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President Barber sat at his large oak desk, sipping on a steaming cup of coffee. Troy paced back and forth ten feet in front of the president’s desk, anxiously awaiting the next cabinet member to arrive.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
“Was that a knock at the door?” asked Troy.
“I believe it was more of a tap,” quipped President Barber with a smirk.
Troy raced over to the front door. He halted his rush on a dime, his nose only inches from the door. He quickly fixed his comb over hair, then with his hands, flattened out his button-up dress shirt. He gave a long, powerful sigh. Then opened the door.
A tall, middle-aged lady with gray hair awaited politely outside the door, her hands interlocked below her navel. Troy recalled exactly who she was, even from a decade earlier in the dark sewer. Dr. Barbara Gallagher, now The Movement’s Chief Energy Scientist, stood ready to enter the President’s office.
“Welcome, Dr. Gallagher,” greeted Troy with a sway of his left arm, welcoming her to step inside.
“Why thank you, sweetie,” she replied with a broad smile.
Dr. Gallagher tiptoed her away to the president’s desk. She lightly pressed her fingertips together out in front of her below her breasts, as if she were holding something small against her chest.
“Welcome to my office, Dr. Gallagher,” said President Barber, standing up from his desk and gesticulating for her to take a seat in one of the leather-buttoned chairs.
“Thank you, Mr. President. This is a fine office you have here,” she complimented.
“Thank you Dr. Gallagher. It was constructed only two years ago, but designed to have the vintage look which Mr. George Washington would have appreciated,” he said, moving his head aside to show her the portrait of the first US president behind him.
“Oh! That’s a very nice portrait of him, I might add!” she observed.
Troy returned to his chair adjacent to Dr. Gallagher’s with a stern face.
“Ahem,” he coughed to get the president’s attention. “Shall we?”
“We shall,” he replied. “Dr. Gallagher; as you know, energy is what every modern society needs to function. We need to know what kind of energy you plan to employ to keep The Movement’s power in place. It must be inexpensive and renewable, but most of all efficient.”
“Yes, yes,” she replied calmly. “Well, I am an advocate of wind and solar energy and have my entire heart in pushing further for the matter. However, the cheapest innovation to date is that energy powered by gravity.”
“Gravity?” asked Troy. “Please, explain.”
“Certainly. Envision a vertical cable. There is a mechanism on the top end of this vertical cable, which concealed inside is an intricate system of tiny gears and pulleys. This mechanism is dense for its size-about ten pounds or so in a thing not much bigger than your hand. The weight, naturally, forces the mechanism downward by gravity, a highly accessible-and free-resource here on Earth. As the mechanism slowly descends down the rope, the hundreds of tiny gears inside it begin to churn rather quickly, providing energy,” she explained.
“How long can this system be in place before it needs reset?” asked Troy.
“Currently, every foot the mechanism travels down the rope provides about six hours of energy to power a single home. Certainly, this innovation requires further improvement, but if we can power The Movement with gravity, I think we’ll be in a powerful position forever,” she explained.
“That’s innovative,” admitted President Barber. “But as of right now, what major energy could power from only a few grids across the continent? I’m thinking large-scale, very large-scale.”
“Well, Mr. President, I am a huge advocate of wind and solar,” began Dr. Gallagher.
“We are aware of that, Dr. Gallagher,” snorted Troy, growing impatient with her placid attitude.
“What else do you have in mind?” asked President Barber.
Dr. Gallagher paused for moment to sneer at Troy. Then she returned to speak with the president.
“Well, we are still relying too much on oil and coal for our own good. Oil is getting much more expensive and difficult to import, not to mention extracting and refining it here. Plus, with the increased rates of piracy and bunkering, especially along the Arabian Sea, where all of the Persian Gulf oil and natural gas must enter to be shipped to its destination worldwide,” she said.
“And so what do you recommend we do?” asked Troy, leaning back in his chair.
“I believe if we made an immediate conversion to renewable energy today, we could become an oil exporting nation. That way we would be able to drill for the remaining domestic oil here and reap the profits from its exports rather than use it for our own consumption,” she explained.
President Barber nodded his head in satisfaction.
Dr. Gallagher continued: “Additionally, if we cut off absolutely all oil imports cold turkey, today, it would create a vacuum in the market immediately. Prices would drop tremendously, and any oil-exporting country or caliphate would feel a significant dent to their treasury, especially Petro-States like Saudi Arabia and Russia, where petroleum is their main source of national revenue. It’s great for the short term, but when other nations convert to renewables or transportation becomes a problem, markets disappear along with profits. Such nations thrive and die with petroleum.”
“But wouldn’t that be good for us here?” asked Troy, suddenly interested and leaning forward now.
