The document discusses the energy crisis and potential solutions. It notes that fossil fuels are being depleted rapidly and will run out, causing prices and costs of living to increase. Current alternative energy sources like solar and wind are inefficient and don't produce enough power. However, magnetic generators may provide a viable alternative, as they produce constant electricity from magnets without emissions or byproducts. Magnetic generators could help address environmental issues from fossil fuel use if implemented on a large scale.

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Sean Andreassen
Mrs. Corbett
AP Literature
18 November 2011
The Energy Crisis
“Fossil fuels are currently being consumed 100,000 times faster than they are being
formed” (Renewable Energy). At this rate, fossil fuels will be depleted in the near future, and an
alternative energy source will be required. Though this will not happen for some time, the effects
of the decline will be felt far in advance, as fuel prices will greatly increase. As this grows, the
cost of living and transportation will significantly raise, which will not decline until a viable
alternative energy source is discovered. Currently, the problem facing the nation is shared across
the globe and is causing untold damage to the environment. This problem has had no true
solution, even though potential energy sources exist, such as solar panels or wind turbines. These
sources are usually very inefficient and lack power; however, a potential source is now available
with magnetic generators, which may help find a solution to the problem, while avoiding the
inefficiencies that have plagued the other sources, and may be the first true energy source since
oil or coal.
Today, an unprecedented amount of damage has been done to the environment, causing
vast environmental and ecological damage. This issue of Global Warming is shared across the
world and is not due to natural causes, since “there is an unprecedented amount of scientific
evidence that recent global warming is related not to Earth’s natural cycles but to human
activities and population increases” (Global Warming; Global Issues in Context). Common
activities, such as driving a car, are a large part of this cause, and will continue to damage the

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environment until a viable alternative source of energy is in use. This action would be a great
step to solving the problem, though energy needs are not the only source of pollution in modern
society. In fact, humans have created and released greenhouse gasses that do not occur in nature
that…have thousands of times the effect on the earth’s temperature that carbon dioxide has”
(Global Warming; Gale Opposing Viewpoints). These gases are primarily as a result of
manufacturing and refinement processes, which are used in the production of common materials,
such as aluminum. As factories work to reduce their carbon footprint, there also needs to be a
focus on regulating the most harmful chemicals that are produced, since those cause a large
amount of damage. However, while this is crucial, these gases are in large part confined, because
they are restricted to highly technical facilities and processes, which cannot be said about the
most common source of damage, fossil fuels. The expansiveness fossil fuels make it a key target
in the battle to reduce environmental damage, since “the vast majority of energy comes from
nonrenewable fuels, such as oil, natural gas, and coal. Of these, oil is depended on the most,
accounting for 40% of all energy needs and nearly 90% of transportation fuel” (Daniel Leone).
Fossil fuels have a large role in the world today due to the dependence that modern society has
on them, which has led to struggles in the world that are often not solely environmental or
ecological. Furthermore, fossil fuels dominate the economy and have caused great tensions in the
past, sometimes leading to war, but more often leading to major economic damage. With the
rapid consumption of fossil fuels, their price continues to grow, causing economic hardship for
those that are unable to maintain this constant increase, which serves as a leading indicator of
their archaic nature and future conclusion. As the current energy sources grow outdated,
alternative energy sources take the forefront in the effort to address the issue of climate change,

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despite the fact that many of the current solutions fail to reach the output and versatility offered
by fossil fuels.
Still, there are many alternative energy sources on the market today, though many of
them have costs that far exceed their benefits. Furthermore, many of the energy sources that are
most popular do not actually have an effect on the environment, even though their market price
is often high. This is the case because the most popular solution is with cars, which relies on
electricity, which also relies on another power source to provide it with electricity. This source
will more than likely originate from a coal power plant, which is currently the “nation’s largest
unregulated source of mercury emissions” (Emily Fidgor). Since cars are unable to produce their
own electricity, the use of electric cars, while a step in the right direction, actually has very little
positive effect on the environment because they only act to move the source of pollution from
each car, to the coal powered factory plants. Many people are unaware of this and continue to
believe that they are doing all that they need to do by simply buying an electric car, though
without a clean source of energy to power these cars, such attempts are futile. Currently, sources
such as solar power do exist; however, they are very limited, and “while the reliability and cost
of solar electric technologies continue to improve, solar power today accounts for less than one
percent” (William Booth). These alternative sources face difficulty not only spreading, but
producing in a manner that would allow them to become the primary source of energy. Solar
technology is an excellent example for current alternative energy sources, since it shares many
common problems with other sources. One of these main difficulties is its lack of efficiency,
since it regularly only captures 15% of what it is exposed to, which is also limited since it must
be in direct and complete exposure in order to capture the energy from the sun. With these
restrictions, combined with the fact that their price is very high, solar panels, while possibly the

