Transparent solar cells that could power skyscrapers
Research has boosted solar panel efficiency over time. But some scientists argue that to truly take advantage of the sun's power, we also need to expand the amount of real estate that can be outfitted with solar, by making cells that are nearly or entirely see-through, i-e transparent cells.A Silicon Valley start-up named "Ubiquitous Energy" has succeeded in creating such transparent solar cells. ClearView is a transparent solar cell that can coat any surface, including displays and windows, to harvest ambient light and generate electricity. Ubiquitous Energy has redesigned the solar cell to selectively transmit light visible to the human eye while absorbing only the ultraviolet and infrared light and converting it into electricity.
Read more from...
That doesn't seem to mesh with their goal of completely eliminating the need for batteries in small consumer gadgets and even smart phones, as LED lighting doesn't emit ultraviolet or infrared, and there isn't always a window nearby. Still a potentially revolutionary technology in other applications, but unfortunately it's in the very, very early stages of development.
http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/ubiquitous-energy-transparent-solar-power-timeline/
The massive amount of development that has occurred in the southwest in just the past fifteen years is affecting changes in the seasonal rains, increasing temperatures in the cities by as much as 5 degrees from the temperatures in surrounding areas, and is disturbing the natural hydrology of the southwest and causing destructive flooding and massive sandstorms. Humans are poisoning the very delicate ecosystems with foreign and invasive plant species and salty water drawn from relatively saline rivers that accumulate in the soil because of the hard clay layer just below the ground.
The southwest cannot support the cities on the scale you're suggesting unless people are willing to live in enclosed arcologies built below ground to limit the damage that this bunch of hairless apes do everywhere we go. We're already swinging toward a tipping point in our local environment. This doesn't even account for the energy consumption that running AC all day does (which is necessary, I assure you). Please don't move here.