CITRIS Research Exchange: Matchmaking Global Energy Needs and Local Energy Technology

January 24, 2007: 12:00pm - 1:00pm
Location: 290 Hearst Memorial Mining Building, the Maria & Dado Banatao Conference Room, UC Berkeley

Matchmaking Global Energy Needs and Local Energy Technology

Arun Majumdar [Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UC Berkeley, and Director of the Berkeley Nanosciences and Nanoengineering Institute]

12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 24 in 290 HMMB, UC Berkeley

(watch talk online) (view presentation)

Part of the CITRIS Research Exchange at UC Berkeley. The complete schedule for the spring semester is online at RE-Spring2007. Sponsored by Infineon Technologies.

Abstract:

Recent interest and the current debate on energy and the environment provoke the following questions: What are the fundamental drivers for our renewed interest in energy? What is different this time from what happened in the 1970s? In this talk, I will attempt to answer these questions by presenting past data as well as future projections on human population and economic growth, energy consumption, its impact on the environment, and the global distribution of energy resources. Based on these, I will derive some conclusions on short-, mid-, and long- term needs for global energy supply, keeping in mind its impact on the environment. I will attempt to address why one needs basic science and engineering to create new technologies, and finally end with what we in Berkeley have to offer in this regard.