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most well known, do not live up to the potential that is necessary in order to become a viable
source of energy. Furthermore, another main problem with sources such as solar or wind power,
is that they are unable to be scaled up to a level where they will be truly effective. This is not the
case with larger sources, such as hydroelectric dams, though these have their own difficulties
since “recent research has shown that hydroelectric dams are actually large greenhouse-gas
emitters” (Larry Gilman). Hydroelectric dams function with the flow of water past a turbine
through the dam, which creates electricity. However, in order for this to happen, the dam itself
must be created, often diverting water supplies, and clearing surrounding areas of farmland or
trees. This action reduces the ability of the area to naturally absorb the carbon dioxide produced
on a daily basis, causing an increase in carbon dioxide levels and thus more damage to the
environment. Current solutions prove to be too inefficient or damaging to their surrounding areas
that they cannot serve as a feasible source for alternative energy, though a possible solution does
exist that may be able to work not only on the small scale, but also to power entire buildings with
very little change to the environment.
This solution is currently fairly unknown, though it has been in existence for many years,
and is called a magnetic generator. The basis for this system is the same for all generators, which
employs “a turbine used to provide the circuits rotation…which is changed into electric current”
(John Appel). The basis of this generator is also the basis for other current alternative energy
sources, such as a wind turbine or a hydroelectric dam. In each situation, a force causes the
turbine to spin and produce electricity, which in the case of the magnetic generator comes from
the repulsion of magnets. The process of the turbine has been employed not only in modern
alternative energy sources though, as it is commonly used in standard generators, which rely on
conventional methods for power. In fact, the main difference between all energy sources of this

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type is the source of their power, which greatly affects their output. A stable and clean source of
energy would therefore be able to not only produce constant and reliable power, but would
require very little room or change for the device to be put into place. A source such as permanent
magnets would be able to provide this rotation, since a magnetic field is readily found on the
planet, though it can be applied to “electrical forces as well, and is an extremely important aspect
of many energy applications” (Joseph Priest). The use of permanent magnets as the key to the
design allows the generator to produce constant electricity with no emissions or by-products.
Also, the use of permanent magnets, while not as regulatory as a temporary magnet which
receives power through tightly wound copper wire, does not require the constant input of
electricity, and so is free standing and able to produce a comparatively larger amount of energy.
This very reason is why “permanent-magnet generators are simple in that they require no system
for the provision of field current and they are highly reliable” (Electric Generator). The use of
this technology allows for more output from the system, with a lifespan that is limited only by
the durability of the parts used in its creation, allowing for a carefree device capable of powering
nearly anything that it is connected to. The limitless nature of this device, that is free from any
certain location, and completely independent of weather conditions or environmental factors,
would allow for a seamless integration into modern society. The magnetic generator is in fact a
viable alternative energy source that has yet to be truly tested and incorporated in the way that
many other sources have been, and will continue to grow.
Therefore, of the many problems that face the planet today, environmental issues are at
the forefront. Alternative energy sources continue to grow in popularity and necessity, as the
threat of climate change reaches more people across the globe. The creation of a true and reliable
alternative energy source would not only have a resounding environmental impact, but would

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help to free the nations from the grip of fossil fuels, which would largely reduce conflict over the
now precious commodity. Further environmental damage caused by humans would be greatly
reduced with the incorporation of a new alternative energy source, such as magnetic generators,
which would overcome many of the common problems that current alternative sources face. As
environmental damage increases, and climate change becomes more of a threat, there has never
been a greater need for a new source of energy that is able to overcome current problems and
blend flawlessly into modern society.

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Gilman, Larry. “Energy Contributions.” Climate Change: In Context. Ed. Brenda Wilmoth
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