1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,720 Speaker 1: M. Hey everyone, it's me Josh and for this week's 2 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:07,640 Speaker 1: S Y s K Selex, I've chosen Can nuclear fusion 3 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:11,920 Speaker 1: reactors save the world? Well, it turns out probably if 4 00:00:11,960 --> 00:00:15,040 Speaker 1: we can just figure out how to build one properly. Well, 5 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:19,279 Speaker 1: sit back, buckle up, and prepare to be titillated with 6 00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:23,520 Speaker 1: what I find to be the most arousing, amazing form 7 00:00:23,560 --> 00:00:32,479 Speaker 1: of future energy around. Enjoy. Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, 8 00:00:32,720 --> 00:00:41,520 Speaker 1: a production of five Heart Radios How Stuff Works. Hey, 9 00:00:41,680 --> 00:00:45,240 Speaker 1: and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark. There's Charles 10 00:00:45,240 --> 00:00:50,159 Speaker 1: to Chuck Bryant, there's Jerry, there's Barrel laughs. Uh, and 11 00:00:50,200 --> 00:00:51,960 Speaker 1: this is stuff you should know. She gave us the 12 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:54,600 Speaker 1: old quick start. Yeah, like I don't want to hear 13 00:00:54,600 --> 00:00:57,400 Speaker 1: any more impression record. Yeah, she knows that shuts me up, 14 00:00:58,000 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 1: or at least cuts off whatever station on chiding her. 15 00:01:01,520 --> 00:01:03,240 Speaker 1: It's great. I'm telling you, if we could release the 16 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:07,520 Speaker 1: twenty seconds before each show as its own show, that 17 00:01:07,560 --> 00:01:11,679 Speaker 1: would be terrible. No one would care, We'd think it 18 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:13,360 Speaker 1: was funny and everybody else would be like, you edit 19 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:17,960 Speaker 1: this out for a reason. Uh So, Chuck, how you 20 00:01:18,040 --> 00:01:23,080 Speaker 1: doing great? Have you ever been to Azen Provence? France. 21 00:01:24,280 --> 00:01:27,160 Speaker 1: No is that a place. Yeah, No, I haven't. It 22 00:01:27,280 --> 00:01:33,880 Speaker 1: is a rustic little town in Provence. And it is strangely, 23 00:01:34,440 --> 00:01:37,679 Speaker 1: maybe even ironically in the non hipster use, but in 24 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:41,280 Speaker 1: the actual Yeah, it's a real word definition of the 25 00:01:41,319 --> 00:01:46,240 Speaker 1: word um. Also site to one of the most futuristic 26 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:51,360 Speaker 1: engineering projects humanity has ever undertaken. Meat. Meat. It's a 27 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:54,720 Speaker 1: sound it makes. Oh, I thought you're mocking me. No, 28 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:57,120 Speaker 1: no for being thrilled by the thought of this thing. No, 29 00:01:57,280 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 1: it is kind of funny that this thing is in 30 00:01:58,720 --> 00:02:02,560 Speaker 1: a sleepy little town like a hamlet, maybe evencern in Switzerland. 31 00:02:02,560 --> 00:02:05,280 Speaker 1: That's not in the city, is it. No, you can't 32 00:02:05,280 --> 00:02:07,240 Speaker 1: build these things in cities. That's whether in sleepy towns 33 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:09,480 Speaker 1: exactly because no one knows they're being poisoned. Yeah, and 34 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:12,359 Speaker 1: you can push the mare around pretty easy, exactly. This 35 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: thing is called either I T e R, which is 36 00:02:15,560 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 1: an acronym for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactors, which really 37 00:02:22,480 --> 00:02:24,160 Speaker 1: gets to the point across. Did you know the word 38 00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:29,480 Speaker 1: acronym is an acronym M. That's not true. Okay, I 39 00:02:29,560 --> 00:02:30,800 Speaker 1: just want to see how long you would try and 40 00:02:30,800 --> 00:02:32,440 Speaker 1: sort it out in your head. I would have kept 41 00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:34,840 Speaker 1: going on what it means seconds. Maybe that would have 42 00:02:34,880 --> 00:02:36,680 Speaker 1: been a great joke. I could have just kept it going. 43 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:39,800 Speaker 1: I'm not gonna tell you I would have been I 44 00:02:39,800 --> 00:02:43,040 Speaker 1: would have it was maybe fifteen seconds, because you would 45 00:02:43,040 --> 00:02:46,600 Speaker 1: have gotten that much more. So I wouldn't have looked 46 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:49,480 Speaker 1: it up. I would have figured it out myself. Anyway. 