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TillyandtheMythofEnergyIndependenceWilliamGaver,LiliannaOvalleandMatthewPlummer-FernandezInteractionResearchStudioGoldsmiths,UniversityofLondonw.gaver@gold.ac.ukPaperpreparedforDEMANDCentreConference,Lancaster,13-15April2016Onlytobequotedand/orcitedwithpermissionoftheauthor(s).Copyrightheldbytheauthor(s).
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TillyandtheMythofEnergyIndependenceWilliamGaver,LiliannaOvalleandMatthewPlummer-FernandezInteractionResearchStudioGoldsmiths,UniversityofLondonIntroductionInthisnote,wetellthestoryofhowwedevelopedourunderstandingofthewaysenergysupplyanddemandareentangledingeographyandinfrastructureontheIsleofTireeinScotland.Thiswasanunderstandingwedevelopedthroughaseriesofdesignencountersontheisland,inwhichweused‘researchthroughdesign’(Gaver,2012;Zimmermanetal.,2007;Frayling,1993)methods,firsttoengagewiththeislandanditsinhabitants,andlatertoworkthroughimaginaryfutureinterventionsontheislandasawayofexploringwhatwehadlearnedandtheissueswehaduncovered.Becauseourmethodologyisorientedtowardsthedevelopmentofnewdesignpropositions,andworksthroughaprocessofemergenceanddiscoveryratherthaninvestigationofapriorihypothesesorresearchquestions(seeGaver2014),thispresentationwilltaketheformofanarrativeratherthanatraditionalresearchreport.Whilewefinishwithadiscussionoftheissueswebelieveourworksurfaced,mostofthisaccountwillinvolveretellingtheeventsthatledtoourcurrentunderstandings,andbecausemostoftheseeventsinvolvedvisualdesignmaterials,alargeproportionofthisaccountwillbevisualaswell.Thisleadsustotwofurthercaveats:First,becausethiswasarelativelyshortandminimallyfundedproject,ourdesignworkis‘unfinished’inthesensethatitdidnotleadtorealisedsystemsthatcouldbetestedinthefield,butinsteadendswiththeconjecturalproposalsweproduced.Second,wedonotdiscussallaspectsoftheproject,omitting,forinstance,ourpartners’work(e.g.Simetal.,2015)andalsodetailsofourownProbestudy,butinsteadfocusonafewkeymomentsintheprocessofdiscoveringtheislandandconstructingexploratorydesignproposals.Opening:AnInvitationtoResearchOurstoryopenswithanemailfromAdrianFriday,ProfessorofComputingandSustainabilityatLancasterUniversityandapreviouscollaboratorwiththeauthors.Theemailaskedwhetherwe’dbeinterestedinjoininghiminabidtotheCatalystproject,alsoatLancaster,todoresearchontheislandofTiree.Heexplained:
Theideasarerathersketchyatthispoint,butessentially:renewableenergyis'timevarying'andnotalwaysavailable,andI'minterestedinworkingwithacommunity(e.g.ontheislandofTiree…)toexploretowhatextentpeopleareableto'syncin'withavailablegreenenergyandsharetheresourcewhenitisavailable,andinunderstandingthepros/consofenergythat'snot'availableondemand'.Ikeepthinkingwe'regoingtoendupwithsomekindofartefactthathelpspeoplethinkaboutwhereandwhentheirenergycomesfromabitdifferently….(Friday,personalcommunication,May2013).
