Sources of all energyIn 1881, in a PresidentialAddress to the British Association, at York, Sir William Thomson (Lord Kelvin) spokeOn the Sources of Energy in Nature Available to Man for the Production of Mechanical Effect. He summarized the natural sources of energy as Tides, Food, Fuel, Wind, and Rain. All except the tides derive energy from the sun. “Heat radiated from the sun ... is the principal source of mechanical effect available to man.” He referred to tide mills, and the possibility of storing energy in batteries between tides, but nevertheless considered the economics impractical for wide application. Windpower he considered “decadent,” but acknowledged coal would become an exhausted resource, thus windmills should generate electrical power. Kelvin also outlined the economics of hydroelectricity.« |
