re: the development of some cheap, plentiful, non-polluting source of energy that uses vortices ===> Cellulose
It's Everywhere, It's Everywhere!!! Add heat in the Absence of O2 and what do you get? Charcoal!
Envision a world where an Evil, Inc. Solar collector is on Every roof...Using the sun's rays to sequester Carbon black!!! Then the Carbon can be sold to the local utility where it can be burned, or else it could be sold to the water utility (or the waste water utility) where it could be used to filter water.