47 00:02:49,560 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 1: EID is this colossal engineering project. Somebody compared it to 48 00:02:55,360 --> 00:03:01,920 Speaker 1: the pyramids at Giza. Yeah, that's that's exciting stuff. Sure. Um. 49 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:06,320 Speaker 1: The thing is is it's a nuclear fusion reactor, and 50 00:03:06,320 --> 00:03:11,679 Speaker 1: it's the culmination of decades of attempts to create a 51 00:03:11,760 --> 00:03:14,760 Speaker 1: nuclear fusion reactor because we got fussion down and we'll 52 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:18,280 Speaker 1: talk about the difference in a minute, um, but fusion 53 00:03:18,560 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 1: has been very elusive, and nowhere is it more apparent 54 00:03:23,160 --> 00:03:27,000 Speaker 1: than in the EIDER project. Because this thing is going 55 00:03:27,040 --> 00:03:30,760 Speaker 1: to cost an approximately fifty billion dollars when it's completed, 56 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:36,400 Speaker 1: fifty billion dollars. They started. They're hoping to turn on 57 00:03:36,480 --> 00:03:39,560 Speaker 1: the switch in two thousand twenty, but it's looking like 58 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:43,000 Speaker 1: two thousand twenty three or two thousand twenty four, and 59 00:03:43,080 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 1: it won't be starting to produce anything until the two 60 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:50,880 Speaker 1: thousand forties at the earliest. So what's the point. I'll 61 00:03:50,880 --> 00:03:54,840 Speaker 1: tell you the point. If we can figure out nuclear fusion, Chuck, 62 00:03:55,400 --> 00:04:00,840 Speaker 1: the world's literally the world's energy problems will be solved 63 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:05,320 Speaker 1: for millennia. If we can just figure this out, we 64 00:04:05,360 --> 00:04:12,240 Speaker 1: will have a almost no radio activity nuclear option um, 65 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:19,080 Speaker 1: almost limitless fuel supply, totally green clean, no no pollution 66 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:23,640 Speaker 1: of greenhouse emissions, and with plenty of energy to spare 67 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:30,320 Speaker 1: using the already extant infrastructure we have to supply power. Like, 68 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:32,560 Speaker 1: you don't have to completely rebuild everything. You can just 69 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:37,280 Speaker 1: to the electrical cables outside. It'll be the exact same thing. Yeah, 70 00:04:37,279 --> 00:04:39,680 Speaker 1: you can just go to a nuclear fission reactor and 71 00:04:39,680 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 1: press the button that says fusion, and it'll all of 72 00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:45,600 Speaker 1: a sudden joint atoms instead of split them exactly. That's 73 00:04:45,640 --> 00:04:48,000 Speaker 1: what the difference is. With fission, you're splitting atoms and 74 00:04:48,040 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 1: you're gaining energy from that. With fusion, you're smacking them 75 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:54,880 Speaker 1: together and you're gaining even more energy because we're you're 76 00:04:54,960 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: exploiting a different fundamental force. Yeah, and that I was 77 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:01,080 Speaker 1: being KOI clearly there is no button because we would 78 00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 1: have pushed it a long time ago. Yeah. And when 79 00:05:04,360 --> 00:05:07,839 Speaker 1: I say no, pollution and no greenhouse emissions before the 80 00:05:07,880 --> 00:05:11,640 Speaker 1: pedantic among you right in, we know that just even 81 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:16,240 Speaker 1: shipping something from here to there causes pollution and greenhouse emissions, 82 00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:19,000 Speaker 1: but we're talking about the The output of the reactor 83 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:21,840 Speaker 1: itself is very green. So if you want to know 84 00:05:21,920 --> 00:05:24,360 Speaker 1: all about Ider, well, we're gonna talk about it here there, 85 00:05:24,400 --> 00:05:27,040 Speaker 1: because it's just you just can't talk about nuclear fusion 86 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:29,200 Speaker 1: reactors and not mention Eider. But if you want to 87 00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:31,880 Speaker 1: know a lot about Eider, there is a really great 88 00:05:31,960 --> 00:05:34,880 Speaker 1: article called A Star in a Bottle um, and it's 89 00:05:34,920 --> 00:05:38,800 Speaker 1: by a person named Rathi Kacha Duran durian Uh. And 90 00:05:38,839 --> 00:05:41,280 Speaker 1: it was written in the New Yorker not too long ago. 91 00:05:41,760 --> 00:05:44,720 Speaker 1: And man, it is every detail you want to know 92 00:05:44,760 --> 00:05:49,039 Speaker 1: about the Eider project written really well um and it's long, 93 00:05:49,080 --> 00:05:51,160 Speaker 1: but it's totally worth the read. Yeah, it's all over 94 00:05:51,200 --> 00:05:53,599 Speaker 1: the news lately. And for good reason. You said a 95 00:05:53,640 --> 00:05:56,880 Speaker 1: lot of energy. I have a stat I'm gonna throw 96 00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:00,559 Speaker 1: back to the old days here. Per kilogram, I'm a fuel. 97 00:06:00,640 --> 00:06:06,400 Speaker 1: If we're talking fusion and fission, fusion produces four times 98 