Word: solarization
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Half a world away, on the Indonesian island of Java, hundreds of rural families have mounted small, silvery panels on poles near their homes. Made of silicon semiconductor chips similar to the microprocessors found in computers, the solar cells convert the energy of sunshine into electricity. These almost magical devices make it possible for people living a day's walk from the nearest power lines to turn on light bulbs, radios and TV sets for the first time...
HERE COMES THE SUN The world market for solar cells has gone from $340 million in 1988 to roughly $1 billion in 1991--a growth spurt brought on by a 95% decline in the cost of these devices since the 1970s. Although the electricity they put out is still far more expensive than that produced by conventional generators, solar cells are the least expensive source of power for rural homes not connected to a region's electric grid. Further advances may make solar power an economically attractive option for many urban buildings within the next decade...
...dwelling with silicon roof tiles that generate enough electricity to meet most of a family's needs. Spurred by government incentives, construction of some 70,000 of these houses is expected in the next several years. In Switzerland and Germany, dozens of office buildings have been built with solar cells integrated into the glass of southfacing walls, allowing the windows to produce power while transmitting filtered sunlight...
Oxygen is readily available in the atmosphere. But hydrogen only exists in trace amounts in the air, and must be produced artificially--usually from fossil fuels, and perhaps in the future from rotting biomass and solar panels...
Part of Clinton's plan calls for the U.S. government to invest in such technologies as solar cells to drive the cost of production down, and to offer tax breaks to companies that do the same. But such measures would have to get past a hostile Congress. Americans proved during the oil-price shocks of the 1970s that they can get interested in energy efficiency when prices shoot up; if anything can curb greenhouse-gas emissions, it is the free market. Unfortunately, the price of oil in constant dollars is close to what it was in the car-happy 1950s...