Weagreedtopursuethis,aftersomefurtherconversation,becausetheideafortheprojectchimedwithourpreviousdesignresearchonenvironmentalissues.Thishadbeenshapedbycritiquestendingtounderminesimpleenergydemandreductionasaroutetowardsalowercarbonfuture.Thisincludedempiricalworkindicatingtheshort-termeffectsofmetering(Abrahamseetal.,2005)aswellastheriskofboomerangeffects(Schultzetal.,2007).ItalsoincludedconceptualworkincludingShove’s(2004)insightthatenergyuseneedstobeunderstoodintermsofthepractices
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thatmotivateit,giveitmeaning,andmakeitnormal,andStrenger’s(2013)observationthatformanypeople,changesofpracticestoreducedemandaredifficultorimpossible.Finally,ourviewswereshapedbymorepoliticallytingedworksuchasDourish’s(2010)analysis,whichsuggeststhattechnicalapproachessuchasdemandmeteringassumeamarketlogicofindividualrationalactorsanddrawsattentiontotheblindspotsofthislogic,andBrynjarsdóttiretal’s(2012)linkoftechnologicalapproachestomodernismanditslimitations.Based,inpart,ontheseanalyses,wehadundertakenseveralexploratoryprojectsconcernedwithrethinkinghowdesigncanaddressenvironmentalconcerns.Theseincluded,atthetime,aprojectinwhichwehadconstructedthree‘IndoorWeatherstations’tohighlightthemicroclimateofthehomeasanalternativetothedidacticismofenergydemandmeters(Gaveretal.2013);aprojectwithresearchersfromtheOpenUniversityinwhichwehiredagraffitiartisttographaneighbourhood’selectricityusedirectlyontheirstreetasawayofexploringfeedbackatacommunityratherthanhouseholdlevel,andasetofdesignproposalswehadpreviouslydevelopedfordevicesthatwoulddisplaytheNationalGrid’scurrentdemand/supplybalance,asawayofencouragingpeopletoavoidconsumptionduringpeakperiods,whencarbon-intensivecoal-firedpowerplantsareusedtosupplementmoreenvironmentally-friendlybutsloweralternatives(Boucheretal.,2012).OurproposalfordevicesthatwouldhelppeopleadjusttheirdemandtotheenergysupplyseemedparticularlyrelevanttoTiree,asin2009awindgenerator,calledTilley,hadbeenerectedontheislandtoproduceenergy.Thusourinitialunderstandingwasthatasignificantproportionoftheelectricityusedontheislandwasproducedlocallybyapotentiallyintermittentsupplyofwind.Giventhis,itmadesensetosupportcommunitymemberstoadjusttheirenergyuseinaccordwithTilley’ssupply,toensuretheywererelyingon‘green’energyasmuchaspossibleratherthandrawingonenergyfromtheNationalGrid.ThuswestarteddiscussingideasaboutwaysofsignalingTilley’ssupplytotheisland.Forinstance,wewereintriguedbytheideaofbuildinglargemechanicalstructuresforvisiblesignalingacrossdistance,whichwethoughtwouldbemuchmorecommunityorientedinnaturethanindividualcomputationaldevicesinhomes.Withthesethoughtsinmind,wepreparedtoengagewiththeislandwhenthefundingwasgranted.ADriveAroundTireeJumpaheadtoFebruary2014.ThreeofusdisembarkfromasmallcommercialflightatTireeairport,wherewearemetbyourLancasterpartnersandtheteamofthreedesignerstheywereworkingwithfortheirpartoftheproject.WeproceedviahirecaretoacaféattheTireeTrustheadquarters,wherewesettleoverourteastodiscusstheeventsofthenextfewdays.Forus,themainpurposeofourvisitistogetafeelfortheislandandstartthinkingaboutdesignproposalsinsitu.Tohelpusdothis,wehadbroughtalongafewsetsofCulturalProbes(Gaveretal.,1999)thatweplannedtogivetoislanders.Probesaresetsofsimpletaskswhicharedesignedinthehopeofelicitingrevealingandinspiringresponsesfromparticipants.Ourset(seefigure1)containedavarietyofitems,including:• Asetofpostcardsaddressedwithsuggestivestartinglines(e.g.“DearMP,”;“DearEnergy
Company,Ireallyenjoy…”;“DearTireeTrust”)andappropriatepicturesonthereverseside,• AmapofTireewitharequesttousecolouredstickerstoindicatewherepeoplegotomeetorbe
alone,wherethepowercentreoftheislandis,whereenemieslive,wheretofindtreasure;• Abookofblankchequestobefilledoutwithwhotopay,howmuchmoney,andwhattobuy,to
indicatewhatresidentsthoughtwasneededontheisland;
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• Anunfinishedtouristbrochure(“DiscoverTiree!”)withsuggestiveopenings(e.g.“Famousforits____”;“The____arenottobemissed”);
• Adiagramofasolarsystemaskingpeopletoplottheiruniverse:“thepeopleandplacesyouhaveaconnectionwith”.
