Faith + Reason = Truth

Eye-popping quote from a Wired story on the upcoming U.S. solar car race:
     "No one involved in the race thinks we'll all be driving solar cars one day."
Huh?  Solar cars have been around for years, at least in the experimental racing venue, which might lead one to believe that one day we'll ALL be driving our vehicles around without fuel.  Not so.  The reason we won't be?  Economics of solar pv are not good; in fact, they're still pretty terrible.  It takes way too much space and way too much money to generate electricity with solar panels, as evidenced by the University of Michigan's $500,000 solar car:
     - 2500 "aerospace-grade" solar cells;
     - 5-kilowatt lithium-polymer battery pack;
     - puts out "about as much power as your hair dryer"

Granted, although it's a lot of money for not much output, these cars ARE able to achieve speeds of up to 75 miles per hour due to their advanced design and the necessity of squeezing more out of less.  And that, as it turns out, is the real reason for and benefit of these competitions.

Thanks to Chuck Squatriglia at Wired.com for this story!