I’m a vegetarian. I’ve been one all my life. I don’t try to make an example of myself as a moral high ground. I’m friends with a lot of people who eat meat. I’m just living life as I want it. And what I want is to not eat any meat.

With that said, the in vitro meat concept intrigues me. This is a process where meat is grown in a laboratory from animal cells. The process does not hurt any animals, and does not produce waste. Right now, it’s expensive to make, but hopefully it can get to a competitive price soon. It’s said that in vitro chicken may cost twice as much as normal chicken with current methods.

PETA has issued a $1 million reward to anyone who can make something that looks and tastes like the real thing. They want everyone to stop eating meat, but since they can’t really do that, might as well support a substitute. I applaud them for that effort, but they should really lighten up on the other issues.

I’m not sure I can eat this in vitro meat. I still don’t like meat, no matter where it comes from. But at least someday I’ll be able to better stomach watching my friends eat.

Hailed as one of the possible solutions to the fossil fuel emission problem, clean coal is coal whose sulfur dioxide is removed and whose carbon dioxide can be recovered easily. It’s still a subject for debate, though, since the technology is theoretical. Here are a few facts about this new type of energy.

1. Not all coal impurities can be removed. Clean coal is essentially an oxymoron! We can’t remove all the impurities from coal, and capturing the ones that remain is still not available on a wide scale. It still gives more emissions than wind or solar power.

2. It is expensive. This may change in the future, but right now the manufacture and burning of clean coal costs quite a bit of money, making renewable energy sources more cost-effective.

3. It may not even happen. There are too many faults with the technology right now, and incorrect implementation will damage our environment because of the possible leaks and emissions it can cause!

I’m all for alternate energy sources, but for me, clean coal is a bad choice due to better alternatives already available, like wind, solar and hydroelectric. What do you think about clean coal? Is it viable?

Biofuel is yet another possible energy source we can have for the future. Many people still don’t know what biofuel is, though! Coal and oil are fossil fuels, they’re made from long-dead plants and animals. Biofuel is the same thing, except that they come from recently dead plants and other similar material. You can even use algae to make it, and avoid using foodstuffs that people need more!

We’ve been using biofuels for a long time now, as wood we burn in stoves. Ethanol and vegetable oil are more examples. How are they better than biofuel, though? Let us compare normal diesel gas and bio-diesel.

1. Biodiesel is non-toxic and biodegradable! Much safer for humans! It has zero emission as well. The exhaust actually smells rather nice!

2. It is harder to burn. When a car filled with biodiesel crashes, it’s not likely to explode! It’s also safer to transport because of this.

3. It can run in any normal diesel engine! No modifications needed! It can even be mixed or blended with normal diesel very easily with no problems. Many countries already do this.

4. It’s good for your vehicle! Biodiesel lubricates the engine more, thus extending life and requiring less maintenance.

How about you? What do you think of biofuel?