Wehadhopedtofindvolunteersatthecommunitycentreforourprobes,butunfortunatelytherewerefewislandersaroundontheday.Soinsteadwesetoffforadrivearoundtheislandinthehopeoffindingsome.Oneofthethingswelearned,drivingaroundonadrybutchillyFebruaryday,wasthatthereseemtobefewsocialcentresontheislandofTiree.Notonlywasthecommunitycentrequiet,butthesolegrocerystorewasshutandtheisland’shotelappearedunoccupied.WefinallyrealisedthatifwewantedtodistributeProbes,we’dhavetoapproachpeopleintheirhomes.Thiswasnotsomethingwe’ddonebefore:usuallyourProbesstudiesinvolvevolunteerswhohavesigneduptobepartoflargerprojects.Finally,wespottedsomebodypullingupoutsideahouseandopeningtheirgaragedoor.Pullingoverabruptly,wejumpedoutofourcar,andapproached,explaining“Hi,we’redesignresearchersfromLondon…”.Tooursurprise,thewomangreeteduspleasantlyandinvitedusinforacupoftea,whereweexplainedtheprojectandhandedovertheProbes.Wesoondiscoveredthatthiswasnotanunusualreception.Instead,everytimewepulledoverbecausewespottedahousewithsolarpanels,oraccostedafarmerinhisfield,ortalkedtoafishermanmendingcrabtrapsnexttoaB&B,weweregreetedwarmly,foundourselvesengagedintalksabouttheisland,andhadourProbesreceivedwithinterest.Bytheendoftheday,wesucceededindistributingsevenprobesets,stoppingonlybecausethelighthadfadedanditwastimefordinner,feelingthatwehadalreadylearnedsomethingaboutthecommunityofTiree.Flashforward:ReturnsWedidn’treceiveresponsestotheProbesuntiltheweeksfollowingourreturntoLondon.Nonethelesswebrieflydescribesomeofthereturnsheretohelpsetthesceneforourproposals.Toagreatdegree,thereturns(seeFigure2)expandedonwhatwelearnedoverthecourseofourvisit:thatresidentsappreciateTiree’scloseandfriendlycommunityandenjoytheisland’sbeautybut
Figure1.CulturalProbematerials.
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sometimesbemoanitsfragilelinkswiththemainland.Forinstance,thetouristbrochureslaudthe‘lovelywalks,’‘variedbirdlife’and‘watersports’.Butthechequebooksenvisionmoneyfor‘newroads’,‘freecarriageofgoodstoTiree’,and‘adecentboatthatcancopewiththeweatherouthere’.Thepostcardsreinforcedthesethemes,andalsoindicateddissatisfactionwiththeisland’spoliticalsituation:‘DearMP:Idon’tbelieveyouoryourcroniesinWestminsterlistentous…orknowwhereweare?!That’swhyI’mvotingyesforScottishindependence’,withonerevealedakindofteasingscepticismaboutlocalarrangements:‘DearTireeTrust:Youareverygoodatemployinglotsofpeople…Butwhatdotheydoallday?’ThesereturnsaddedtoourunderstandingsofthetexturesofTiree–notjusttheissuesthatconcernedpeople,butthewaystheycommunicateaswell.Theyformedoneofthebackdropsfortheproposalsweeventuallycameupwith.Moreover,wefoundlaterthattheTireeTrustitselftookuptheideaofprobes,producingtheirownsetafewmonthslatertoengagetheislandersdirectly.Butthat–andthereturnsaswell–happenedsometimeafterourvisittotheisland.Inthenextsectionwereturnthere,toouroriginalvisit.ATwistintheTaleThedayafterdistributingtheprobes,wetookanotherdriveontheisland,nottodistributeProbesbutsimplytohaveabetterlookaround.Wewoundourwayonthesingle-laneroads,pastpasturesandfields,rockyshoresandrollinghills,stoppingtotakealookatTilley,towalkonabeach,togazeatthespherical,geodesicearly-warningstationonthehighesthill.Duringthispleasantmeandering,westartedtalkingwithincreasingexcitementaboutthesurprisingsituationofTiree,whichwehadheardaboutfirstbeforeourarrivalontheislandbutwhoseimporthadonlyhithomewhilethere.Whatwelearnedwasthis:DespitethefactthatTilleysometimesgeneratesmorethanenoughelectricitytopowertheisland,andothertimesalmostnone,tryingtobalancedemandwithits