“It would seem good, yes. And maybe in the long run it would benefit our world power structure, too. But for the time being it could create ubiquitous turmoil in the nations that rely on oil revenues for their main source of income. And that means more conflict and revolutions around the world. And probably more piracy and bunkering,” she explained.
“Bunkering?” asked President Barber.
“Bunkering, yes. It’s when revolutionary groups and radicals penetrate oil pipelines and purloin the oil flowing inside it. They then either use the oil themselves or sell it for much less than market value, but make entirely pure profit since they have no capital invested in the process, albeit the tools they used to steal the oil itself,” said Dr. Gallagher.
“Why would people bunker oil if the market prices dropped low like you said they would?” asked Troy.
“Because people will always try to make money at every opportunity they can get. If the market value of oil drops, people can still bunker oil and sell it for half of the market value price, whether it’s high or low. They are still making free money, essentially, albeit the risk involved,” she explained.
Troy and President Barber nodded their heads in understanding.
“So the same would happen on the seas then? You also said piracy would likely increase too, is that right?” asked an interested Troy.
“That’s right. And that might be a much larger problem once it fully develops. Not only would oil piracy likely increase, but the demand for oil would increase. Oil importing nations would jump at the opportunity to purchase oil at a cheaper price. Pirates and privateers in the oceans and seas would also jump at the opportunity to pirate more oil. The result could be devastating pathogenic catastrophes in the open waters. Piracy usually involves conflict, and conflict around oil on water always risks the chances of oil spills and tankers leaking oil into the water. It could be worldwide commercial and environmental chaos,” she said.
“So what you’re saying is that we can’t halt oil imports immediately. Could we sell our oil rights to another nation? Say Japan, or India?” asked Troy.
“We could. And that would provide The Movement with some revenue as well. But they will only buy if it’s cheap, and if they absolutely need more oil. I’m sure India would like that, but not at a high price. It’s definitely something to look into,” she said.
“Let’s say we sell our oil rights to India. We make a couple billion dollars, and the oil market prices remain relatively steady. Piracy and bunkering wouldn’t increase?” asked Troy.
“I can’t say—or guarantee—if it would or wouldn’t, my dear. Piracy and bunkering has happened since the inception of oil transportation. It’s just part of the business, unfortunately. But it likely wouldn’t cause an uproar as long as the purchaser of our oil rights keeps the transaction confidential,” she explained.
“I don’t see how a transaction that large can be hidden from the world,” said Troy.
“Well, there has to be a way to do it,” she retorted quickly. “We could easily import other goods to the continent on oil tanker ships, converted to shipping vessels, and disguise the entire operation.”
“I could see that working,” said President Barber, impressed. “That is definitely a possibility.”
“We’re just going to send over oil tankers and pretend there isn’t any oil in them when they return?” asked Troy, dumbfounded.
“Yes, Mr. Duckworth,” reiterated President Barber, raising his voice. “We convert the oil tankers into massive shipping vessels. Store it up with as many goods as we can fit on it, and then ship it overseas. Anyone from the outside won’t know what’s on the inside. And if pirates do decide to seize a ship from The Movement, they are in a big surprise when all they find is cinnamon and cocoa.”
Troy sank his head in disbelief. Dr. Gallagher sat in her chair with a pleasant smile.
“And so what are we planning to use for our energy source, again?” asked Troy.
“Well, I think wind and solar are our two most inexpensive and efficient forms of energy. Plus we don’t have to worry too much about energy security with them, as we do all over the world with petroleum,” she explained.
“How many windmills do you want The Movement to employ?” asked Troy.
“With the lowered population we plan on having, I reason there will be more land available for things other than housing and roads. Especially in the Midwest, where wind is plenty and land is dry; it would be a perfect fit for windmills to fuel the Midwest,” she explained.
“And in the west and south?” asked Troy.
“In the southwest, there is enough desert area to cover in solar panels to energize the entire west from the Dakotas to California and even Washington State. The potential is unlimited with Dr. Hill’s newest maximum capacity battery, which can store more than six times more energy than thought only a few years ago. It’s truly remarkable,” marveled Dr. Gallagher.
“And what about the Northeast? And Southeast?” asked Troy, still pessimistic.
“Ideally, I would hope The Movement could collaborate with Canada. Constructing a massive windmill farm in Northern Quebec, where the population is nearly zero and the winds blow freely with little topographic interference. Another option,” she attempted to explain.
“Would the windmills not face the freezing winds and temperatures which take Northern Canada by storm every winter?” interrupted Troy through a cracked smile.
