Ligers and the Future

Ligers

Imagining the future is difficult but it's a fun game to play. Some people like jet pack futurism. To me that's art not futurism. I say, if you're going to experiment with futurism the story you imagine should make sense - the transition steps in your narrative should be evenly spaced. I like to imagine a process that stretches two places shouting distance apart. For example.

Start out with hybrids
Work the bugs out of the first generation technology
Come up with goals for future generations
Build a hybrid capable of 10 km on battery only
If battery costs come down by $100 reduce the car price by $50 and add $50 more worth of batteries
How far can you practically get on battery only - 20, 30, 40 km? You have to find out.
Add the plug in feature.
Lobby for work places and commercial zones to install plugs for your plug in hybrids.
Get up to 10% of new cars sold as hybrids
Pass gas mileage rules that encourage electric mileage
Get up to 10% of all car miles on electricty
Add 500 Watts of high efficiency solar skin to the hybrids. Call it Sun Skin.
Get up to 20% of new cars sold as hybrids
Make tinted windows out of photoelectric materials.
Increase your range by a few km with higher efficiency solar skin.
Get up to 25% of all car miles on electricty
Watch gas stations start to go out of business like video stores. See it as progress. See it as process.
Keep going.

My daydreams often have me thinking Germany should be leading the charge on hybrids, plug-in hybrids and solarized plug-in hybrids. They have an awesome automotive industry and a grid that will soon have more electricity than you can shake a stick at. Two birds vith von stone.