Figure2.Sampleprobereturns
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supplyonlyreflectedanarrowviewofitsrelationshipwiththeisland.ThereasonforthisisthatTillywasnotinstalledtopowertheisland.Instead,accordingtothewebsiteofTireeRenewableEnergyLimited(TREL),awhollyownedsubsidiaryoftheTireeCommunityDevelopmentTrust:
TheprincipalmotivationforthedevelopmentofTilleytheturbinebyTRELwastocontributetothefinancingofvariousprojectsproposedundertheisland’sdevelopmentplanbyharvestingTiree’smostabundantresource.(www.tireerenewableenergy.co.uk/index.php/tilley-our-turbine/)
TilleyislinkedbyanunderwatercabletotheUKNationalGrid,whichpaystheTireeTrustfortheenergy.Thisisusedtofundvariousprojectsontheisland.Theseincludeafewlargeinvestments,includingforinstance“TireeRuralDevelopmentsecuring£21,489towardsupgradingthecommunity’sRuralCentre”,andalsoanumberofsmallerawards,whichin2012included:
• TireeHorse&PonyClub£2000TobringaHorseRidingInstructortoTiree• TireeMusicFestival£1980HireofchemicaltoiletsforTMF&CattleShow• TireeBeaverScouts£500ActivitiesdayattheHynishCentre• DiamondJubileeGroup£1000DiamondJubileecelebrations• TireeWindsurfingClub£925PurchaseofBodyBoardsandsafetyequipment• TireeDiscoClub£1200Purchaseoflaptops• StickyKids£520Purchaseofinfanttablesandchairs• PipingSociety£2000TobringaPipingtutortoTiree(http://www.tireetrust.org.uk/historic-windfall-recipients/)
Fromthisperspective,Tilleywasnotprimarilyasourceofgreenenergytotheisland,butofincome.Moreover,whiletheTRELwebsiteexplainsthat“TireecurrentlyusespowerfromTilleywhenthereisademand,howeverwhendemandislowpowerisexportedtothemainlandviathesub-seacable”thetruthseemsmuchlessclearcut.Electricityislikewater:oncemixedthereisnoeasywaytodistinguishsources.SoaslongasTilleyisconnectedtotheNationalGrid,thentheisland’ssupplyisamixtureofTilley’soutputwiththenumerousothersourcesthatsupplythegrid,anditisquestionablewhethertheislandconsumesahigherproportionofthatoutputthananyothernodeonthegrid,oratleastthatduringTilley’speriodsofampleproductionthattheislandisconsumingonlyherelectricityandnotthatproducedbythecoalfiredpowerstationonStornoway,about150milesaway.ThisisnottosuggestthatTilley’sprovisionofenvironmentallysustainableenergywasnotimportanttomanyoftheislanders,includingtheTireeTrustandTRELitself.Norisittounderminethelogicofbalancingdemandwithsupply,whichourpartnersinvestigatedfurther(Simetal.,2015).However,thereisnoclearinherentlinkbetweentheelectricitysuppliedbyTilleyandconsumedbytheislanders,andinparticularbalancingdemandtosupply,astheinitialnarrativehadsuggested,isnotanecessity.AndaFurtherTwistAnotherfacetofthestoryofTilleyandtheisland’sinfrastructurebroughtthishomeevenmoredramatically.ItturnsoutthattheunderwatercablethatlinkstheislandtotheNationalGridispronetodamage,oftenbythenetsoffishingtrawlers.Whenthishappens,theislandiscutofffromtheNationalGrid’ssupply.ThisisthetimethatTilleywouldappearessential,providingasourceofenergythatisentirelynativetotheislandandallowingittoenjoyindependencefromthemainland.Butno.Theisland’sinfrastructurecannothandlethepowergeneratedbytheturbine:exporttothemainlandisessentialforittooperateatfullpower.Sowhenthesubseacableisruptured,Tilleyhas
