4 ms·

Very thought provoking read. One question I do wonder at times, and is probably applicable here is: "what if I removed all the constraints, what would I do dif

Very thought provoking read. One question I do wonder at times, and is probably applicable here is: "what if I removed all the constraints, what would I do differently and how would things change?". Eg: Suppose nuclear fusion is successful, and you can actually power whole of earth for 800 years with 1 cup of hydrogen. That is, you don't have to worry about energy anymore. How would that change the human behavior both in short and long term? Or to go to a more individual level, "If time wasn't a constraint for me, would I ship it differently?" and so on.

pjc50 4y ago
> power whole of earth for 800 years with 1 cup of hydrogen And no capex? I mean, renewables already consume zero "fuel", but they do have considerable capital investment. "Cheap" energy in a box would obviously be completely transformative given how much of society is structured around extracting energy and using it efficiently to move things around or heat people or things. Depending on how cheap this is an even bigger transformation for developing countries. You could even start to think about terraforming.
DrBazza 4y ago
> "what if I removed all the constraints, what would I do differently and how would things change?". Eg: Suppose nuclear fusion is successful, and you can actually power whole of earth for 800 years with 1 cup of hydrogen. Build cheap and plentiful desalination plants on the west coasts of Africa, South America and Australia, and possibly re-green the Sahara and Outback.
- magarnicle 4y ago
  How would you keep the Outback green? I'm no climate scientist, but I've wondered why it is the way it is. Is it due to the lack of a mountain range on the Australian west coast, so the air doesn't get pushed up to cool? Edit I forgot in this imagined world we have 'free' energy, so you can just pump water in.
  - DrBazza 4y ago
    From what I understand, Australia has a lot of temporary lakes that only fill after extreme rain, then dry out soon after. So if you could keep lakes such as Lake Eyre (though it's salty) and others full, that would encourage plant growth, and coverage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Eyre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Eyre I can't find a link, but there's a theory (and I don't know if it's been discredited), but once again, because humans settled into Australia they displaced mega-fauna and generally ruined the ecosystem in Australia and the Outback now is what it is. Even today, there's a story doing the rounds about how free roaming bison in the US double the plant biodiversity of the plains just by trampling on stuff. There are all sorts of plans to irrigate Australia such as: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradfield_Scheme https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradfield_Scheme

pjc50 4y ago

> power whole of earth for 800 years with 1 cup of hydrogen And no capex? I mean, renewables already consume zero "fuel", but they do have considerable capital investment. "Cheap" energy in a box would obviously be completely transformative given how much of society is structured around extracting energy and using it efficiently to move things around or heat people or things. Depending on how cheap this is an even bigger transformation for developing countries. You could even start to think about terraforming.

DrBazza 4y ago

> "what if I removed all the constraints, what would I do differently and how would things change?". Eg: Suppose nuclear fusion is successful, and you can actually power whole of earth for 800 years with 1 cup of hydrogen. Build cheap and plentiful desalination plants on the west coasts of Africa, South America and Australia, and possibly re-green the Sahara and Outback.

magarnicle 4y ago
How would you keep the Outback green? I'm no climate scientist, but I've wondered why it is the way it is. Is it due to the lack of a mountain range on the Australian west coast, so the air doesn't get pushed up to cool? Edit I forgot in this imagined world we have 'free' energy, so you can just pump water in.
- DrBazza 4y ago
  From what I understand, Australia has a lot of temporary lakes that only fill after extreme rain, then dry out soon after. So if you could keep lakes such as Lake Eyre (though it's salty) and others full, that would encourage plant growth, and coverage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Eyre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Eyre I can't find a link, but there's a theory (and I don't know if it's been discredited), but once again, because humans settled into Australia they displaced mega-fauna and generally ruined the ecosystem in Australia and the Outback now is what it is. Even today, there's a story doing the rounds about how free roaming bison in the US double the plant biodiversity of the plains just by trampling on stuff. There are all sorts of plans to irrigate Australia such as: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradfield_Scheme https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradfield_Scheme