AS SEEN ON TV

Applied Research Center is often called upon by the media for their input on issues affecting the South Florida community, a duty we take very seriously and are happy to oblige.

Most recently our very own Jorge Gomez, PhD Research Assistant under the WHIX project at ARC, appeared as a special guest on the popular Spanish-language series “Opiniones”. The show airs on WRLN-PBS (Channel 17) as part of the PBS Sunday Spanish segment. The format of the show is a 30-minute interview with host Pedro Corzo.

The topic of this particular episode was: the end of abundant petroleum supplies and how renewable energies will play an important part in the future of the U.S. / World economy. Mr. Gomez spoke on decreasing oil reserves, the proposed shift towards natural gas, hopes for a viable hydrogen economy, bio-fuels, and the importance of additional research on alternative sources of energy.

Mr. Gomez is currently working on a project focusing on bio-diesel. He used this opportunity to explain to the public, in an easily understandable way, what bio-diesel is, how it is made, the beneficial effects it has for U.S. Agriculture, and the move towards more diesel cars in the U.S. A comparison was also made between the development of bio-mass, bio-fuels, wind and solar programs in the U.S., Europe and Japan.

“Throughout the show I tried to emphasize that there is no ‘silver bullet’ approach to the energy predicament,” Gomez commented, “but rather a portfolio of energy conversion strategies that need to be adapted to local geographic and economic conditions and definitely an increased requirement for more conservation, recycling and cogeneration initiatives.