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tobeshutdownalmostcompletely.Adiesel-poweredgeneratingstationoppositetheairportisfiredupinstead.Theironyoftheislandusingrelatively‘dirty’energywheneveritisthemostisolatedfromthemainlandcapturedourimaginations.Aswediscussedthesituation,drivingaroundtheisland,westartedimaginingdesignresponsestothesituation.AndwhenwereturnedtoourLondonstudio,wecontinuedthinkingaboutthem,developingthemintoaworkbookofproposals.Inthenextsection,then,wedescribesomeoftheseproposalsasawayofelaboratingourperceptions.ProposalsforTireeDevelopingdesignproposalsaspartofourprocessisalong-standingpracticeinourstudio(Gaver2014).Proposalsserveasakindofhingebetweenourresearchintoadesignsituationandtheeventualinterventionswewillmake.Developedfurtherthansketchbooktreatments,theynonethelessremainopen-endedandindicative,oftenmerelyconsistingofafewimagesanddiagramscombinedwithsmallamountsoftexttopointinadirectionfordesignwithoutspecifyingitindetail.Inaddition,theyrangefromtheplayfultotheserious,usingexaggerationandhumourtohighlightissuesandpossibilities.Theycombineimplicitsummariesofwhatwehavelearnedwithideasforhowwecoulddevelopnewpossibilitiesappropriateforthesituation.Gatheredtogethertoformaworkbook,theyforma‘designspace’inwhichindividualproposalsserveaslandmarksandthespacesaroundthemrepresentopportunitiesforfurtherideas.Herewedescribeasubsetofkeyproposalsfromthe38-pageworkbookweproduced.MarbleRunTheMarbleRun(Figure3)isaproposalforamechanicalsculpturethatwouldanimatetheflowofenergyandmoneyontheisland,toraiseawarenessofcitizens.MarblesofdifferentcoloursrepresentingunitsofelectricitygeneratedbyTilleyandothersourcesontheNationalGrid(coal,nuclear,otherwind,etc.)wouldflowalongchannelseventuallyendinginhomes.Meanwhile,other
Figure3.TheMarbleRunwouldbeapublicsculptureshowingtheflowofenergyandmoneyonTireeinrealtime,toraisecitizens’awarenessofthecurrentsituation.
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colouredmarblesrepresentingmoneywouldflowonchannelsfromhomestotheNationalGrid,withasubsetreturningtotheTireeCommunityCentreandontorecipientsofgrants.Periodically,thechannelrepresentingthesub-seacablewouldbeblocked.Tilleywouldstopproducingmarbles,andnewmarbles(asludgygrey,nodoubt)wouldflowfromtheisland’sdieselgeneratorinstead.TheflowofmoneyfromtheNationalGridtotheCommunityCentrewouldstopaswell.Thiswouldvividlyillustratetheironyofhavinganisland-basedwindgeneratorthatdoesnotproduceenergyindependencefortheisland.EnergyBrochSimilartotheMarbleRun,theEnergyBroch(Figure4)wouldvisualiseflowsofenergyandmoneyontheisland.Thisproposalsuggests,however,thatthevisualisationwouldbecreatedfromthenaturalmaterialsontheisland,byislanderswhowouldadoptitsmaintenanceasaroutinepracticepursuedovermonthsoryears.Basedonthetraditionalstoneworkontheisland,differentcoloursorshapesofrockwouldbemovedtodifferentsitesontheisland,slowlymigratingtoreflectenergyflows.Overtime,weimagined,thisnewactivitywouldbecomeatraditionontheisland,onethatresidentscouldownandmodify,andonethatmighteventuallystirinterestamongsttouristsandanthropologistsaswell.BoatTowManyoftheislanderscomplainedtousabouttheinadequacyofthecurrentferrytothemainland,whichapartfromthesmallflightfromGlasgowistheonlyregularlyscheduledmeansoftransportinggoodstoandfromtheisland.Theferryisoftenunabletocopewithroughweather,whichmeanstheislandhastodowithoutfreshsuppliesforweeksatatime.Thisproposalsuggestsdecommissioningthecurrentferry,andmountingitonasetoftracksrunningfromtheshoreupthesideofoneofTiree’shills(Figure5).Awinchsystemwoulddragitupthehillslowly,usinganyexcessenergygeneratedbyTilleyaftersupplyingtheislanders’needsandthusallowingthegeneratortobedisconnectedfromtheNationalGridoratleasttocontinuerunningwhenthecableiscut.Theboatwouldserveasaformofbattery,storingenergythatcouldbereleasedwhenTilley’soutputisdownandfurtheringtheisland’sabilitytoachieveself-sufficiency.
