Class Session IV>
Part One - What’s Your Story?
In the
book Ishmael, a story is “a scenario interrelating man, the world, and the
gods” and culture as “a group of people enacting a story”. Throughout the text,
Ishmael examines our civilization’s story, what we tell ourselves about the way
things should be. Perhaps it might help to think of a “story” as a scenario. A scenario is an outline
or model of an expected or likely series of events. Last week you looked at
four different scenarios or stories on the United Nations GEO website.
Whether we realize it or not, we all
tell ourselves a “story” about what our life should be like and then we work to
enact it or bring it into being. For example, you are currently
attending college for some reason, probably based on the belief that a college
education will lead you to a certain type of job with a certain level, or
expectation, of income. That hoped for level of income will, hopefully, provide
for your physical and material comforts at a certain level. The classes you are
taking now, including this one, your expected degree, the job you’re hoping for
and the things you’re hoping for in your life, such as that red convertible or
monster truck you drive by on the way to school, are all part of your
story/scenario and you are living so as to enact your story/scenario. In
other words, we create our lives through our story, whether we realize it or
not. What we tell ourselves about the future drives and motivates us in ways we
may not completely be aware of or understand.
So, what’s your story? Before you get started, get comfortable. Kick off your
shoes, turn on the stereo….do whatever you need to do to relax and turn the
world off for a bit. Then, when you’re settled, think about your life and where
you are headed. What kind of job are you working towards? Do you want a family,
a relationship with a significant other, a shiny car or truck, or just more
time on your hands? Think about your life for a while, envision what you want
it to be like and then, when you’re ready, jot down your story. Be as
broad, comprehensive, and visionary as you can…..if you don’t “put it out
there”, it probably won’t happen. So in putting together your story, I want you
to think about family and relationships, work, play, information,
communication, spirituality/religion, transportation, housing, food, health
care, as well as anything else you’d like to include. It might help by spending
some time with your eyes closed and picturing how you want your life to look
like. Then describe it in your story/scenario. Remember, there’s no right or wrong here and you’re not going to get
graded on your story. Also, take as much space as you need. Thinking about your
story may help you focus on the goals in your life and how to get there.
So, here
it is, the story of ___________________(<Your Name Here - Print and bring
to class on 2/17).
Part Two> What Do You Want to
Leave Behind?
One of things
that motivate us humans is how we are remembered, otherwise known as our legacy.
Most dictionaries refer to a legacy as “something from the past” which has
been left by a previous person or group. Each of us will leave a legacy behind.
A legacy is how we will be remembered. Most of us remember family members
that have passed on in a certain way, whether for their kindness, sense of
humor, or how they helped those around them. Once you’ve completed your story,
spend a few minutes thinking about how you want to be remembered and jot down
what how you want to be remembered in the space below.
What you
want to be remembered for….your legacy>
Part Two> Decision Making 101
As you
live to enact your story and legacy, you’ll be making all kinds of decisions
about how to spend your time, where to live, what kind of job to do, if and how
many kids to have, and what kind of stuff to buy. These decisions will shape
your life and the world around you. Since all of the earth’s systems are
interconnected, all of these decisions will impact those fellow humans and the
world around you. As this is an environmental science course, however, we’re
most concerned with those decisions that affect public health and the natural
environment. There are three kinds of decisions that affect public health and
the environment:
1.
decisions of a reproductive nature (how many kids to
have);
2.
decisions of a consumptive nature (what and how much
stuff to consume), and;
3.
technology (the tools, techniques, and processes
that provide the goods and services we need and want.
We
humans use all kinds of methods to make decisions. Sometimes we flip a coin,
sometimes we check the latest horoscope or throw a dart, and sometimes we just close
our eyes and guess. Generally, we make decisions in one of two ways, either by
using the power of rational thought (a.k.a. thinking) or by using or intuition
or feelings. A lot of what affects or determines how we, as individuals, make
decisions is what kind of decisions our parents made.
Many of
us make most of our decisions intuitively. We might, for example, just on
impulse and how things “feel” decide on a car to buy, where to live, and who to
date (this is especially true of dating…we rarely engage in any formal decision
process when it comes to dating….but that’s a another topic for another day).
Regardless, sometimes our intuition is “right” in that it yields an acceptable
outcome, though often we rationalize that it’s the perfect outcome. We often rationalize
decisions based on facts but make decisions based on feelings. In fact, the
more we rationalize our decisions the more likely that, at some level, we’re
uncomfortable with them. If you ever hear friends go on and on about why they
made a certain decision, it’s less likely that they’re trying to convince you
and more likely that they are trying to come to grips with the decision
themselves. But, no matter, we’re all humans and this is the way we humans
operate.
There
are a few things we can do, however, to improve our decision making. One of the
methods used to improve decision making is known as cost benefit analysis.