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:10,880 Speaker 1: more energy than fission. I saw seven. It's probably one 99 00:06:10,880 --> 00:06:12,279 Speaker 1: of the things where it's like four to five to 100 00:06:12,320 --> 00:06:15,479 Speaker 1: ten or something. Right, I've found four times and ten 101 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:20,320 Speaker 1: million times more than coal. Yeah, ten million times the 102 00:06:20,480 --> 00:06:24,240 Speaker 1: energy as coal, and that's with equal fuel per kilogram 103 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:27,960 Speaker 1: of fuel. It's just I mean, it is the future. Yeah. 104 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 1: And you can say, well, that's great because we want 105 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:32,679 Speaker 1: eighteen million times the amount of power that coal provides. 106 00:06:32,960 --> 00:06:35,159 Speaker 1: You can say, well, there, buddy, you can also bring 107 00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:39,039 Speaker 1: it backwards because you can supply an awful lot of 108 00:06:39,080 --> 00:06:44,200 Speaker 1: power then with a lot less fuel. Yeah, we're like 109 00:06:44,279 --> 00:06:47,440 Speaker 1: the advantage of nuclear fusion or mind boggling and and 110 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:50,880 Speaker 1: very few uh downsides, which we'll get to of course, 111 00:06:50,920 --> 00:06:53,320 Speaker 1: but yeah, I mean, like really genuinely, it's not just 112 00:06:53,400 --> 00:06:56,680 Speaker 1: like some like here's all the great stuff about it 113 00:06:56,720 --> 00:06:58,919 Speaker 1: and just don't pay attention to all these like really 114 00:06:58,960 --> 00:07:03,160 Speaker 1: horrible aspect us. Um, Like, there really aren't too many downsides. 115 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:08,000 Speaker 1: The downside is we are at this moment incapable of 116 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:13,680 Speaker 1: successfully creating a commercially viable nuclear fusion reactor. That's right, 117 00:07:13,800 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 1: But we've got an understanding of what the challenges are 118 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,880 Speaker 1: ahead of us thanks to the last fifty or so 119 00:07:20,080 --> 00:07:24,640 Speaker 1: years of really really really smart physicists working on the 120 00:07:24,680 --> 00:07:28,800 Speaker 1: problem of nuclear fusion. Uh, and the great inspiration for 121 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:33,239 Speaker 1: nuclear fusion is the Sun. The Sun and all stars 122 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:39,000 Speaker 1: like it are enormous, immense nuclear fusion reactors. So if 123 00:07:39,040 --> 00:07:42,480 Speaker 1: you are building a nuclear fusion reactor here on Earth, 124 00:07:42,680 --> 00:07:46,480 Speaker 1: you're essentially creating a star, and that is a very 125 00:07:46,600 --> 00:07:50,760 Speaker 1: difficult thing to do. It turns out, Yeah, the Sun creates. 126 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:53,239 Speaker 1: And we talked about the Sun in our very famous 127 00:07:53,280 --> 00:07:57,960 Speaker 1: episode on the Sun. Um. The Sun creates six twenty 128 00:07:57,960 --> 00:08:01,440 Speaker 1: million metric tons a few six and twenty million metric 129 00:08:01,480 --> 00:08:04,880 Speaker 1: tons of hydrogen at its core every second. So every 130 00:08:04,920 --> 00:08:08,480 Speaker 1: second at the Sun's core, it produces enough power to 131 00:08:09,240 --> 00:08:12,200 Speaker 1: light up New York City for a hundred years New 132 00:08:12,280 --> 00:08:15,360 Speaker 1: York City every second. And that's the Sun. And all 133 00:08:15,400 --> 00:08:18,600 Speaker 1: we want to do is do the same thing on 134 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:22,520 Speaker 1: a much smaller scale. I think the guy there's this 135 00:08:22,640 --> 00:08:25,440 Speaker 1: kid who built one in his garage and he said 136 00:08:25,440 --> 00:08:27,720 Speaker 1: he wanted to Chris saw this Ted talk. He wanted 137 00:08:27,720 --> 00:08:29,520 Speaker 1: to create a star in a box is what he 138 00:08:29,560 --> 00:08:31,960 Speaker 1: called it. Yeah, I've seen it, like this New Yorker 139 00:08:32,040 --> 00:08:33,840 Speaker 1: called it a star in a bottle. Yeah. This kid's 140 00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:38,160 Speaker 1: name is Taylor Wilson and he's a nuclear physicist and 141 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:42,800 Speaker 1: he's like sixteen and he created Yeah, he he created 142 00:08:42,840 --> 00:08:46,440 Speaker 1: a successful one. And the key, though, is not to 143 00:08:46,440 --> 00:08:49,000 Speaker 1: be able to create the fusion. The key is to 144 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:52,440 Speaker 1: be able to harness enough plasma, which we'll get to 145 00:08:53,400 --> 00:08:55,959 Speaker 1: at a high enough temperature and density for there to 146 00:08:56,000 --> 00:08:58,800 Speaker 1: be a net power gain. Right, you can create fusion, 147 00:08:59,240 --> 00:09:01,480 Speaker 1: but in order to get out more than you're putting 148 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:03,680 Speaker 1: in is the only thing that matters, because what you 149 00:09:03,679 --> 00:09:06,439 Speaker 1: want to do is