Figure4.TheEnergyBrochwouldbeconstructedbyislandersmovingstonesaroundtheislandtocreatematerialrepresentationsofenergyflowsontheisland.
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Weaskedaphysicisttocalculatetheenergyimplicationsofsuchasystem.Assuminga5kmtrackatanaverageslopeof5%,usingtheactualboatweightof3,500metrictonnes,andassumingthatthegeneratorandwinchsystemseachhaveanefficiencyof70%,itwouldtakeroughly1.92x1010Joulestodragtheferryupthehill,whilelettingitrolldownagainwouldprovideroughly9.43x109Joules.Thisisequivalenttoabouttwobarrelsofoiltoraisetheboat,andaboutonebarrelreleasedonitsdescent(whichisafairlydramaticrepresentationofhowmuchenergyisstoredinabarrelofoil)1.Withanoverallefficiencyofabout50%,theboattowsystemcomparesbadlytothe92%efficiencyclaimedby,forinstance,Tesla’sPowerwall(https://www.teslamotors.com/en_GB/powerwall),abatteryarraydesignedtostorehome-generatedelectricity.Nonetheless,thepublicdemonstrationofTilley’senergyatworkmightjustifythisloss,asmightthesightoftheferryfindingapurposeforwhichitisbettersuitedthanitscurrentone.HydrogenEconomyandGlassLakeHydrogenEconomy(Figure6)proposesusingtheenergyTilleygeneratestoproducehydrogen.Thiscouldbecomethefundamentalfuelfortheisland,asitiscarbonneutralandamenabletostorage.Inaddition,hydrogencouldnotonlybeusedtogenerateelectricity,butalsotoheathousesandfuelcarsandothervehicles.
Figure5.BoatTowsuggestsanovelmethodforstoringexcessenergygeneratedbyTilley.
Figure6.HydrogenEconomysuggestsusingTilley’spowertoproduceanalternativefuel.
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TheGlassLake(Figure7)isbasedonatechnologydevelopedbyHalotechnics(halotechnics.com),acompanywiththemissiontodevelop“economicallyviablerenewableenergystorageusingadvancedmaterialsandinnovativesystemsengineering”.ItsproductHaloglassRXisa‘hightemperaturethermalfluid’–basicallyakindofglass–advertisedassuitablefor“Gridscalethermalelectricitystoragesystems”.Thoughnormallythematerialwouldbeinsulatedtomaximizeefficiency,weproposeusingittocreatealargelakeofglassnearTilley(Figure5).Energycouldbealternatelystoredbyanddrawnfromthelake,allowingittoserveasanotherformofbattery.Notonlymightlocalcustomsevolveinresponse(“reckonI’llgotakealookathowmuchenergythelake’sshowing”),butitcouldbedevelopedasamajornewtouristattractionfortheisland.HydrogenEconomyandGlassLakejoinBoatTowasproposalsfornovelformsofenergystoragefortheisland.Beyondthis,however,theyreflectotherconcernsontheisland–theinadequateferry,themotortraffic,thetouristindustry–andindicatehowentanglingtheelectricityinfrastructurewiththeseconcernsmightleadbeyondgeneric,strictlyutilitariansolutionstowardsthosethatfitandaddvaluetoTiree’sparticularcircumstances.CryptocurrencyWind-MiningTheproposalsabovefocusonTilleyasasourceofelectricityforTiree,andinparticularsuggestthatratherthansellingtheexcesspowertotheNationalGriditcouldbestoredforusewhenwindislowortheunderwatercableisdown.Aswehaveseen,however,thefactthatTilleygenerateselectricityisarguablylessimportanttotheislandthantheincomeitproduces.Afterall,theislanddoesnotdirectlyuseTilley’selectricity,andconsumerspayfortheenergytheydrawfromtheNationalGrid,includingwhateverproportionisproducedbyTilley.Fromthispointofview,Tilley’smainfunctionistoprovidefundsfortheTireeTrust,andthemoreefficientlythiscanbedonethebetter.OurproposalforCryptocurrencyWind-Mining(Figure8)reflectsthisperspectiveonthemotivationsforTilley.ItcallsforTilley’spowertodrivethehigh-poweredcomputersnecessarytominenewcryptocurrencycoins.Thesecouldbesolddirectlywiththemarketingadvantagethattheywouldbefarmoreenvironmentallysustainablethancoinsminedonrigsthatrelyoncarbonfuels.Thiscould
Figure7.GlassLakeenvisionsanovelwaytostoretheenergyproducedbyTilley.
