[HighLordDave]

Alternate energy sources will not appear as long as fossil fuels and nuclear power are cheap and readily available. The big energy companies have bought up many of the patents on things like energy cell technology and clean-burning engines but they are reluctant to share them because there's too much money in oil for them to lose.

Fossil fuels are a finite energy source. The question is how long they're going to last. The doomsayers among the earthniks say that the planet will run out of oil, coal and natural gas in 10 years. That's a load of hogwash; we're finding new sources for all three every day. However, they're right to say that someday, our consumption will exceed the available supply and remain economically feasible.

I think that if we ever get a viable cold fusion system working, that would be the first step towards eliminating our reliance on fossil fuels, although this is still many years away.