Cost-benefit analysis is a decision making technique for comparing the cost
versus the benefits of a particular decision. Whether we realize it or not,
humans conduct cost benefit analysis all the time. We often perform this
analysis intuitively, rather than by using a formal, structured process. For
example, every day when you commute to school or work, you make a decision
about which route to take. The principal goal is often to minimize time spent
in travel and get to your location as quickly as possible. You make decisions
intuitively about which route may be the fastest, considering what time you
leave the house and how much time you have to get where you’re going. The costs
you expend are the time, money (for gas and tolls), and the effort you spend to
commute. The benefits are time “saved” to do other things, or less money spent
on gas or tolls. Rarely, would we consider taking an alternative, longer route
to commute, unless there was some expectation of some other benefit. For
example, people talk all the time about taking the “scenic route” between two
locations. It is implied that the scenic route will take longer and/or may be
more costly but there are times when the aesthetic benefit of the scenic route
is worth the additional costs. We intuitively evaluate alternatives, assess
costs and benefits, and decide on a particular course of action or not several
times daily, whether we realize it or not.
To
conduct a formal cost benefit analysis, you begin by describing the need or
problem. Then the proposed action or set of actions or alternatives is
considered. Next, the qualitative and quantitative benefits and costs, as well
as the distribution of benefits and costs are calculated. For a specific action
to be taken, generally the benefits must outweigh the costs. Further, the
action taken must produce greater benefit than the alternatives actions
considered. Simple right? Well, let’s look……
As our
example for decision making, we are going to look at buying light bulbs, something
we all use. To begin with, go to the following website> http://www.goodmart.com/facts/light_bulbs/bulb_types.aspx.
There you’ll see six types of light bulbs pictured. The two we are going to
compare are the good old reliable incandescent and the new compact fluorescent.
The incandescent bulb is what most of us think of when the light bulb goes
off in our head, the same way Thomas Alva Edison invented back in the late
1800’s. It works by burning a metal filament held in place by two metal wires.
Light
bulbs have come a long way since T.E. Edison’s version, however. Fluorescent bulbs
contain gases which, when charged with electricity, luminescence or give off
light. Generally, fluorescent bulbs use about ¼ the amount of electricity as
incandescent bulbs to produce the same amount of lumens. Lumens
is a measure of light output. So, let’s get started with our cost
benefit analysis. Remember the goal is to learn how to do a formal cost benefit
analysis.
Let’s
start by taking a great price for an incandescent bulb; say 50 cents, and an AWFUL
price for a compact fluorescent bulb, $25. WHAT! This is a no brainer you say, we don’t need to do an analysis. The
incandescent bulb is WAY cheaper. My instincts tell me to buy the incandescent,
and most of you and you probably make this decision every time you need to buy
a light bulb. But, just for the sake of comparison, let’s run the numbers.
The
chart below compares the “life cycle” cost of a fifty cent standard
incandescent light bulb versus a twenty five dollar compact fluorescent light
bulb for 10,000 hours. The term life cycle cost means the total cost of both
options. While the incandescent is much cheaper to begin with, it uses four
times as much energy to produce the same amount of light and lasts only 750
hours, which is the standard life rating for this kind of bulb. Compact fluorescent
bulbs last for 10,000 hours, nearly 14 times a long as the incandescent.
Start
by going across Row 1, wattage. A 60 watt incandescent uses about the same
amount of electricity as a 16 watt compact fluorescent to produce the same
amount of light. (If you don’t believe the instructor on this one, perhaps we
could arrange for a small wager? Just kidding about the wager,
not about the light bulb).
In Row
2, you see the 50 cents for the incandescent and that AWFUL $25 price for the
compact fluorescent. (Why even bother going on with this you say! There’s NO
WAY that the incandescent is going to end up costing more…I’ve got better
things to do with my time that this…….). Please go on……
In Row
3, you see the life time rating of the two bulbs, 750 versus 10000 hours and in
row 4, the average national cost per kilowatt hour of electricity, 8 per kilowatt hour, which is also what BG&E charges, by
the way. Row 5 depicts the total energy used for each bulb over 10000 hours,
600 kilowatt hours versus 160 kilowatt hours for the compact fluorescent.
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Energy Efficient Lighting Comparison |
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Enter # of Hours |
10000 |
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Energy Cost = bulb wattage * (# of hours/1000) *
cost per KWHR |
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Standard |
Compact |
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Row |
Category |
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Incandescent |
Fluorescent |
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1 |
Wattage |
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60 |
16 |
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2 |
Purchase Price - Bulb |
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$0.50
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$25.00
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3 |
Rating in Hours - Bulb |
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750 |
10000 |
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4 |
Electricity per KWHR |
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0.08 |
0.08 |
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5 |
Energy Consumed in KWHRs |
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600 |
160 |
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Now let’s
look at the total cost. Rows 7 and 8 depict the total energy costs for both
bulbs and the total bulb costs. Because incandescent bulbs wear out after 750
hours, you’ll need 14 of them compared to 1 compact fluorescent. Row 9 depicts
the TOTAL cost for both bulbs. The total cost for the incandescent is $55
dollars and the compact fluorescent is $37.80. You’ll actually save $17.20 by
buying the compact fluorescent bulb.
