Also, check out the Tesla:
http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/12/tesla-chief-engineer-peter-rawlinson-geeks-out-with-us-about-mod/
It's fast, beautiful, can travel 300 miles on a charge, the battery can be removed in under a minute, or charged to 80% in 30 minutes, and starts at $57k before subsidies (which is about the same price as a BMW 5 series). It also gets the equivalent of 100 mpg. If this is what we're capable of producing now, what will we have in 20 years?
Oil is going to be an energy source for a while, at least in our lifetime x 2-3. The amounts undiscovered in areas and deeper down have yet to be found. With that said, it is still uncertain for crude oil, so a backup is always a plus. Hopefully in the next hundred years we'll figure out how Willy Wonka transported that candy through the tv. Maybe Urkel knows.
Impossible.
Matter cannot be digitized.
Sure they will. Maybe not the little commuter cars, but vehicles powered by gasoline will still be in production 20 and 30 years from now.
A few modes of transportation off the top of my head which will for obvious reasons be the last to go.
Tractors.
Tractor trailers.
Heavy Duty pickups.
Airplanes.
Boats.
Ferrari's.
Production of gasoline engine's will be around for most of our lifetimes, if not all. It's just as much demand for these vehicles as it is the structure of the US (we are set up with gas stations at every corner. Where's my local electric station?)
My theory doesn't really concern the vehicles you listed, I'm talking about the little commuter cars. Of course ships and planes will still directly use fossil fuels, although the chemical makeup of those fossil fuels will likely be quite a bit different than they are now. Commuter cars that use gas will also still be on the road no doubt, but there will be more all electric cars. And I think I've made my point that refueling stations will be unnecessary. The infrastructure needed to provide 12 Mb/s mobile internet access was not around 30 years ago, and no one imagined that it existed. The infrastructure we will need for everyone to have an electric car will cost equal or less over a 30 year period than the cost over the 30 years it took to get to 4G.
Ferrari's? Sports cars can go faster with an electric engine. 1) Lighter2) Constant torque3) More power
My gf has a whooty! wrote:
Sure they will. Maybe not the little commuter cars, but vehicles powered by gasoline will still be in production 20 and 30 years from now.
A few modes of transportation off the top of my head which will for obvious reasons be the last to go.
Tractors.
Tractor trailers.
Heavy Duty pickups.
Airplanes.
Boats.
Ferrari's.
Production of gasoline engine's will be around for most of our lifetimes, if not all. It's just as much demand for these vehicles as it is the structure of the US (we are set up with gas stations at every corner. Where's my local electric station?)