create electricity exactly. That's there's two 150 00:09:06,520 --> 00:09:09,600 Speaker 1: huge challenges right now to nuclear fusion. We pretty much 151 00:09:09,720 --> 00:09:13,959 Speaker 1: understand it enough to start it going and and get 152 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:17,800 Speaker 1: energy from it. The problem is is material science isn't 153 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:21,400 Speaker 1: at a point where it can build a containment vessel 154 00:09:21,800 --> 00:09:27,080 Speaker 1: to really house a thermonuclear reactor. And then the other 155 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:30,320 Speaker 1: big obstacle is, like you said, net energy gain, Like 156 00:09:30,400 --> 00:09:33,959 Speaker 1: if you're putting in as much or more energy then 157 00:09:34,000 --> 00:09:38,120 Speaker 1: you're getting out of your nuclear reactor, then you're wasting energy, 158 00:09:38,280 --> 00:09:40,959 Speaker 1: and it's the opposite of what you're supposed to be doing. Yeah, 159 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:44,280 Speaker 1: they're not just trying to impress people with their science knowledge, no, 160 00:09:44,400 --> 00:09:47,040 Speaker 1: but up to trying to create energy. Up to now, though, Chuck, 161 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:50,920 Speaker 1: like every single thermonuclear reactor that's ever been built has 162 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:55,000 Speaker 1: just been impressing people with knowledge, Like they haven't gotten 163 00:09:55,800 --> 00:10:00,840 Speaker 1: any net energy out of a single thermonuclear usion reactor, 164 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:02,960 Speaker 1: you see, I have that they have their right now 165 00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:09,400 Speaker 1: they're up to like tin uh presently, they're at tin megawatts. Yeah, 166 00:10:09,840 --> 00:10:12,480 Speaker 1: and that's more than they put into a net gain 167 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:15,280 Speaker 1: of tin mega watts currently. Everything I saw was when 168 00:10:15,360 --> 00:10:18,760 Speaker 1: we turn this thing on, it should have a net gain, 169 00:10:19,320 --> 00:10:21,320 Speaker 1: but I didn't see that they've actually done it. Yeah, 170 00:10:21,320 --> 00:10:23,839 Speaker 1: tin mega watts now and Eider is going to produce 171 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:29,640 Speaker 1: five hundred megawatts once it's fully operational. Right. So the 172 00:10:30,360 --> 00:10:33,080 Speaker 1: next challenge then is this, if we're already getting a 173 00:10:33,360 --> 00:10:36,120 Speaker 1: net energy gain out of it, then that means that 174 00:10:36,160 --> 00:10:40,760 Speaker 1: the net energy gain is it's not sustainable. Like you said, 175 00:10:40,760 --> 00:10:42,760 Speaker 1: you want to keep the thing going so you don't 176 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:45,760 Speaker 1: have to keep starting from scratch to power it up. 177 00:10:45,840 --> 00:10:48,400 Speaker 1: You wanted to basically be self sustaining, so you just 178 00:10:48,440 --> 00:10:50,880 Speaker 1: have to add a little more fuel to the dream. 179 00:10:51,160 --> 00:10:55,840 Speaker 1: So let's talk about the history of of fusion reactors Chuck. Yeah, 180 00:10:55,880 --> 00:10:59,800 Speaker 1: it kind of goes back to this guy, name Lyman Spitzer. 181 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:03,320 Speaker 1: He's a thirty six year old Princeton astrophysicist. And this 182 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:07,120 Speaker 1: was in the nineteen fifties, and he was recruited to 183 00:11:07,120 --> 00:11:10,600 Speaker 1: work on the H bomb. And UH went out and 184 00:11:10,600 --> 00:11:13,800 Speaker 1: got a copy of of a of a paper that 185 00:11:13,880 --> 00:11:19,960 Speaker 1: was released from Germany. I think, right that Argentina. Argentina. Yeah, 186 00:11:20,040 --> 00:11:22,439 Speaker 1: they announced that they had get that wrong. They had 187 00:11:22,480 --> 00:11:26,960 Speaker 1: successfully built a fusion reactor. Right. So he gets this paper, 188 00:11:27,840 --> 00:11:30,440 Speaker 1: UH goes on a ski trip, starts thinking about how 189 00:11:30,440 --> 00:11:32,760 Speaker 1: he can do this, takes a little break from his 190 00:11:32,840 --> 00:11:37,160 Speaker 1: job building the H bomb, and figures out, you know, 191 00:11:37,520 --> 00:11:41,280 Speaker 1: I think it's possible if we can harness this plasma. 192 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:43,680 Speaker 1: I guess we should just go ahead and find what 193 00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:46,319 Speaker 1: plasma is. Since we keep saying it, Well, there's there's 194 00:11:46,440 --> 00:11:50,040 Speaker 1: the normal three energy states that were familiar with, water, 195 00:11:50,559 --> 00:11:54,680 Speaker 1: solid and gas, liquid solid and gas. Right, there's a 196 00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:58,120 Speaker 1: fourth one. It's plasma. And plasma is basically like an 197 00:11:58,240 --> 00:12:02,840 Speaker 1: energetic gas where the temperatures are so high that whatever 198 00:12:03,440 --> 00:12:06,240 Speaker 1: atoms you put into it, the electrons are stripped off 199 00:12:06,240 --> 00:12:09,320 Speaker 1: and allowed to move around freely. Basically, the surface of 200 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:12,720 Speaker 1: the Sun is plasma. That's that's what plasma is. It's 201 00:12:12,760 --> 00:12:15,240 Speaker 1: a gas, it's a roiling gas that's really hard to 202 00:12:15,240 --> 00:12:17,439 Speaker 1: control and is really unpredicted, which is when you want 203 00:12:17,440 --> 00:12:20,160 Speaker 1: to see the Sun like that rippling, wavy looking thing. 