On 9/15/2016 8:19 AM, Henry Baker wrote:
[This is a thermo question, not a climate troll.]
California just passed energy efficiency requirements for computers.
1. If I have an inefficient computer that requires twice as much power to run a particular computation as another, "efficient" computer, then almost certainly my inefficient computer is "worse for the environment" than an efficient computer.
2. What if, on the other hand, I power my "inefficient" computer using solar power ? To avoid grid issues, I'll power my inefficient computer directly from a solar panel so that it isn't connected to the grid at all.
The sunlight is going to be eventually converted to heat whether my computer is there or not; so what difference does it make? That last isn't strictly true. It's only sunlight that is /absorbed/ that is eventually converted to heat. About 30% of the sunlight reaching the Earth is reflected. So your solar panel, by being dark instead of reflective, is contributing a little to global warming - but less than one powered from the grid.
California also has a building code now that says large buildings with flat roofs, must have light, reflective paint on the roof. They have typically been black, tar paper. Brent