The Technology Review website reports the highlights of a recent article in the journal, Science, which analyzed the comparative benefits of two alternative pathways for extracting energy from biomass: (1) biomass conversion to transport biofuels (ethanol) and (2) biomass for electrical power generation (bioelectricity). The conversion of biomass to ethanol (for transport) involves a series of physical, chemical and biological processing steps. Biomass conversion to electricity usually involves direct combustion or burning of the biomass and utilizing the heat to generate electricity. The article, "Greater Transportation Energy and GHG Offsets from Bioelectricity Than Ethanol", is co-authored by scientists from the University of California Merced, Stanford University, and the Carnegie Institution of Washington. Using a "Biofuel Analysis Meta-Model (EBAMM)" created at the University of California, Berkeley, the scientists analyzed different scenarios "covering a range of harvested crops, including corn and switchgrass, and a number of different energy-conversion technologies". Their studies show that "bioelectricity outperforms ethanol across a range of feedstocks, conversion technologies, and vehicle classes". Electricity from biomass was found to be more efficient than converting the biomass into biofuel, and had 108% more reductions in GHG (greenhouse gas) per area of cropland, compared with cellulose ethanol..