204 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:22,880 Speaker 1: That's plasma, right. And the reason the Sun manages to 205 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:27,640 Speaker 1: stay together is because it is enormously massive and has 206 00:12:27,679 --> 00:12:30,160 Speaker 1: a ton of gravity at its core. Yeah, we don't 207 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:32,559 Speaker 1: have that advantage here on Earth. We don't, so we 208 00:12:32,679 --> 00:12:35,199 Speaker 1: try to make up for that by increasing the temperature. 209 00:12:35,360 --> 00:12:37,280 Speaker 1: That's right. And he was onto it way back then 210 00:12:37,280 --> 00:12:39,880 Speaker 1: in the nineteen fifties. If we can just harness this, 211 00:12:40,040 --> 00:12:43,000 Speaker 1: we can just get hot enough. And he created a 212 00:12:43,040 --> 00:12:47,920 Speaker 1: tabletop device called the uh Stellarator and it was an 213 00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:50,240 Speaker 1: a figure eight position. It was a pipe and a 214 00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:53,360 Speaker 1: figure eight uh. And this would keep things from banging 215 00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:57,640 Speaker 1: into walls theoretically. Yeah, and he was onto something because well, 216 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:00,160 Speaker 1: we'll get to lockeed later, but they're using some or 217 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:04,960 Speaker 1: device nowg eight. Oh yeah, I didn't realize that was 218 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:07,439 Speaker 1: a figure eight it is, which is weird because what 219 00:13:07,480 --> 00:13:09,360 Speaker 1: they eventually found out was that a donut shape was 220 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:13,160 Speaker 1: really the key, uh to get that net gain. So 221 00:13:13,240 --> 00:13:15,839 Speaker 1: the and the reason that they found out that a 222 00:13:15,920 --> 00:13:18,880 Speaker 1: donut shape worked was because in the I think the 223 00:13:18,960 --> 00:13:23,280 Speaker 1: late fifties, UM, the US had run up against the wall. 224 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:26,120 Speaker 1: They're saying, like, okay, we've got this, but we can't 225 00:13:26,160 --> 00:13:29,000 Speaker 1: control the plasma because think about it, what you're trying 226 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:33,520 Speaker 1: to do is create a star inside something, but it 227 00:13:33,559 --> 00:13:36,760 Speaker 1: can't touch any of the vessel that it's in or 228 00:13:36,800 --> 00:13:40,120 Speaker 1: else it'll just completely erupt it. Right. Yeah. They compared 229 00:13:40,120 --> 00:13:43,640 Speaker 1: it to holding jelly and rubber bands. Right, it was 230 00:13:43,760 --> 00:13:46,280 Speaker 1: just like you can't. They couldn't figure out how to 231 00:13:46,320 --> 00:13:49,840 Speaker 1: control the plasma. So when when the US ran up 232 00:13:49,880 --> 00:13:52,240 Speaker 1: against this wall, they said, hey, the rest of the world, 233 00:13:52,600 --> 00:13:57,040 Speaker 1: we're gonna declassify what Lyman Spitz Lyman Spitzer has been 234 00:13:57,080 --> 00:14:00,240 Speaker 1: doing and like we'll share if you guys are And 235 00:14:00,280 --> 00:14:03,960 Speaker 1: it turns out that the Russians had um already come 236 00:14:04,040 --> 00:14:06,960 Speaker 1: up against this problem and licked it. They figured out 237 00:14:06,960 --> 00:14:08,920 Speaker 1: that if you put the thing in a what's called 238 00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:15,079 Speaker 1: the toroidal shape, a donut shape UM using electro magnets, 239 00:14:15,320 --> 00:14:19,840 Speaker 1: you contame the plasma essentially, and the the the donut 240 00:14:19,920 --> 00:14:23,280 Speaker 1: shape itself was pretty ingenious, but the real stroke of 241 00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:27,840 Speaker 1: genius was by running electromagnets in rings around the doughnut. 242 00:14:28,080 --> 00:14:29,920 Speaker 1: So it's like you you have a donut, and you 243 00:14:29,920 --> 00:14:33,200 Speaker 1: put a bunch of earrings around it, right, and those 244 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:36,720 Speaker 1: are electromagnets, So you're creating an electro magnetic force field 245 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:41,280 Speaker 1: which contains the plasma. But then you also put an 246 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:44,400 Speaker 1: electro magnetic force field in the middle of the plasma. 247 00:14:44,880 --> 00:14:46,800 Speaker 1: So not only does it heat it up to the 248 00:14:46,800 --> 00:14:50,120 Speaker 1: temperatures you want, it also stabilizes it further. So the 249 00:14:50,160 --> 00:14:54,000 Speaker 1: Russians had invented what they call the tacomac um, which 250 00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:58,560 Speaker 1: is this donut shape nuclear fusion reactor that basically became 251 00:14:58,600 --> 00:15:02,480 Speaker 1: the standard for the next fifty years or so. Yeah, 252 00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:07,160 Speaker 1: you basically could achieve a really dense, super hot plasma. 