One of the biggest issues with solar power is finding the land area for it, without wasting usable land. My idea is to use the roads, by building tall platforms that run the length of the road. This would allows dual use of the same space, particularly in the country. In addition, the roads would be safer as it would provide a partial cover to rain, thus preventing some hydroplaning. They already do it in some places with byways, why not solar panels. Add you don't have to destroy usable...

Driving down highways, you will see a lot of litter. Much of it is fast food packaging or other disposable paper. Education does not seem to be the answer, as we have been told not to litter for years - yet, it still piles up. More meals are being eaten on the road or sidewalk, as our lives become faster. What I believe we need is a paper that degrades quickly when exposed to the sun's UV rays. It would seem that the addition of titanium dioxide in its anatase form to the pulp would...

Current wind turbines are EACH equipped with a generator and a gearbox. We know large generators (such as used in electricity power plants) are more efficient, would it make sense to connect an array of wind mills via driveshaft to one large generator on the ground. Advantages: 1) high(er) efficiency generator 2) use only one big generator, not many small ones 3) big generator on the ground is easy to maintain (no climbing in towers) 4) individual wind mills can be cheaper...

This would be a good project for an Environmental Science/ Education Student. The physical object is quite simple, but the institution of the system would require much research and involvement. The actuall object: A backpack that holds a 32oz thermal mug, a set of flatware, and a lenin napkin. The hard part: One would need to do a cost analysis comparison between cost of waste removal and landfill use to the cost of distributing such a kit to all citizens of any given urban area....

In an effort to re-use the million of tons of building rubble produced each year, a way to recycle concrete with lightning was found. The lightning bolts of a short duration are more likely to pass through a solid. The idea is to produce lightning bolts and direct them to the concrete. As the lightning follows the path of least resistance, it separates the material into its fundamental components. A concrete recycling plant using the lightning method could be a reality in as...

We all have seen the mini-weather stations, but we could add a mini-Richter scale for even more fun, reporting your local area's total over all conditions when you call the reporting stations. This data would be collected and help grow an understanding of future predictions of earth quakes everywhere!

For some time we have had the ability to manufacture huge lenses. We also have computers and software that could make this idea happen. For a prototype, why not construct a large glass lens maybe 12 feet in diameter. Mount it about 30-50 feet above the ground. The base would be round and by computer be able to move round and up and down; tracking the sun 365 days of the year. The intense heat created by this large magnifying glass could be focused on some hybrid turbine and or steam...

Since lightnings create a lot of energy, can't that energy somehow be caught and stored for use?

I think the technology is all out there, I would like to see wave farms trapping air into a piping system with a floating collector which compresses and stores the air to be released into turbines creating electricity. If you had an array of high volume low pressure oscilating collectors forcing the air into pipes that bubble up into the floating collector where it is pressuized you can have 24/7 non polluting electricity.

As trees are one of the most efficient "carbon-storers", lowering the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and thereby helping to prevent a global climate catastrophe, federal, state and local governments should give tax breaks to those who either plant and/or conserve trees on their properties. This could come in the form of reduced taxes; perhaps a reduced property tax for homeowners whose property has a certain minimum density of trees per 1/4 acre, and reduced taxes...