How has car technology evaluated over time and what is their impact? 

Around 2.6 million years ago humanity saw the first ever technology which was the “stone tool”, technology where they used to get stones and shape them off as axes, hammers, knives, and arrowheads etc. The main reason for that invention was to make their life easier so they can hunt and get food for themselves. Since that time and until now people have kept inventing and developing modern technologies including the Electric Cars too. Electric Cars, also known as EV’s, are a technology that we all think was invented by Elon Musk but that is actually wrong. This technology was invented in the 19th century by Robert Anderson. Electric Cars have a significant impact in our lives but just like anything else, even they have their own down sides too. 

 In that time electric cars were considered a gigantic invention because people were used to moving around with steam powered trains and that was not the best solution. So, the creation of personal electric cars was a big plus for them because people were able to go where they wanted without having to wait for the train or having to walk long distances. Many well-known people and innovators at that time saw the high demand for electric vehicles and took notes on how they could improve the technology. In 1898, Ferdinand Porsche, founder of the sports car company by the same name, developed an electric car called the P1. After the creation of “P1” Thomas Edison also invented the world’s first hybrid electric car, a vehicle that is powered by electricity and a gas engine. But electric cars faced many problems at the time because the batteries that they had were not strong enough and did not last for such a long time and because of the high price that they were being sold for. 

Innovators saw the problems that electric cars were facing and during the same time gasoline cars started to come up too. Gasoline cars were less than half the price compared to electric cars and since they were gasoline powered, they did not need to be charged but only to be filled which took less time for them. With already having those advantages, gasoline powered cars started to grow increasingly by becoming easily accessible for most of the people. Since that time and until the 20th century gasoline cars have been the main type of transportation for us. With the world population growing from 1 billion at that time to nearly 8 billion right now, and gasoline burning cars have become one of the biggest environmental issues these days. Not only does it release enormous amounts of carbon dioxide, which is bad for our health, but it also releases greenhouse gases in the air where they trap heat in our atmosphere, causing global warming. With this being a huge issue for our population, people have started working again in electric vehicles which are working great so far.  

California and the Northeast states have passed laws requiring that 2% of model year 1998 cars must be “zero emissions” vehicles–that is, electric cars. 

An advantage that electric cars have is that they can run and produce no air pollution but for this to be effective they would need to use renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and hydropower. Those sources create electricity without producing greenhouse gases or smog-forming pollutants at a power plant. Electric cars powered by electricity created from renewable sources are true zero-emission vehicles.  

An article from 2021 mentions many reasons why electric cars are better than gasoline cars and why they are becoming so popular. Some reasons that were stated were the Noise Pollution, Battery Performance, more expensive to buy but cheaper to drive and different choices of electric cars. For the noise pollution we all know how distracting and annoying it can be, so the electric car makes no noise at all. Since the time they first invented electric cars have been facing problems with batteries because they do not last that long but they have been upgraded and can last up to 300 miles per charge. Regarding the price, electric cars have been always more expensive than gasoline cars, but now electric cars have much simpler parts and require less maintenance than gasoline cars. And since all car companies know that in the future there will be more electric cars than gasoline cars everyone has started to produce models of electric cars, so this is a big benefit for the customers because they have more options. 

James Kliesch The author of article “Why Electric Cars Are Cleaner” listed a variety of electric cars that have come and will come in the market for the costumers. With all those electric cars coming on the market not only will there be a variety of cars for the customers but also there will be competition between the manufacturers, and they will improve because everyone wants to make the best car.  

• “General Motors is back in the game with production of the Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid capable of traveling 25 to 50 miles on electricity alone. The Volt has already won several notable awards, including the Motor Trend 2011 Car of the Year and the 2011 Green Car of the Year from Green Car Journal. 
• Toyota is working on a small electric car, the FT-EV II, and has bought a significant stake in electric car specialist Tesla Motors, maker of the electric Roadster sports car. Tesla and Toyota are developing an electric version of Toyota’s RAV4, a small SUV. 
• Nissan sold out the preorder waiting list for its all-electric Leaf sedan in 2010, and the car is expected to go on sale nationwide for about $25,000 (after tax credits) by the end of 2011. 
• Honda plans to sell its Fit EV, which will have a 70-mile driving range, in 2012. 

• Mitsubishi plans to bring its electric compact car, the i-MiEV, to U.S. showrooms by the end of 2011. 
• Fisker Automotive, maker of the luxury Karma sedan, received a $529 million federal loan to help develop its plug-in hybrid vehicles. “ 

Also, the author stated that electric cars produce zero emissions from the tailpipe, but this also depends on where you are located, if you are in Midwest, where electricity is generated from coal, electric cars do contribute with small amount of Carbon Dioxide in earth does not cause them directly making it but cause of how the electricity is produced by the coal. But if you are in the northeast, northwest, and Pacific coast, eclectic cars produce a non-noticeable amount Carbon Dioxide because of how electricity is generated from hydroelectric sources. Which means that as more generating power will become cleaner, electric cars will do too.  

Another thing that plays a huge part on electric cars are their batteries. With those batteries the manufacturers have made it able for the customers to charge their cars at home, which is a big plus for them. With a one-time charge the car can get up to approximately 200 miles range which is still not that good compared to gasoline. As everyone knows of course they will work on it and will be able to reach a better range, but a study made in United Kingdom said that “About half of the total carbon footprint of a battery comes from the mining and refining of the raw materials, and for every kilogram of battery recycled a kilogram of carbon dioxide is saved.” which means that if manufacturers do not look forward to recycling the used batteries a significant impact part of benefits that come from electric cars will be lost.  

Electric cars have become a long way from the beginning of the 19th century with Robert Anderson inventing the first one, and many other people working on them and making them better. Years ago, they were not considered helpful, but today they are considered as one of the huge impacts that can help in decreasing the pollution and help in decreasing the climate change by not producing Carbon Dioxide while running. However, they seem to be the future regarding to the car industry but there are still things that they need to work on such as how the power for those cars is generated and the recycling of the used batteries. 

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