253 00:15:07,640 --> 00:15:09,440 Speaker 1: And we'll get into temperatures and stuff in a bit. 254 00:15:09,560 --> 00:15:12,680 Speaker 1: But since we can't create that kind of pressure that 255 00:15:12,760 --> 00:15:15,880 Speaker 1: they have in the Sun due to their gravity, their gravity, 256 00:15:15,960 --> 00:15:19,560 Speaker 1: the Sun's gravity, you know, the Sun and all those people. Yeah, uh, 257 00:15:19,680 --> 00:15:21,000 Speaker 1: like you said, we had to make up for it 258 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 1: here on Earth with temperatures, right, because apparently if you 259 00:15:23,920 --> 00:15:28,280 Speaker 1: are in a in the middle of a nuclear reactor, 260 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:31,880 Speaker 1: a nuclear fusion reactor, um, you're going to find that 261 00:15:31,920 --> 00:15:36,000 Speaker 1: the temperatures inside are about six times hotter than the 262 00:15:36,040 --> 00:15:38,360 Speaker 1: core of the Sun. Not even the services and the 263 00:15:38,400 --> 00:15:40,680 Speaker 1: core of the sun. And the reason why it has 264 00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:42,400 Speaker 1: to be so much hotter is because, like you said, 265 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:45,600 Speaker 1: we can't we can't replicate that density. We can get 266 00:15:45,600 --> 00:15:47,840 Speaker 1: to those temperatures that we need, but we can't get 267 00:15:47,840 --> 00:16:09,920 Speaker 1: to the density, so we have to make up for it. So, Chuck, 268 00:16:10,520 --> 00:16:15,640 Speaker 1: we're talking about nuclear fusion, and there's it's actually surprisingly 269 00:16:15,880 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 1: understandable at its most basic core. Yeah, you're fusing atoms. 270 00:16:21,440 --> 00:16:23,040 Speaker 1: Is not the hardest thing in the world to wrap 271 00:16:23,040 --> 00:16:26,280 Speaker 1: your head around. Yeah. So with fission, we're splitting atoms. 272 00:16:26,280 --> 00:16:29,080 Speaker 1: You're taking an atom and you're splitting its nuclei apart. 273 00:16:29,120 --> 00:16:32,480 Speaker 1: You're splitting the neutrons and the protons apart from one another. 274 00:16:32,800 --> 00:16:36,200 Speaker 1: And when you do that, one of the four fundamental forces, 275 00:16:36,200 --> 00:16:40,400 Speaker 1: electromagnetic force, pushes them away and you get this burst 276 00:16:40,440 --> 00:16:45,560 Speaker 1: of energy. With fusion, you're taking nuclei from different atoms. 277 00:16:45,600 --> 00:16:49,960 Speaker 1: You're taking protons and um neutrons, and you're smashing them together. 278 00:16:50,560 --> 00:16:53,480 Speaker 1: And when you do that, you're unleashing what's called the 279 00:16:53,520 --> 00:16:58,920 Speaker 1: strong force, which appropriately enough is stronger than electromagnetic force, 280 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:03,760 Speaker 1: which is why nuclear refusion yields more energy than nuclear fission. Yeah, 281 00:17:03,760 --> 00:17:06,400 Speaker 1: Einstein himself said, you know, each time you smash these 282 00:17:06,440 --> 00:17:08,960 Speaker 1: things together, you're gonna lose a little bit of mass, 283 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:11,919 Speaker 1: and that little bit of mass is a ton of energy. 284 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:15,440 Speaker 1: As it turns out. That's right, The famous equals mc square. Yeah, 285 00:17:15,480 --> 00:17:17,560 Speaker 1: and I don't think he realized in nineteen o five, 286 00:17:17,680 --> 00:17:20,440 Speaker 1: or maybe Einstein did. E Instein probably did. Yeah, Einstein 287 00:17:20,480 --> 00:17:23,600 Speaker 1: probably did. I would guess he did. So. The problem is, 288 00:17:23,920 --> 00:17:28,639 Speaker 1: even though it is very easy to smash some protons together, um, 289 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:32,160 Speaker 1: there's a tremendous amount of resistance to that smashing together. 290 00:17:32,240 --> 00:17:34,479 Speaker 1: They don't want to smash together, no, because it's just 291 00:17:34,560 --> 00:17:38,639 Speaker 1: like if you take a magnet to magnets and you 292 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:43,359 Speaker 1: put the positive poles toward one another, they repel one another, right, Yeah, 293 00:17:43,520 --> 00:17:46,880 Speaker 1: same thing, that's that's the same principle on an atomic 294 00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:50,160 Speaker 1: level too. If you take protons, which are positively charged particles, 295 00:17:50,359 --> 00:17:52,840 Speaker 1: and try to put them together, they repel one another. 