“Yes, that would have been the case twenty years ago, Mr. Duckworth. But cold temperatures have been receding further and further north every year, it’s quite astonishing for the wrong reasons. In fact, Northern Quebec’s average winter temperature over the last fifteen winters is a staggering thirty-four degrees Fahrenheit, which leaves plenty of room for defrosting and nonfreezing temperatures. But what wouldn’t hurt, just in case, is a natural heating mechanism-say, natural convection-added to each windmill’s joints to defrost it during the colder nighttime temperatures and in the case that global warming calms down or reverses,” said Dr. Gallagher.
“I see,” replied Troy, his smile vanishing. “And you said what about the Southeast?”
“This is where it would be the toughest, in terms of windmills. Obviously, solar panels would work here too, given the yearlong exposure to extended and strong sunlight in Alabama, Florida, and even Georgia. Solar panels could be placed on every rooftop to provide self-sufficient energy. But what I would like to see happen is aquatic windmills-watermills, giant water turbines-constructed off the coast of Miami, where the current from the Atlantic constantly flows along the coast into the Gulf of Mexico. Setting up watermills in the heart of that current would provide a nonstop energy flow to the entire south and southeast, probably all the way up north to Kentucky and Virginia or even Ohio. The one thing we would face strong opposition from is the fishermen and animal rights activists, who would cry foul at disrupting the aquatic wildlife’s highway with swooping turbines and fins,” she said.
“If it would be as efficient as you say it would be, I’m sure there are ways around the problem,” winked President Barber.
“Well, one idea I’ve thought of-and I’m not even sure if it would work in practice, but in theory it does offer intriguing benefits-is fencing off the watermill farm. It would still provide large enough gaps to not disrupt the current’s power, and it would prevent any larger fish, shark, or dolphin from getting clobbered by a the turbine's fins; however, I don’t think it would prevent a nosy, smaller fish from sniffing the fins every now and then. Although I do think that a school of fish would avoid such a large obstacle standing in its way,” she opined.
“I think I would be able to develop this energy if it’s as efficient as advertised; we are talking about nearly free, renewable energy. Not to mention its cleanliness on the environment,” said President Barber, growing with excitement.
“But one other idea that does intrigue me is the possibility of magnetic energy. Physics is not my forte, but I do know that there is energy to be made with magnets. Exactly how much and on what size scale is beyond the limits of my knowledge. However, I would assume Dr. Hill would know something about its prospects,” explained Dr. Gallagher.
“Dr. Hill knows a lot about a lot, doesn’t he?” joked President Barber.
Troy squirmed in his seat, readjusting his pants and shirt. “President Barber, do you think this has serious prospects?” he quipped.
“I certainly do,” responded President Barber. “I hold full confidence in my cabinet’s ability to do their jobs, Mr. Duckworth.”
The president lowered his head and widened his eyes, then refocused his attention on Dr. Gallagher.
Troy, surprised by the president’s response, leaned back into his seat in silence.
“Anyways, I love all of your ideas, Dr. Gallagher. They each have a strong case for each region. We will certainly consider the options and inquire with Dr. Hill about the matter,” confirmed President Barber, sipping his coffee.
“Thank you, Mr. President. But there is still one more possibility under research as we speak. It’s a solar powered renewable energy: transparent, adhesive, flexible photovoltaic cells. The product is finished; however, the team is now researching how to replace some of the more expensive ingredients with much more accessible ones. But these things will be the future, I’m sure of it. They are like giant, thin panels which one cannot even tell is there if adhered on a window. They are ninety percent transparent and capture eighty percent of the sun’s ultraviolet rays. They are the most efficient form of energy we currently have under development. It’s only a matter of time before the team discovers the cheaper alternatives to replace those rare elements in the current model. You simply peel the panel from its base and apply it wherever you’d like-windows of a building, rooftop, the roof of a train, nearly anywhere you can imagine. I think it will be completed within the year. I believe this is the next big thing, Mr. President,” she explained.
“That certainly is unique and efficient,” said the president. “How much does it currently cost, at the moment?”
“I believe right now, without turning a profit, one square foot runs at about four hundred dollars. The elements used are rare and expensive. The team’s goal is to lower that price to under ten dollars per square foot. I believe they will do so very, very soon,” offered Dr. Gallagher.
“Well, we shall keep in touch, Dr. Gallagher. Let us know of the progress on its development. It’s been a pleasure,” said President Barber.
“It’s been an honor to sit here with you in your lovely office,” she said with smile, standing up from her chair.
“You are very welcome. We will be keeping in touch with you,” smiled the president. “Mr. Duckworth, would you please walk Dr. Gallagher to the door?”
“Yes sir,” said Troy.
He stood up from his seat and ushered Dr. Gallagher ahead of him, then raced in front to open the large oak door for her.
“Thank you, dear. Take care,” she said as Troy closed the door quickly.