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6 |
Life Cycle Costs |
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7 |
Energy |
10000 |
hours |
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$48.00
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$12.80
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8 |
Bulb |
10000 |
hours |
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$7.00
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$25.00
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9 |
Total |
10000 |
hours |
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$55.00
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$37.80
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Rows 10
through 16 compare the emissions data for the electricity needed to power each
bulb. Emissions are reduced by a factor of four simply because it takes a
fourth less energy to power the compact fluorescents.
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10 |
Emissions Data - Coal Fired Power Plant |
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11 |
Coal Burned (1 kWh =.981 lbs. coal) |
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589 |
157 |
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12 |
CO2 Released (1 lb.coal=2.59
lb. CO2) |
1524 |
407 |
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13 |
CO2 Released (1 lb.= 8.75 cubic feet) |
13339 |
3557 |
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14 |
SO2 Released (1 kWh = 8.85 grams) |
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5310 |
1416 |
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15 |
NOX Released (1kWh = 4.15 grams) |
2490 |
664 |
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16 |
Particulates (1 kWh = .27 grams) |
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162 |
43 |
Rows 17
through 24 show the net cost and emission savings of the compact fluorescent
versus the incandescent.
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17 |
Net Savings versus Incandescent |
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18 |
Total Life Cycle Cost |
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$17.20
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19 |
Coal (lbs.) |
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432 |
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20 |
CO2 (lbs.) |
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1118 |
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21 |
CO2 (cubic Feet) |
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9782 |
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22 |
SO2 (grams) |
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3894 |
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23 |
NOX (grams) |
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1826 |
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24 |
Particulates (grams) |
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119 |
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So, let’s
summarize the costs and benefits we have so far. The incandescent bulb is cheaper
to buy, but ends up costing about 30% more than the compact fluorescent simply
because it takes less energy to light the compact fluorescent. So, not only is
the compact fluorescent cheaper, but emissions of air pollutants as well as
carbon dioxide are ¼ as much.
But
wait a minute you might say…don’t compact fluorescents give off that cold, blue
light? Many people think of the old school laboratory lights when they hear the
word fluorescent. The color that a fluorescent bulb gives off is a function of
the phosphors that are used. You can buy compact fluorescents that are “cold
blue” like that old laboratory, but most people prefer the ones that are “golden
warm” and look like the way incandescent bulbs do and most compact fluorescent bulbs
nowadays give off that warm glow.
Well,
don’t fluorescent bulbs buzz? I hate that buzz! Well, again the fluorescent
lights you thinking of are the ones from the lab. The new compact fluorescent
bulbs cycle at much higher frequencies and don’t buzz.
Okay,
okay, but will they fit my lamps? There are a huge variety of shapes and sizes
of compact fluorescent bulbs and many of these will fit your lamps. You’ll
probably have to take the shade off and maybe the harp, the golden metal piece
that holds the shade in place, but once the bulb is in place, simply put the
harp and shade back in place. For more information about
compact fluorescent bulbs go to> http://www.portlandgeneral.com/home/energy_savings/ways_save/how_to_buy.asp?bhcp=1.
Aren’t
convinced yet? We’ll, let me tell you that I lied before about the $25 compact
fluorescent bulb price. The twenty five dollar price was the worst price I’ve
ever seen and was in one of those eco-chic mail order catalogs when these bulbs
first came out in the early 1990’s. Bulbs.com offers compact fluorescents for
3.49 a piece> www.bulbs.com and all
major hardware and merchandise retailers such as Home Depot, Wal Mart, Target,
etc. carry them often at prices that can beat those online. Home Depot
occasionally sells their 6 pack of 16 watt compact fluorescent bulbs for 9.99,
which comes to $1.67 a piece. If you pay $1.67 for your compact fluorescent, the
total cost for the compact fluorescent is $14.47 versus $55 for the
incandescent. Convinced?
So, you see that even though we started with a decision that seemed intuitively
correct, buying compact fluorescents is WAY, WAY cheaper and significantly
better for the environment. So, why does anyone buy incandescent bulbs anymore?
Good question, but we need to remember that human behavior is HUGELY affected
by inertia. Because decision making can be fairly complex and, with so many
decisions to make, most people would choose to continue to do what they’re
familiar with rather then change their behavior.
However,
our decisions as individuals, and then collectively, can have a HUGE impact on
the world around us. Just think how different the world might be if Rosa Parks
had given her seat up on that bus that day in 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama. Her
decision to remain seated sparked what became the civil rights movement in the