Energy, Water, and Global Warming--What Would the Nobelists Do?

Since 1901, a special group of individuals converge in the city of Stockholm, Sweden to receive acknowledgement for their achievements in literature, economics, medicine, physics, chemistry, and peace. Three individuals recognized by the Nobel Foundation for their accomplishments in physics and chemistry joined moderator Mike Milken for a lunchtime discussion on the most pressing current policy issues facing the United States and the world.

Panelists included F. Sherwood Rowland, 1995 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on the effects of refrigerant chemicals on the earth's atmosphere, Steven Chu, 1997 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics for his work in the use of lasers to manipulate atoms, and Alan MacDiarmid, 2000 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work in the development and creation of organic polymers capable of conducting electrical current.

Two key issues that seem to be on everyone's minds these days are global warming and sources of energy. Global warming poses a particularly unique problem in that it is more that just an increase of the Earth's average temperature; global warming affects a gamut of natural occurences, ranging from rainfall, sea and lake levels, and ocean currents, to the spread of pestilence and disease. Although the subsequent thaw from the ice age allowed humans to inhabit the earth, the continuous thawing of the polar ice caps because of increased carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the earth's atmosphere have the potential for catastrophic results. Mike Milken proposed the invention of a giant vacuum cleaner to suck all of the CO2 from the atmosphere to a round of chuckles from the panelists and audience alike.

Alan MacDiarmid argued that availability energy sources was the core issue upon which other pressing problems, such as global warming and fresh water supply, depend. Utilization of alternative energy sources would decrease greenhouse gas emissions and provide heat for distillation of undrinkable water. The panelists seemed to be in agreement that not nearly enough attention was being paid by the U.S. government and Americans in general, to the pressing need to adopt alternative modes of energy.

Steven Chu also indicated that in addition to the actual physical issues of decreasing fossil fuel stores and ozone depletion, Americans should be concerned with the overall decline of American achievement in the areas of science and technology. Without the intellectual capital to continue working on these problems, solutions will not be found in time. Dr. Chu's concern regarding the underachievement of Americans in science and technology fueled his participation in the seminal National Academies report, "Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future."

And while all three of the panelists have already reached the pinnacle of each of their fields with their Nobel-garnering work, they all plan to continue soldier on with their works with hopes of summiting the next great discovery.

Photo: (L to R) Steven Chu, Michael Milken, Alan MacDiarmid and F. Sherwood Rowland. Source: Milken Institute

For more information on this session, click HERE!