Being a farmer's daughter I have a biological understanding of the word hybrid as it relates to offspring when two different kinds of plant species are crossed. So it isn't too much of a stretch to apply that term to an inanimate object that has incorporated different technologies to arrive at something resembling the original but still entirely new. However to fully appreciate the quantum leap that created the Prius requires a little more background.
Jonathan F. P. Rose is a national real estate developer specializing in green buildings and communities. He is also a systems theorist. Evidently there are two rules pertaining to systems. First, everything is connected, and, second, you can optimize individual parts of a system only up to a point. As Rose puts it: "Optimizing individual components can only lead to incremental change; optimizing the system can lead to a transformational ecology."
So here's what really excites me about the Prius. Toyota looked at the problem: HOW CAN WE MAKE A CAR THAT GETS BETTER GAS MILEAGE, and with innovation created a product that far exceeds the intended "fix." My little Prius, like all cars, has an engine. It has brakes. It has a battery. But now I know that while I am braking, the energy created from braking is being stored in the battery. And when my Prius is going downhill, the kinetic energy created by the spinning wheels is also stored in the battery. Because my car can generate some of its own energy, I am able to drive many more miles without using gas. Toyota didn't just solve a problem, it created a new system...a hybrid!
That kind of brilliant innovation can save our planet if we can apply it to different ways of making other things that use petroleum, like the things on this list I copied from the website: www.ranken-energy.com:
Solvents | Diesel fuel | Motor Oil | Bearing Grease |
Ink | Floor Wax | Ballpoint Pens | Football Cleats |
Upholstery | Sweaters | Boats | Insecticides |
Bicycle Tires | Sports Car Bodies | Nail Polish | Fishing lures |
Dresses | Tires | Golf Bags | Perfumes |
Cassettes | Dishwasher parts | Tool Boxes | Shoe Polish |
Motorcycle Helmet | Caulking | Petroleum Jelly | Transparent Tape |
CD Player | Faucet Washers | Antiseptics | Clothesline |
Curtains | Food Preservatives | Basketballs | Soap |
Vitamin Capsules | Antihistamines | Purses | Shoes |
Dashboards | Cortisone | Deodorant | Footballs |
Putty | Dyes | Panty Hose | Refrigerant |
Percolators | Life Jackets | Rubbing Alcohol | Linings |
Skis | TV Cabinets | Shag Rugs | Electrician's Tape |
Tool Racks | Car Battery Cases | Epoxy | Paint |
Mops | Slacks | Insect Repellent | Oil Filters |
Umbrellas | Yarn | Fertilizers | Hair Coloring |
Roofing | Toilet Seats | Fishing Rods | Lipstick |
Denture Adhesive | Linoleum | Ice Cube Trays | Synthetic Rubber |
Speakers | Plastic Wood | Electric Blankets | Glycerin |
Tennis Rackets | Rubber Cement | Fishing Boots | Dice |
Nylon Rope | Candles | Trash Bags | House Paint |
Water Pipes | Hand Lotion | Roller Skates | Surf Boards |
Shampoo | Wheels | Paint Rollers | Shower Curtains |
Guitar Strings | Luggage | Aspirin | Safety Glasses |
Antifreeze | Football Helmets | Awnings | Eyeglasses |
Clothes | Toothbrushes | Ice Chests | Footballs |
Combs | CD's & DVD's | Paint Brushes | Detergents |
Vaporizers | Balloons | Sun Glasses | Tents |
Heart Valves | Crayons | Parachutes | Telephones |
Enamel | Pillows | Dishes | Cameras |
Anesthetics | Artificial Turf | Artificial limbs | Bandages |
Dentures | Model Cars | Folding Doors | Hair Curlers |
Cold cream | Movie film | Soft Contact lenses | Drinking Cups |
Fan Belts | Car Enamel | Shaving Cream | Ammonia |
Refrigerators | Golf Balls | Toothpaste | Gasoline |
Who would have guessed that all these items contain petroleum? When I ponder this list, which is only a partial list by the way, and imagine life without them, it is a very different picture. As my third grade teacher, Miss Tronsdahl, used to say, "Okay, boys and girls...it's time to put on your thinking caps!"
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