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  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1922. 
  

  

  States 
  is 
  already 
  absolutely 
  dependent 
  on 
  foreign 
  countries 
  to 
  eke 
  out 
  her 
  own 
  

   production, 
  and 
  if 
  the 
  foreign 
  oil 
  can 
  be 
  procured 
  this 
  dependence 
  is 
  sure 
  to 
  

   grow 
  greater 
  and 
  greater 
  as 
  our 
  own 
  fields 
  wane, 
  except 
  as 
  artificial 
  petroleum 
  

   may 
  be 
  produced 
  by 
  the 
  distillation 
  of 
  oil 
  shales 
  and 
  coals 
  or 
  some 
  substitute 
  

   for 
  petroleum 
  may 
  be 
  discovered. 
  

  

  It 
  is, 
  therefore, 
  not 
  surprising 
  that 
  every 
  available 
  source 
  of 
  

   energy 
  is 
  being 
  considered 
  to 
  meet 
  the 
  situation 
  which 
  is 
  ap- 
  

   proaching. 
  

  

  Another 
  very 
  considerable 
  source 
  of 
  energy 
  is 
  that 
  developed 
  from 
  

   the 
  water 
  powers. 
  Theoretically, 
  this 
  is 
  virtually 
  an 
  inexhaustible 
  

   supply 
  and 
  one 
  of 
  relatively 
  high 
  efficiency. 
  Mr. 
  Charles 
  P. 
  Stein- 
  

   metz 
  2 
  has 
  calculated, 
  on 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  collecting 
  every 
  raindrop 
  which 
  

   falls 
  in 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  and 
  all 
  the 
  power 
  it 
  could 
  produce 
  on 
  its 
  

   way 
  to 
  the 
  ocean 
  being 
  developed, 
  that 
  there 
  would 
  be 
  possible 
  about 
  

   300,000,000 
  horsepower. 
  This 
  enormous 
  figure 
  represents 
  about 
  the 
  

   amount 
  received 
  from 
  our 
  present 
  total 
  consumption 
  of 
  coal. 
  Thus, 
  

   this 
  theoretical 
  hydroelectric 
  power 
  would 
  just 
  about 
  cover 
  our 
  pres- 
  

   ent 
  coal 
  consumption, 
  but 
  leave 
  nothing 
  for 
  future 
  increased 
  needs 
  

   or 
  to 
  cover 
  other 
  sources 
  of 
  energy 
  now 
  in 
  use. 
  Moreover, 
  this 
  figure 
  

   for 
  hydroelectric 
  power 
  is 
  purely 
  hypothetical, 
  of 
  which 
  only 
  a 
  

   small 
  fraction 
  represents 
  that 
  actually 
  available, 
  which, 
  when 
  united 
  

   with 
  other 
  difficulties 
  such 
  as 
  equipment 
  and 
  limitations 
  of 
  distri- 
  

   bution, 
  shows 
  very 
  clearly 
  that 
  all 
  the 
  water 
  powers 
  of 
  the 
  country 
  

   can 
  not 
  suffice. 
  

  

  The 
  question 
  of 
  liquid 
  fuel 
  is 
  of 
  particular 
  importance 
  in 
  this 
  con- 
  

   sideration. 
  The 
  great 
  success 
  of 
  the 
  internal-combustion 
  engines 
  

   in 
  the 
  automobiles, 
  airplanes, 
  tractors, 
  etc., 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  many 
  uses 
  

   of 
  the 
  Diesel 
  engine, 
  # 
  has 
  very 
  greatly 
  influenced 
  our 
  economic 
  life 
  

   and, 
  as 
  has 
  been 
  stated, 
  it 
  is 
  soon 
  to 
  exhaust 
  our 
  natural 
  resources 
  

   of 
  liquid 
  fuel. 
  Much 
  attention 
  has, 
  therefore, 
  been 
  given 
  to 
  the 
  

   production 
  of 
  liquid 
  fuel 
  other 
  than 
  petroleum. 
  Thus 
  far 
  the 
  inves- 
  

   tigations 
  along 
  these 
  lines 
  have 
  almost 
  universally 
  led 
  to 
  the 
  opinion 
  

   that 
  the 
  substance 
  best 
  suited 
  to 
  these 
  needs 
  is 
  alcohol. 
  This 
  is 
  ou 
  

   the 
  basis 
  that 
  alcohol 
  can 
  be 
  produced 
  from 
  vegetable 
  material 
  and 
  is 
  

   the 
  most 
  direct 
  route 
  from 
  solar 
  energy. 
  It 
  is 
  thus 
  proposed 
  to 
  

   develop 
  a 
  photosynthetic 
  industry 
  on 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  agriculture, 
  the 
  

   products 
  of 
  which 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  converted 
  into 
  alcohol 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  

   fermentation. 
  

  

  This 
  is, 
  of 
  course, 
  the 
  practical 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  photosynthesis 
  problem. 
  

   There 
  are' 
  so 
  many 
  factors 
  which 
  come 
  into 
  consideration 
  on 
  careful 
  

   study 
  of 
  the 
  problem 
  in 
  its 
  broadest 
  application, 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  sur- 
  

   prising 
  that 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  of 
  these 
  have 
  been 
  entirely 
  

   disregarded 
  or 
  not 
  given 
  the 
  attention 
  they 
  deserve. 
  

  

  2 
  "The 
  White 
  Revolution," 
  Survey 
  Graphic, 
  1 
  (1922), 
  1035. 
  

  

  