- Wed Feb 14, 2007 7:38 am
#12123
My idea is realizing that the best way to find a revolutionary new energy source might come from studying how animals and plants get the energy they need.
Why animals and plants? There are literally millions of ways chemical reactions can occur, the research required to scratch the surface of what is possible is immense. By leveraging knowledge of existing chemical reactions occuring in plants and animals to sustain life one gets to point much faster.
(This area is probably also under-explored as science tends to compartmentalize the disciplines of chemistry and biology when the person that will succeed in this research will need skills in both areas.)
Really what is trying to be accomplished is finding the most efficient conversion of matter to energy. When you think about how little matter is taken in by most insects and how much work (measuring by ratios of body wieght to work done) an ant or firefly can do, it seems the chemical reaction should be studied and reproduced on a larger scale.
There are also many benefits of success as any discovery in this area would be fully biodegradable, renewable, and (theoretically) cheap to produce.
Why animals and plants? There are literally millions of ways chemical reactions can occur, the research required to scratch the surface of what is possible is immense. By leveraging knowledge of existing chemical reactions occuring in plants and animals to sustain life one gets to point much faster.
(This area is probably also under-explored as science tends to compartmentalize the disciplines of chemistry and biology when the person that will succeed in this research will need skills in both areas.)
Really what is trying to be accomplished is finding the most efficient conversion of matter to energy. When you think about how little matter is taken in by most insects and how much work (measuring by ratios of body wieght to work done) an ant or firefly can do, it seems the chemical reaction should be studied and reproduced on a larger scale.
There are also many benefits of success as any discovery in this area would be fully biodegradable, renewable, and (theoretically) cheap to produce.