You've got to love Branson - 3 billion for climate change

[Ben]

Check this video news (http://news.netscape.com/story/2006/09/21/branson-makes-3bn-climate-pledge) out (or read it here (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5368194.stm)). Pretty incredible guy really.

Have you read his autobiography (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Losing-Virginity-Autobiography-Richard-Branson/dp/0753510200/sr=8-1/qid=1158911287/ref=sr_1_1/202-2170084-5055837?ie=UTF8&s=books)? It really is worth reading.

[que]

:thumbs-up:

A good thing to be doing for sure. But it will be under his 'Virign fuels' seciton. which im guessing, if they discover a fantastic alternative, he'll become even richer. But anything to help the envorinment has to be encouraged. Very well done on him. If only more people could follow suit.

Also, what about Warren Buffet who said he will donate $37bn to charity.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5115920.stm

Nice!

[Alan]

Richard Branson´s autobiography is the only English book that I have with me... Haven´t started it yet though.

[Ben]

Alan - Read that and you'll soon be running Valencia! Honestly, this is a great time for you to read that book. The guy inspires confidence and 'I can take on the world' feelings just from reading it.

Que - all true. And it occured to me also that it was the least he could do seeing as a) he is soooooo rich, and b) his planes and trains are doing their bit to degrade our planet in their own way. Still, good move. Let's hope he comes up with a way of turning water into electricity of something of the sort.

Getting a bit further off topic, perhaps a chemist out there can explain this to me: hydrogen is meant to be a potential wonder fuel and completely clean - we have hydrogen buses in Madrid. But I understand that to make hydrogen you have to release an unacceptable quantity of CO2 (it has to be stored, always a problem). My question is, why can't someone come up with a way of seperating said C02 into Carbon and Oxygen again, both of which are extremely useful?

[Alan]

You make hydrogen from water, no? I thought that the only things that were released were oxygen and hydrogen - both very useful (and explosive when mixed). Why does it make CO2? Do you crack hydrocarbons to get hydrogen i.e. 2CH3 + 2O2 -> 2CO2 + 3H2? I don´t know anything about it, it seems.

As for your question, I know they can do this with ferrates (rust). The oxygen can be removed leaving you with iron...

[greytop]

You make hydrogen from water, no? I thought that the only things that were released were oxygen and hydrogen - both very useful (and explosive when mixed). ...
Then you'd end up with oxygen as a waste product - and that's nasty stuff if there's too much of it.

PS Found some info on good old Google
For a technical explanation (http://www.hyweb.de/Knowledge/w-i-energiew-eng.html)[/URL] with all those formulas

Or for a [URL="http://www.hydrogen.co.uk/h2/h2_page2.htm"]simpler one (file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/HP_Propietario/Datos%20de%20programa/Mozilla/Firefox/Profiles/hp7xwtvq.default/ScrapBook/data/20060922170359/index.html)try here

[Ben]

Thank you! By the way, your first link doesn't work greytop, any chance of putting it in so I can have a look?

[greytop]

Sorry - pasted the local disc reference from Scrapbook. Works now & good luck . Someone did ask for a technical podcast!

[Ashley]

right, the general rule is that the smaller the molecule, the harder it is to break apart. So to break the bonds between the carbon and the oxygen atoms in a molecule of CO2 would be very expensive in energy terms (ie lots of energy required to do the breaking), which translates to very expensive in financial terms. Also, as greytop said, liquid O2 is highly explosive, which is part of why H2 isn't made from H2O and CO2 isn't separated.

The C-H bonds in a molecule of methane are a lot easier to break (less energy input required to do it), which is why its a pretty good source for producing hydrogen.

Back to Richard Branson, I went in to talk with my careers advisor yesterday and he recommended I read Branson's book. The main conversation went something like this:
Careers Advisor: I see so many students who don't realize they can make their dreams a reality--you can get the job you want if you work for it, lets make that happen.
Me: Great, because I want to move to Spain!
C.A.: riiight. Well, do you have EU citizenship?
Me: Nope!
C.A.:silence...