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wellproveamorelucrative2,andthusmoreefficient,useforTilley’soutputthanthecurrentone,andtheproceedscouldbeusedtofundtheTireeTrustandalsotopayforthecontinualupgradesofcomputingequipmentneededtomaintaincompetitivenessatcryptocurrencymining.TwoTilleys,aLandBridge,andTiree’strajectoryIfthesurpluselectricitygeneratedbyTilleycouldbehandled,eitherthroughsomeformofstorageorbyusingitclosetothesource(e.g.tomindcryptocurrencycoins),thenmorewindgeneratorscouldbeinstalledontheisland(Figure9).ThispossibilityraisesfundamentalquestionsaboutTiree’sfuture.OnealternativewouldbetousetheadditionalelectricitytoreduceoreliminaterelianceontheNationalGrid,puttingtheislandonthepathtowardsgreaterself-sufficiencyandevencompleteautonomyfromthemainland.Anotheralternative,however,wouldbetocontinuesellingenergyto
Figure8.WindgeneratedcryptocurrencywouldfocusdirectlyongeneratingincomeforTiree.
Figure9.Improvingtheinfrastructurecouldallowanexpandedarray.
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theNationalGrid,andtousetheincreasedincometostrengthentheinfrastructuresbindingtheislandtothemainland.UltimatelythefundscouldbeusedtobuildalandbridgebetweenTireeandthemainland(Figure10).Wesawsignsofthisimpulseintheislanders’complaintsabouttheferry,thelackofgoodsinthelocalshops,andthecostofflightsanddifficultiesoftravel.TherelativeinaccessibilityofTireemaywellbethereasonthatitmaintainslargeareasofundevelopedcoastlineandenjoysapeaceful,friendlyculture.Theadvantagesofeasymovementsofgoodsandpeoplemightseemtooutweighthisappealformanyontheisland,however–anddevelopingTilleymightbeatippingpointinthecurrentbalancebetweensolitudeandconvenience.Discussion:Tilley,Proposals,andEntanglementItshouldbeclearthatourproposalswerenotseriouslyintendedfordevelopment.Nonetheless,theyarealltechnicallypossibleifnotculturallyplausible.Theyweredeveloped,andintendedtobereceived,inasomewhatplayfulspirit,aframeofmindwhichisconducivetospeculationaboutissuesandpossibilitiesthatmightbedismissedfrommore‘serious’pointsofview.Knowingthatthescopeoftheprojectwouldnotallowustorealiseourproposalshelpedustoachievethisframeofmindandtoimaginesystemsatascalewewouldbeunlikelytobuild.Thus,similartosomearchitecturalproposals(seee.g.archigram.westminster.ac.uk),ourproposalswerenotintendedtoseeksolutionssomuchastoaskquestions,presentingexaggeratedandfancifulscenariosasawayofdiscussingexistingsituationsandfuturepossibilities.Overall,theproposalshelpedustothinkthroughseveralaspectsofTiree’ssituation.Theyalsoservedasaresourcefordiscussingourperceptionswithourpartnersandwiththeislanders,towhomwepresentedtheproposalsatacommunityevent.OneofthemainlessonswelearnedonTireeandreflectedinourproposalsisthatdespitebeinganislandTireeisthoroughlyentangledwiththemainland.Thisisclearlythecaseforitsenergy,wherewefoundthatevenTilley,themostpromisingmeansofachievingsustainableenergyindependence,isdependentontheNationalGridtokeeprunning.Thedieselgenerator,too,dependsonregularsuppliesoffuelthatmustbeshippedinbyferry–whichalsobringsfoodandothergoods,including
Figure10.Ultimately,alandbridgemightbethemostdesirablesolutionforTiree.
