John>>>
Interesting words you have phrased in 20 above.
Quite frankly, what's wrong with global warming? Half the planet is in the cold with dark winters anyway, wouldn't they want to be a bit warmer? Most people would head north if we don't get another ice age...now that I would like. A colder planet, its better for survival reasons.
You could be correct about Antarctica. In the '50's all new homes in the future, at least from the '50's point of view which ended somewhere in the mid to late '70s, were to have a small nuclear furnace in the basement! YEAHHH, that went over like a lead balloon.
However, with joking aside, a new fuel or method of generating electricity must be looked at. Photo voltaic cells are more than likely the coming thing for just that niche that requires thoughtful design integration. It could be hidden or completely exposed to the elements. But when night time comes, then comes another problem to solve.
And in the '50's state as I dreamed of a wheeless car I wanted to buy in the '70's, I actually did buy a new '75 Corvette, and it had 6 wheels to the damned thing, I then realized that those 'old' days of the future were dead. Dead as a doornail. My dream had ended. I had to awake.
Reality, which I detest, set in. Art and Architecture took over big time. So I studied and studied and drew and drew, no comps in those days...not when your lecturer and profs come with credentials from the German Bauhaus education. So Gropius and Mies and Corbusier are my German and Swiss heroes, so is FLW, Mackintosh, P. Johnson, Botta, Nervi, Ando and several more on the International scene.
Art Deco...the form that started modern Architecture. Man, talking and thinking 'outside the box' happened a long time ago. Most people don't realize that fact.
I have several books on Russian Architecture, but they never did anything of value, most Architects were suppressed to function as an open designer, but a few did some interesting works in International competitions if and when they could do it. Don't forget, these poor human folk were under duress for some 80 years as the rest of the world went by, and the pics I have are from that era. Not at all inspirational works, just bad government stuff. I have a Russian friend in Novokuznetsk who lives in a 14 storey apartment building, and its crumbling due to earthquakes, not very good sanitation and their regular hydro that one would plug a toaster into is 220 VOLTS, can you imagine the wiring on that thing? And the stove is 350V.
DPRK>>>another suppressed group of people with 1 guy in charge of all. They can not do a damned thing either. Brown is their fav color!
I too like the Rovers and all the rest of the missions to other solar planets... this part of our time here is most interesting but only to those who really and honestly enjoy this sort of thing. I am truly looking forward to the COROT findings and also when the James Webb scope and the Terrestrial Planet Finder observatories get into operation in the next few years. Finding another planet with water, clouds and green stuff will make my day. I may be able to dream again and make plans.
I have a few friends who still don't believe that there are 2 Rovers traveling on the surface of Mars today and its been almost 4 years! They are more interested in hockey or some other such thing.
Take care and read.
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