Question 5

Essentially, both Moore and Kitman argue that hybrid vehicles and nuclear energy will only be effective when they are used intelligently. Moore states that many people believe that just because a car is labeled as a hybrid that they will be saving a lot of gas and money. That is not the case in most instances however. Moore uses the Toyota Prius to illustrate this point. The Prius is advertised to get fifty to sixty miles per gallon, but what most people don’t understand is that the Prius’ seemingly amazing gas mileage only occurs during city driving. When a Prius is driven on the Highway, it uses just as much gas as the next car. He also points out that just because a car is labeled as a hybrid, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it will get much better mileage than its regular competitors.

Kitman, one of the founders of Greenpeace, is one of the last people I would think of as an advocate for the use of nuclear energy. In his article, he very effectively breaks down the myths about nuclear energy and supplies his own information to refute those myths. He states that the coal burning power plants in our country account for almost ten percent of the carbon dioxide emissions for the whole world. He also explores the other options of wind and solar power, but goes on to explain why they are undependable sources of energy. All in all, I think both authors were decently persuasive. They both have backgrounds in their respective fields, but their arguments would have been more effective article if they had cited the scientific sources that could help support their arguments.