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Old 11-22-08 | 02:07 PM
  #12  
Velo Dog
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Joined: Jun 2004
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From: Northern Nevada
There have been several studies on this, but those I remember (including the '70s Scientific American piece) are pre-computer, pre-Web. Don't know where to tell you to look for them.
Volkswagen once did an ad (also '70s?) contending that driving a VW Beetle was more efficient than walking--the energy to propel a VW 20 miles cost less than a fast-food hamburger that would fuel a human runner for the same distance, something like that (this was back when gas was about 25 cents a gallon). You could use a similar approach. Calorie consumption for various forms of human-powered locomotion is readily available online, as is the energy content of gasoline and other fuels. Convert to some common measure (calories? BTUs? Don't ask me--I'm a liberal arts major) and chart 'em out.
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