296 00:17:53,160 --> 00:17:55,520 Speaker 1: And the closer you get them together, the stronger the 297 00:17:55,520 --> 00:18:00,680 Speaker 1: the repellent force is the electromagnetic force, right. But if 298 00:18:00,680 --> 00:18:04,840 Speaker 1: you can get them close enough, the electromagnetic force is 299 00:18:04,960 --> 00:18:09,000 Speaker 1: overcome by that strong force, the strong nuclear force, and 300 00:18:09,040 --> 00:18:12,359 Speaker 1: they become bound together. Because the strong force is that 301 00:18:12,560 --> 00:18:15,119 Speaker 1: one of those four fundamental forces of the universe, and 302 00:18:15,160 --> 00:18:19,040 Speaker 1: that is the force that keeps atoms together, and that 303 00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:22,000 Speaker 1: is the that force is stronger than the force that 304 00:18:22,160 --> 00:18:26,879 Speaker 1: repels like charged particles. Yeah. And when you talk about close, 305 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:29,359 Speaker 1: they need to be within one times ten to the 306 00:18:29,400 --> 00:18:33,560 Speaker 1: negative fifteen meters of one another. So that is, if 307 00:18:33,600 --> 00:18:36,320 Speaker 1: you'll indulge me, sure you're gonna read a bunch of zeros, 308 00:18:37,080 --> 00:18:41,600 Speaker 1: it's point zero zero zero zero zero zero zero zero 309 00:18:41,720 --> 00:18:46,960 Speaker 1: zero zero zero zero zero zero one meters apart. Right, 310 00:18:47,080 --> 00:18:49,960 Speaker 1: that's how close they have to be. That's right to 311 00:18:50,119 --> 00:18:53,000 Speaker 1: get them to accept one another and to fuse. Um. 312 00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:56,239 Speaker 1: I think I have a theory that if they they 313 00:18:56,240 --> 00:18:58,040 Speaker 1: are not fusing because they think they're going to be 314 00:18:58,080 --> 00:19:01,679 Speaker 1: made into a bomb, and if we told that creating energy, 315 00:19:01,800 --> 00:19:04,760 Speaker 1: they might be more willing to fuse together. Yeah, because 316 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:08,800 Speaker 1: protons are peace necks. Everybody knows that. So when when 317 00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:11,280 Speaker 1: they do fuse together, right, when you do cross that 318 00:19:11,359 --> 00:19:14,119 Speaker 1: threshold and the strong force takes over and overcomes the 319 00:19:14,119 --> 00:19:19,359 Speaker 1: electromagnetic force. Um, Like we said, a tremendous amount of 320 00:19:19,440 --> 00:19:23,840 Speaker 1: energy is released, and it's released in part in the 321 00:19:23,880 --> 00:19:29,240 Speaker 1: form of neutrinos neutrons, right, which are right neutral particles 322 00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:32,639 Speaker 1: which suddenly start carrying a tremendous amount of kinetic energy. 323 00:19:32,840 --> 00:19:35,840 Speaker 1: So let's say you have one atom, you've got another atom, 324 00:19:35,920 --> 00:19:38,080 Speaker 1: and they're both like, I'm not getting close to you. 325 00:19:38,200 --> 00:19:40,119 Speaker 1: We're not going to get to Okay, we got together 326 00:19:41,040 --> 00:19:46,240 Speaker 1: that force that that mass that's displaced is transferred through 327 00:19:46,280 --> 00:19:49,120 Speaker 1: the neutron that gets kicked off of the atom, right 328 00:19:49,880 --> 00:19:52,920 Speaker 1: and is carried out. Now, a neutron doesn't have any 329 00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:56,560 Speaker 1: kind of positive or negative charts. It's neutral. It's a neutron, 330 00:19:57,080 --> 00:20:01,000 Speaker 1: which means that it can pass through the very electromagnetic 331 00:20:01,040 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: fields that are keeping this plasma where this reaction is 332 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:08,719 Speaker 1: taking place together. Once that happens, Chuck, it can go 333 00:20:08,760 --> 00:20:11,440 Speaker 1: out to what's called a blanket wall and a thermonuclear 334 00:20:11,480 --> 00:20:16,480 Speaker 1: reactor warm it, and then that heat is transferred into 335 00:20:16,520 --> 00:20:21,480 Speaker 1: a water cooling system. The water is warmed up, turns steam, 336 00:20:21,520 --> 00:20:25,440 Speaker 1: which generates a which I guess moves the turbine, and 337 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:28,080 Speaker 1: then all of a sudden, the turbines producing electricity. Yeah, 338 00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:31,480 Speaker 1: it's funny how just it gets so complex, but all 339 00:20:31,520 --> 00:20:33,760 Speaker 1: you're still trying to do is create steam. It's like 340 00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:35,879 Speaker 1: turn a turbine. It's like cooking the I s s 341 00:20:35,960 --> 00:20:39,640 Speaker 1: up to a horse, right, you know, move it over there. 342 00:20:40,440 --> 00:20:44,399 Speaker 1: So there are a few types of fusion reactions. UM. 343 00:20:44,520 --> 00:20:48,000 Speaker 1: The ultimate goal right now, what we can do on 344 00:20:48,040 --> 00:20:53,720 Speaker 1: a small scale is what's called a uh deuterium tritium reaction. 345 00:20:54,240 --> 00:20:56,560 Speaker 1: That's the one that we can currently achieve. That's one 346 00:20:56,560 --> 00:21:00,520 Speaker 1: atom of deuterium and one atom of tritium combining to 347 00:21:00,560 --> 00:21:03,199 Speaker 1: form a helium four atom and a neutron. Yeah, the 348 00:21:03,320 --> 00:21:05,840 Speaker 1: ultimate goal. I mean, that's good and that will create 349 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:08,200 Speaker 1: a lot of energy, but there are a few downsides. 