> The ability to suddenly boost the efficiency of our electrical grids by 8-15% would not solely solve the problems our species currently causes for itself, but

> The ability to suddenly boost the efficiency of our electrical grids by 8-15% would not solely solve the problems our species currently causes for itself, but it would help a ton. That's far from clear. If our grids are 8-15% more efficient and the cost of electricity falls accordingly, it will boost demand and we may end up needing more power plants than we otherwise would have. If the goal is to reduce the consumption of a resource, making its consumption more efficient is often counterproductive (see [1,2,3]). Granted, if the alternative is burning fossil fuel then it's a good thing! But once electricity becomes more economical than fossil fuels for all uses, making it even cheaper is not going to help the biosphere. And I think that's probably going to happen before we have a room temperature superconductor that can be used in power transmission. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khazzoom%E2%80%93Brookes_postulate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khazzoom%E2%80%93Brookes_postu... [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebound_effect_(conservation) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebound_effect_(conservation)