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touristsuponwhommuchofthelocaleconomyarrives.Themorewelooked,themorewerecognisedlinksandtiestothemainland.WebegantorealisethatachievingtrueenergyindependenceviaTilleycurrentlyhasmoretodowiththeunderlyinginfrastructuretowhichthegeneratorconnectsthanithastodowithdemand/supplybalance.Thatis,whatisrequiredmostofallissomewayofstoringtheelectricityTilleyproduces,especiallywhenthesubseacableisdown.ButitmaybethatTilley’sconnectiontotheNationalGridismoredesirablethanachievingindependenceinthefirstplace.Afterall,connectingTilleytotheNationalGridallowstheenergyshegeneratestobecombinedwithsourcesacrossthenation,solocalfluctuationscanbecompensatedforbyoversupplieselsewhere.Fromthispointofview,theNationalGridmaybethebestbatteryofall.Ourproposalsalsopointtowaysinwhichenergyis,orcouldbe,entangledwithotheractivitiesandconcernsontheisland.Thesearecongruentwithotherto‘materialise’energyattempts(e.g.Pierce&Paulos2010;Backlundetal.,2007),andcontrastwithmoretypicalapproachesthattreatenergyasacommoditytobeproducedanddistributedinvisibly,efficiently,andhomogenously.InLatour’s(2007)terms,energyisanissuethathaspassedbeyondpubliccontroversytobecome‘settled’ininfrastructure.ThesituationwithTilleyandthecabledisruptsthissettlement,however,andourproposalsbuildonthistobringfurtherissuesintoplay.Theyovertlylinktheisland’senergytoothervalues–transport,tourism,financeandconvenience.TheyquestionwhetherTilleyisaboutenergyoraboutmoney,andprobetheTireeTrust’sroleincollectinganddistributingfunds.Theyalsoseektoexplorethebalancebetweenfinancialandenvironmentalcriteriaandotherpossiblevalues.Woulditbeworthcompromisingenergyefficiencyforthespectacleofaboatbeingdraggedupamountain,oralakemadeofmoltenglass?Isitenoughtogeneratesustainableelectricity,whenthismightbeusedtoproducemorewidelyusablefuels?Orissustainabilitymerelyamarketingtoolfortourismorothermoney-makingactivities?UltimatelytheproposalssuggestthathowTilleyistreatedconnectstomorefundamentalissuesoftheisland’strajectorywithrespecttothemainland.Ourproposalsdon’tsettleanyoftheseissues.Onthecontrary,theyhelpbringthemintoviewinawaythatmightusefullycomplicateunderstandingsofhowenergyisandmaybelivedontheisland.ReferencesAbrahamseetal.:Areviewofinterventionstudiesaimedathouseholdenergyconservation.JournalofEnvironmentalPsychology25(3).(2005).
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1Thecalculations:
Mass = 3500*1000 kg; Gravity = 9.81 m/s^2; Height = N[5000*Sin[(5/100)*Pi/2]] total energy = Mass*Gravity*Height = (1.34695*10^10 kg m^2)/s^2 or, total Energy = 1.347*10^10 Joules Note : From Wikipedia : “The gigajoule (GJ) is equal to one billion (10^9) joules. 6 GJ is about the amount of potential chemical energy in a barrel of oil, when combusted” So, Mass*Gravity*Height/(6*10^9 kg m^2/(s^2*barrel)) = 2.24491 barrel I think that the efficiency of a generator is 60 - 80 %. Taking a midpoint 70 % efficiency the output would be 0.7*Mass*Gravity*Height = (9.42863*10^9 kg m^2)/s^2 This is about a barrel of Oil. I haven't taken into account the energy necessary to bring the train up. I assume that with a 70% efficiency the energy required for this would be (1/0.7)*Mass*Gravity*Height = (1.92421*10^10 kg m^2)/s^2 or about 2x10^10 Joules. with 70% efficiency in and 70% out, the total efficiency is 0.7*0.7 = 0.49 or about 50% efficiency. This does not take into account frictional losses from the tracks, wind resistance, etc, etc.
2Asinglebitcoincurrentlytradesatabout£300.
