing to allocate the
time or resources to.
Most people that spend all their time sorting their garbage and
protesting SUV fuel consumption usually would never think to turn
their air conditioning up by 5 degrees in the summer time, or stop
having babies.
I don't think that our looming energy crisis is going to be helped by
your personal efforts. It can only be solved macroscopically by
economic force, or collective social policy. All turning off your
lights (or unplugging your laptop) is going to do is help you save a
few dimes on your electric bill.
On Sat, Mar 22, 2008 at 2:27 PM, GreyGeek <jkreps@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal#World_coal_reserves[1]
>
>
> Running one 100 watt computer for one year requires 876 kW·h (100 W
> &tim24 h/day ×365 {days in a year} = 876000 W·h = 876
> kW·h). Converting this power usage into physical coal consumption:
>
>
> It takes 438 kg (966 pounds) of coal to power a computer for one full year.
> One should also take into account transmission and distribution losses[2]
> caused by resistance and heating in the power lines, which is in the order
> of5–10%, depending on distance from the power station and other
> factors.
>
>
> It also generates about 800 lbs of CO2
>
>
> Moral: Turn you laptop off when you are not using it.
>
>
>
> --- Links ---
> 1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal#World_coal_reserves
> 2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_line#Losses
>
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>
>
>
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