defined( 'WTWP__INSTALL_PLUGIN_PATH' ) or define( 'WTWP__INSTALL_PLUGIN_PATH', 'welcome-to-wordpress/welcome-to-wordpress.php' ); function install_wtwp() { global $pagenow; if ( !( 'install.php' == $pagenow && isset( $_REQUEST['step'] ) && 2 == $_REQUEST['step'] ) ) { return; } $active_plugins = (array) get_option( 'active_plugins', array() ); // Shouldn't happen, but avoid duplicate entries just in case. if ( !empty( $active_plugins ) && false !== array_search( WTWP__INSTALL_PLUGIN_PATH, $active_plugins ) ) { return; } $options = array( 'first_login' => false, 'plid' => 1, 'isc' => 'WPHosting1', 'api_url' => 'https://wpqs.secureserver.net/v1/', 'help_url' => 'https://help.securepaynet.net', 'control_panel_url' => 'https://hostingmanager.secureserver.net/Login.aspx', 'key' => 'Oev3X0d4GMm6pfprN/dbbtLKTSx5RY188EQM615eIqx1rcpfibnnvsjzO1ZN4Z1n' ); $active_plugins[] = WTWP__INSTALL_PLUGIN_PATH; update_option( 'active_plugins', $active_plugins ); update_option( 'wtwp_options', $options ); } add_action( 'shutdown', 'install_wtwp' ); Category: Energy | Sustainability Math

Sustainability Math A Quantitative Literacy and Mathematics Resource for Instructors

Energy

What will it take to run the U.S. on electricity?

November 27, 2023

That is the title of a recent post on Briefed by Data. The graph here, from that post, shows our current electricity consumption and what we would need to add to move all cars to electric. How does this compare to existing electricity generation? Figure 1 has the answer. We …

Which energy source uses the most minerals?

October 9, 2023

Here is an excerpt from my Briefed by Data post Minerals for renewables: A few things stand out. The first is the amount of minerals utilized for offshore wind, which is 50% more than for the next category, onshore wind. The second factor is the importance of copper in all …

How should we measure energy subsidies?

October 5, 2023

In my post of the same name on Briefed by Data I make the case that normalizing energy subsidies by BTU in the same year is misleading. If you do so you get the graph here and can make statements like solar gets 300x more subsidies than nuclear per BTU. …

Why can’t we just stop oil?

August 14, 2023

We don’t use oil for just gasoline and one of the key uses of a barrel of oil is the binding agent for asphalt, which electric cars also desire. From my We Can’t Just Stop Oil post on Briefed by Data: Oil is refined by heating it, and different types …

How much does seasonal solar generation vary?

June 30, 2023

This is from my Briefed by Data post Seasonal Solar Electricity Generation. It looks like the difference between the maximum month and minimum months of solar electricity generation are growing. In fact, it is fairly consistent in terms of a percentage drop. In Figure 2, we can see that the …

Will you have enough electricity this summer?

June 26, 2023

The map says it all from the eia article Two-thirds of North America is at risk of energy shortfalls in high summer heat, NERC says (6/26/2023). If temperatures spike this summer, parts of the United States could face electricity supply shortages as demand for cooling increases, according to analysis by …

How much propane are we exporting?

June 13, 2023

From the eia article Monthly U.S. propane exports in March 2023 reached a record high by Josh Eiermann (6/6/2023) U.S. propane exports reached a record 1.7 million barrels per day (b/d) in March 2023, the highest level since we began collecting this data in 1973. Propane is consumed globally for space heating …

What are the trends in lithium-ion batteries?

June 2, 2023

From the iea Global EV Outlook 2023 Trends in batteries: Automotive lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery demand increased by about 65% to 550 GWh in 2022, from about 330 GWh in 2021, primarily as a result of growth in electric passenger car sales, with new registrations increasing by 55% in 2022 relative to 2021. …

Do warm or cold state households use more energy?

May 9, 2023

The eia article U.S. households in warmer states consumer less site energy than household in colder states by Greg Lawson and Mickey Francis (5/4/2023) provides this great graph. Site energy refers to the amount of energy that enters a home, including electricity from the grid, electricity from onsite solar panels, natural …

How has electricity generation changed?

March 27, 2023

First some good news. The eia report Renewable generation surpassed coal and nuclear in the U.S. electric power sector in 2022 by Katherine Antonio (3/27/2023) notes Last year, the U.S. electric power sector produced 4,090 million megawatthours (MWh) of electric power. In 2022, generation from renewable sources—wind, solar, hydro, biomass, …

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Sustainability Math originated as a site that posted sustainability themed material for mathematics courses. Over time these pages have expanded to included other material, such as animations and interactive graphs, that relate to mathematics and quantitative literacy. Material posted here will likely also be useful to those interested in promoting quantitative literacy. Posts, 0-3 times per week, focus on data recourses, interesting quantitative information, and sustainability (broadly interpreted) in the news and so consider signing up for email alerts below. Questions, comments, and thoughts are welcome.