If we had remained level headed and optimistic about nuclear power, rather than listening to the scaremongering fools who sensationalized the ridiculous, we could have had a far cleaner grid for the past six decades and been like France.
I recall a teacher in the early 70's saying that future homes won't have electric meters as nuke power will be so cheap it won't make sense to have a meter.
It was actually Lewis Strauss who said this; if you saw the movie Oppenheimer, he was the villain played by Robert Downey jr.
"" It is not too much to expect that our children will enjoy in their homes electrical energy too cheap to meter,–will know of great periodic regional famines in the world only as matters of history,–will travel effortlessly over the seas and under them and through the air with a minimum of danger and at great speeds,–and will experience a lifespan far longer than ours, as disease yields and man comes to understand what causes him to age. This is the forecast for an age of peace." *
It's actually slightly more complicated than that. Back a long time ago (Even before me!) there was a problem with meters. They were expensive and for light loads they were uneconomic. This is why for the first 1/4 of the 20th C homes did not have meters. You paid by subscription based on your property type and in some cases the number of light bulbs.
This is why for example Italy had two supply voltages. 137V was for lighting circuits and was paid as a monthly charge based on a lightbulb count. If you wanted more, you got 220V with a meter. This also made sense because of the cost of reading a meter and producing a variable bill. Of course, this has gone away today, and they are all metered and 220V, though they still have two socket/plug combinations.
The "Free Nuclear power crowd" are generally being misquoted, they don't actually mean free they mean unmetered. So, your domestic power would be charged by a subscription based on some metric, no meter.
However, with advancements with metering technology and remote reading the game has changed again.
We went electronic remote meters about 10 years ago (and it's been quite a boon for many people, though not all) you?
This is still the future of fusion energy and is one of the three biggest black swan events that would undo modern civilization. But I welcome it, and hope the new cooperative partnership between Japan and the U.S. will bring viable fusion power into reality soon.
According to a recent study we are getting closer:
Researchers Shutaro Takeda, Alexander Ryota Keeley, and Shunsuke Managi writing for the Journal of Fusion Energy, have taken a serious look at the projected timelines, and they have concluded: “Fusion was said to be 19.3 years away 30 years ago; it was 28.3 years away 20 years ago; 27.8 years away 10 years ago.’’ And now, scientists believe fusion energy is only 17.8 years away.”
Then there is Bill McDonough's quote:
“Don’t get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It’s just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there’s an enormous fusion reactor safely banked a few million miles from us. It delivers more than we could ever use in just about 8 minutes. And it’s wireless!”
I read several sites that carry a lot of news on such developments on this topic, and yes, it finally seems that progress is being made. However, its the "Unknown unknowns" that keep gumming up the works, so it seems.
To McDonough's quote - so how long do we have to wait until it is always dispatchable on demand?
If we had remained level headed and optimistic about nuclear power, rather than listening to the scaremongering fools who sensationalized the ridiculous, we could have had a far cleaner grid for the past six decades and been like France.
And except for short periods of time, is also supplying Britain with power.
So what is your take on SMRs, Lloyd?
I think they would be wonderful if they existed! I am a big fan of nuclear power, I have lived for the last 40 years with two big plants nearby, it's why our grid is so clean. Ontario says it's building four BWRX-300 reactors just down the road, but I will believe it when Mr. Atom delivers. https://www.gevernova.com/news/press-releases/province-of-ontario-to-deploy-additional-ge-hitachi-bwrx-300-small-modular-reactors
I recall a teacher in the early 70's saying that future homes won't have electric meters as nuke power will be so cheap it won't make sense to have a meter.
It was actually Lewis Strauss who said this; if you saw the movie Oppenheimer, he was the villain played by Robert Downey jr.
"" It is not too much to expect that our children will enjoy in their homes electrical energy too cheap to meter,–will know of great periodic regional famines in the world only as matters of history,–will travel effortlessly over the seas and under them and through the air with a minimum of danger and at great speeds,–and will experience a lifespan far longer than ours, as disease yields and man comes to understand what causes him to age. This is the forecast for an age of peace." *
And then the lawfare and regulatoryfare clicked on...
It's actually slightly more complicated than that. Back a long time ago (Even before me!) there was a problem with meters. They were expensive and for light loads they were uneconomic. This is why for the first 1/4 of the 20th C homes did not have meters. You paid by subscription based on your property type and in some cases the number of light bulbs.
This is why for example Italy had two supply voltages. 137V was for lighting circuits and was paid as a monthly charge based on a lightbulb count. If you wanted more, you got 220V with a meter. This also made sense because of the cost of reading a meter and producing a variable bill. Of course, this has gone away today, and they are all metered and 220V, though they still have two socket/plug combinations.
The "Free Nuclear power crowd" are generally being misquoted, they don't actually mean free they mean unmetered. So, your domestic power would be charged by a subscription based on some metric, no meter.
However, with advancements with metering technology and remote reading the game has changed again.
We went electronic remote meters about 10 years ago (and it's been quite a boon for many people, though not all) you?
This is still the future of fusion energy and is one of the three biggest black swan events that would undo modern civilization. But I welcome it, and hope the new cooperative partnership between Japan and the U.S. will bring viable fusion power into reality soon.
Just 30 more years, bub! Just 30 more (hearing that line for over 50 years).
According to a recent study we are getting closer:
Researchers Shutaro Takeda, Alexander Ryota Keeley, and Shunsuke Managi writing for the Journal of Fusion Energy, have taken a serious look at the projected timelines, and they have concluded: “Fusion was said to be 19.3 years away 30 years ago; it was 28.3 years away 20 years ago; 27.8 years away 10 years ago.’’ And now, scientists believe fusion energy is only 17.8 years away.”
Then there is Bill McDonough's quote:
“Don’t get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It’s just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there’s an enormous fusion reactor safely banked a few million miles from us. It delivers more than we could ever use in just about 8 minutes. And it’s wireless!”
I read several sites that carry a lot of news on such developments on this topic, and yes, it finally seems that progress is being made. However, its the "Unknown unknowns" that keep gumming up the works, so it seems.
To McDonough's quote - so how long do we have to wait until it is always dispatchable on demand?
Reminds me of my George Jetson call-out in my post today!