In the end, I did manage to get some websites from him and the advice to just start emailing university chemistry labs in Spain and offer myself as a research assistant. So the job search in Spain gets underway...

[Marina]

Good for R. Branson!!!

I was already reading the book when he made the anouncement and I'm loving it, yesterday I read for about 6 hours non-stop. And today when I saw a Virgin baloon when I took the train in Oxford I couldn't belive it:D:D:D

[Brian]

I was already reading the book when he made the anouncement and I'm loving it, yesterday I read for about 6 hours non-stop.

Being on holiday, being able to curl up with a book for that long must be lovely. Estás sufriendo, ¿eh? :)

[Marina]

That is definetely the best bit about holidays in England!!!

[gary]

That is definetely the best bit about holidays in England!!!

I have just returned from the Costas on a weeks holiday with friends - I am not ashamed to say that I succeeded in doing nothing at all for seven whole days, well not quite - i listened to all the NIS podcasts on my iPod shuffle - twice. I thought there would be little opportunity to practice my spanish but the wife of the owner of what became our local was spanish and happy to chat away merrily.

Someone mentioned accents - Madrid accent is easier to grasp. The southern accent I find much harder - no one seems to annunciate 's' sounds particularly at the end of words, or at least there is no sibillance so 'dos cervezas' seems to come over as 'do cerveza' with the s being suggested by a slight expulsion of breath

[que]

Oh yes, the famous southern accent!

They 'eat' their words. They do tend to eat the 's' off words, which i believe would be quite hard for a learner as when you're learning, you're listening for set words as such, and it can makes a difference.

I went to Cadiz in the south of spain to meet up with my house mates friends (shes from the north) and she said that even she use to have trouble understanding them when she was younger.

I think ill know that my spanish is at a good level when i can easily identify what part of the country people are form.

I guess its like some of my English friends who use to have trouble even understanding my best friend from Glasgow!

But im not sure quite what the language range is. It would be interesting to have comparisons.

Thats why i studied in salamanca when i did. As its suppose to have one of the purist forms of spanish. But at my level, i guess they may as well all speak german :D

[gary]

Oh yes, the famous southern accent!



When we go to spain in the winter, costa del sol or almeria, we often finish up in hotels with loads of spanish pensioners down for their free week (great idea). The folk from the north (particularly around Barcelona) love to chat to the strange Ingles that speaks some spanish but are quick to let you know that they 'aren't from round here' - guess theres a south north divide in spain too....

[timg]

When we go to spain in the winter, costa del sol or almeria, we often finish up in hotels with loads of spanish pensioners down for their free week (great idea).
I didn't know about this free week. Is that a nation-wide thing or just for parts of the country?

[gary]

I didn't know about this free week. Is that a nation-wide thing or just for parts of the country?

Im sure that this happens but I,m not entirely sure if its freeor heavikly subsidised - there were posters up abouti it in the H Pinar in Torremolinos about three years ago when I visited - I suppose it makes sense - It has to be cheaper to send the pensioners (and keep them happy) than to pay social security all the hotel staff that would be jobless for the winter

[greytop]

I didn't know about this free week. Is that a nation-wide thing or just for parts of the country?
It's subsidised on a regional basis so it is fairly cheap for the pensionistas.
See [/URL][URL="http://www.mallorcadiario.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=18490#search=%22viajes%20pensionistas%22"]sample scheme for Mallorcan residents (http://www.elmundo.es/sudinero/noticias/act-47-3.html)

I've also seen adverts in the paper for particular company (such as a bank) telling its pensioners or investors that there is a travel scheme available.

[timg]

Thanks for the info. What a great idea!

[Alan]

I read Branson´s book over the last couple of days (it´s quite long too!). Very inspirational.