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I've written before about my interest in the abiotic oil hypothesis - that is, the notion that oil is not generated by the decomposition of little critters, but rather is an ongoing process that occurs deep in the earth's bowels.
For me, the idea had immediate bum-merit - if there was ever a part of the earth that would produce smelly black ooze, it was the earth's bowels. (The other obvious place to look - if you're after black ooze - is the hole where Dick Cheney's soul used to be... but you will have difficulty separating the ooze from the pus).
Anyhow - I have certainly never given myself over to actual belief in abiotic oil, although I have done my darndest to try and 'nut out' the ramifications of it, if it is true.
The ramifications: the possibility that high energy prices are an 'Enron-like' scam perpetrated by oil companies and thei cronies in the political sphere... the joint supply-restriction that stems from both pretending that oil's running out, and from invading oil-rich countries, is textbook collusive-monopoly behaviour. (After all, economics shows you that a monopolist never produces at full capacity).
And of course another - longer- term - ramification is that oil should be priced at or about $2 a barrel. That is a dream for the future.Anyhow... the reason I'm mentioning it is that abiotic oil got a nice writeup as a result of some stuff done at Haaaah-vud, in the Hardvard magazine. the link is here:
