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It's very possible that we could throw trillions of dollars at this and still not figure it out. Possible, but unlikely (imo). It's just that private business
by cygx 8y ago
It's very possible that we could throw trillions of dollars at this and still not figure it out.
Possible, but unlikely (imo). It's just that private business doesn't really do large-scale multi-decade pure research efforts with far-off ROI, and governments have chosen to spend money elsewhere. Hence, progress is steady, but slow.
- ttul 8y agoYes. It’s a classic market failure. We see examples of this type of thing throughout history. For instance, without the Manhattan Program, civil nuclear power would not have developed, because the enormous investment in risky technology development would not have flowed from the private sector.
- idontpost 8y ago> For instance, without the Manhattan Program, civil nuclear power would not have developed, because the enormous investment in risky technology development would not have flowed from the private sector. I don't buy this. Generating electricity from fission is stupid simple once you figure out that piling a bunch of uranium produces heat (literally what Fermi did in Chicago in '42). The safety features to keep the whole thing regulated, not melting, and to avoid poisoning everyone around it obviously aren't simple, but the process of creating and capturing energy as electricity is. By contrast, the process of capturing the energy and converting it is a huge part of the challenge with fusion.
- maxxxxx 8y agoI am glad that private business is not getting into this. I would hate it if fusion got protected by a bunch of patents. Fusion power has the potential to be a serious game changer and everybody should have access to it.