Car battery or campaign charger?
Presidential candidate John McCain wants to hold a government-sponsored contest to invent an efficient car battery. But some criticize the idea as a campaign gimmick. Scott Jagow talks to economic correspondent Chris Farrell.
Presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain (Sara D. Davis/Getty Images, Mario Tama/Getty Images)
More on Sustainability, Innovation, Politics
Comments
Comment | Refresh
From Seattle, WA, 07/11/2008
Who will pay for this 300 millions? Will McCain back it up? Is this official or is he trying to get for himself a vote? why Electric? Charging station could be problem, bottom line is you still have to pay something for energy, nothing is free.
I have a solution for America 2 years ago, I can double the mileage for any gasoline cars right now, I'm looking for a radio or a tv company to witness my road test. Yup... my Mercedes-Benz c280 can go 600+ miles on a full tank. No hydrogen junk, just pure gas.
Cam
From Hurlock, MD, 06/28/2008
Scott should be informed that $300 mil gouing into cancer research is a waste of money. Billions already go into cancer research and there is nothing to show for it except expensive "treatments", while real cures are suppressed by a greedy industry and our government.
From New Carlisle, OH, 06/28/2008
When Scott Jagow asked Chris Farrell if this wasn't akin to a game show Farrell said "No, that's capitalism!". Taking money from the taxpayers and giving it a successful business is nothing like capitalism. "Republicanism" is more like it. I was shocked by that reply.
Compare this story with the one that preceded it about auto manufacturers fighting against mileage standards. If "the marketplace" had anything to do with the American economy auto makers would be imposing their own mileage standards in order to compete.
The bottom line? More corporate welfare and less regulation have gotten us in the mess we're in. Cheering on more of the same with slogans like "That's Capitalism!" does a disservice to your listeners.
From Bow, NH, 06/27/2008
Hasn't McCain or his advisors heard of the "Progressive Automotive X PRIZE Competition." He's spinning an existing idea for political purposes. Then, if a company is successful (say one of the Big 3), we can award them w/ government $$, set up another agency to oversee the whole thing, & give them further tax incentives to mass produce it. "Big Government" Mr. McCain? The guy is senile........
From Bossier City, LA, 06/27/2008
I heard comments from politicians and others but not from engineers. As an engineer, I would like to warn the public that we are not tackling the real problem. We need an energy source such as fossil fuels, nuclear or some other natural source. Once you have that, you can convert that energy source to electricity. Finally this energy can be used to charge automobile batteries.
Simply put without any technical jargon, the politician's push for battery technology is like presenting an empty fuel tank or discharged battery
You now know enough to decide whether this is a gimmick or a great idea.
This also raises concern about the politician’s capability to comprehend national issues.
From Dover, DE, 06/26/2008
I agree that there are problems with such a contest, but it is not without precedent: DARPA has awarded (much smaller) cash prizes to "teams" for developing robotically self-driving cars in their "Grand Challenge" contest. I don't know who owns the rights to the resulting product(s) (I believe DARPA does), and the teams were a mix of individuals, universities, and corporate-sponsored groups, but the military now has the basic building blocks for vehicles that can "drive themselves" to destinations without tying up valuable personnel.
Maybe the Army could have developed this technology itself. Maybe some car maker or oil company is "sitting on" better battery technology. But maybe, in a capitalistic, free-market economy, opening up the doors to development to all comers by offering a cash incentive prize will yield a better product with a shorter development cycle. Put me down as "cautiously in favor of".
From Tucson, AZ, 06/26/2008
My opinion - save the 300M. Maybe 100M would help Aptera Motors speed up their production process. We already have a great lithium ion battery that is suitable for the majority of the needs of the average person. Bottom line, the technology is available, it is just not being used or in production. That is where we need to focus our energy and resources.
06/26/2008
My thought is if the American people are going to offer this prize, will the American people own the idea? They should
From Croydon, PA, 06/26/2008
$300 Million to company who already have Billions of $$ in their pockets isn't likely to benefit from such incentives. If they knew how it would of been already developed. It may help them allocate more resource to the development. But thats where it ends. No small Joe Mo company would benefit from such incentive because they don't have knowledge or know how. Starting from clean slate is not gone help. It is my opinion, that these schemes are designed to give back - our taxpayers money to companies who contributed to political campaigns and funded these politicians. Its indirect way of doing it. And making them look good as well.
From Orlando, FL, 06/26/2008
This is a campaign gimmick. There is no "tie-in" with a comprehensive energy strategy or with other technology.
Might as well build a bridge to nowhere.
From Albany, NY, 06/26/2008
Perhaps the $300 million dollar prize could be contributed to the contest not by taxpayers but by Texaco which bought up the patent and closed down the manufacturing plant of a battery that could have increased the range of an electric car two or three fold (See the movie "Who Killed The Electric Car").
Or perhaps we should just award the prize to the family of M. DeGeus who was found dead in his car in an airport parking lot. Who was DeGeus?
"DeGeus was in fact the inventor of a thin wafer-like material/device that somehow specially aligned the atoms or electron currents ongoing in that material, so that the wafer produced a constant amperage at a small voltage – continuous real power, or in other words a strange kind of “self-powering battery”." This battery is "scaleable" so it could power anything from a cell phone to a house and perhaps beyond. Dangerous technology if you are an oil company, a centralized power company, or a government beholding to such companies.
Yes, we should offer a prize for such a battery or an equal or larger penalty to anyone who continues to suppress such invention.
From Williamsport, PA, 06/26/2008
If the idea of using taxpayer money for research and development is used in developing a new product, then the taxpayers should own the right to this product. A patent should be submitted with the funding that states the successful development will be available at a acceptable market price for the investors. Either the free market works or it doesn't.
From Richmond, VA, 06/26/2008
What would power this battery? Not electricity I hope. It takes fuel to make electricity. Let's work towards alternative modes of travel. I wish I was smart enough to know what that was.Until "it" is invented & mass produced we need to be improving the infrastructure we have and changing the public's perception about mass transit. That is what will get us through this tough time. I am not opposed to a prize for a relevent resolution to the transportation situation but $300 mil is a little steep!
From Rochester, MI, 06/26/2008
I am not the one you want to design a new battery. My attempts have forever fallen just short of hitting the mark. My friends refer to me as WD39. I drive an Olds 97, I eat Kellogg's Product 18 for breakfast and then clean up the kitchen with 408 spray cleaner. Although the thought of a cordless battery charger has crossed my mind, I have not yet constructed a working model. I always seem to give up just before crossing the finish line. Frustrated, I usually just listen to Two Dog Night, and fix myself a little Seagram's 6 over ice.
But knowing this about myself I always buy two lotto tickets at a time. I just know the first time I buy just one, the very next ticket sold will be the winner.
From Granite Falls, NC, 06/26/2008
If I knew enough about physics to design such a battery, I wouldn't need McCain's $300 mil. I'd rather have the billions to be made from bringing it to market.
Post a Comment: Please be civil, brief and relevant.
Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. All comments are moderated. Marketplace reserves the right to edit any comments on this site and to read them on the air if they are extra-interesting. Please read the Comment Guidelines before posting.
You must be 13 or over to submit information to American Public Media. The information entered into this form will not be used to send unsolicited email and will not be sold to a third party. For more information see Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.