350 00:21:08,560 --> 00:21:12,200 Speaker 1: Tritium is radioactive. For one, UM, you have to mine 351 00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:16,159 Speaker 1: it from lithium. Yeah, and lithium is fairly rare. UM. 352 00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:19,840 Speaker 1: The ultimate goal is to to reach deuterium deuterium reactions, 353 00:21:19,840 --> 00:21:22,919 Speaker 1: which is two deuterium atoms combining to form that helium 354 00:21:22,920 --> 00:21:25,880 Speaker 1: three in a neutron. And you can get that from 355 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:31,240 Speaker 1: the sea water. It's abundant, almost limitless um. And I 356 00:21:31,280 --> 00:21:34,520 Speaker 1: couldn't find this, but I think clean water can be 357 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:37,320 Speaker 1: a residual effect of this. Am I wrong. I don't 358 00:21:37,320 --> 00:21:40,879 Speaker 1: know if it's if well, you're probably not injecting water, 359 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:44,760 Speaker 1: but to get the deuterium. I mean, desalination plants are 360 00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:47,960 Speaker 1: the key to the future as far as supplying the 361 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:50,399 Speaker 1: world with fresh water. Yeah, I thought I saw somewhere 362 00:21:50,400 --> 00:21:53,160 Speaker 1: where it was an actual byproduct, but yeah, but then 363 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:54,840 Speaker 1: I couldn't find it. So I'm not sure if that's 364 00:21:54,880 --> 00:21:56,760 Speaker 1: right or you know what, you just chalk my memory. 365 00:21:56,880 --> 00:22:00,600 Speaker 1: I feel like in a hydrogen powered car, water is 366 00:22:00,640 --> 00:22:03,640 Speaker 1: one of the by products, so maybe so yeah, all right, 367 00:22:03,680 --> 00:22:06,240 Speaker 1: don't quote me on that though. Um at the very least, 368 00:22:06,240 --> 00:22:08,720 Speaker 1: it's a great way to create energy, right and and 369 00:22:08,840 --> 00:22:13,679 Speaker 1: what what's You also can get um tritium from helium, 370 00:22:13,720 --> 00:22:19,440 Speaker 1: I believe. So even now with the the deuterium tritium 371 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:22,960 Speaker 1: reactions that we're working on, there's there's already a there's 372 00:22:23,119 --> 00:22:25,960 Speaker 1: a work around, you know, like you can create a 373 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:30,160 Speaker 1: thermonuclear reactor that's a breeding reactor to where the byproduct 374 00:22:30,359 --> 00:22:33,160 Speaker 1: helium can be used to harvest more of the fuel 375 00:22:33,200 --> 00:22:36,400 Speaker 1: you're using tritium. Yeah, aren't we running low on helium? 376 00:22:36,480 --> 00:22:38,800 Speaker 1: We are? Which is like remember when we were talking 377 00:22:38,840 --> 00:22:44,600 Speaker 1: about the dirigibile the Zeppelin, which one was how blimps work. Yeah, 378 00:22:44,640 --> 00:22:47,199 Speaker 1: and then a long time ago we did one on 379 00:22:48,080 --> 00:22:51,240 Speaker 1: the Mars turbine Mars turbine reaction. But yes, there's very 380 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:54,639 Speaker 1: clearly helium shortage, and the idea that we're just using 381 00:22:54,680 --> 00:23:00,280 Speaker 1: it for party balloons rather than this is scary. And 382 00:23:00,320 --> 00:23:02,760 Speaker 1: don't be confused. We say things like deuterium and it 383 00:23:02,800 --> 00:23:05,439 Speaker 1: sounds super complex. All that is a hydrogen with an 384 00:23:05,480 --> 00:23:09,439 Speaker 1: extra neutron. Yeah, it's an isotope. So there's three isotopes 385 00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:12,200 Speaker 1: of hydrogen and they're all still the same element. They're 386 00:23:12,200 --> 00:23:16,600 Speaker 1: all still hydrogen, but they have different configurations as far 387 00:23:16,640 --> 00:23:20,920 Speaker 1: as their neutrons go. So protium is a hydrogen isotope 388 00:23:20,960 --> 00:23:24,520 Speaker 1: with one proton and no neutrons. Deuterium is a hydrogen 389 00:23:24,560 --> 00:23:28,040 Speaker 1: isotope with one proton and one neutron, and tritium is 390 00:23:28,080 --> 00:23:31,639 Speaker 1: a hydrogenitro isotope with one proton and two neutrons. And 391 00:23:31,680 --> 00:23:34,840 Speaker 1: like you said, tritium is radioactive, but the beauty of 392 00:23:34,880 --> 00:23:37,359 Speaker 1: it is you need very very very little of it 393 00:23:37,440 --> 00:23:43,000 Speaker 1: to to fuel a nuclear fusion reactor and it becomes 394 00:23:43,320 --> 00:23:47,359 Speaker 1: a stable helium, a non radioactive helium in the reactor, 395 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:51,800 Speaker 1: so you don't have this leftover radioactive fuel. And awesome, 396 00:23:51,800 --> 00:23:54,119 Speaker 1: I think they said there's an it would be equivalent 397 00:23:54,359 --> 00:23:56,520 Speaker 1: of the radiation we just see every day and I'm 398 00:23:56,520 --> 00:24:00,280 Speaker 1: walking around on the street right, Yes, the background radio aation. 399 00:24:00,359 --> 00:24:02,439 Speaker 1: I believe I saw that too. The thing is is 400 00:24:02,520 --> 00:24:06,719 Speaker 1: the parts to the nuclear reactor themselves will become irradiated 401 00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:11,399 Speaker 1: over time. Apparently, though compared to the kind of radio 402 00:24:11,720 --> 00:24:16,639 Speaker 1: activity that's generated from nuclear fission. Um this stuff you 403 00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:18,720 Speaker 1: could just disassemble and bury in the desert for a 404 00:24:18,800 --> 00:24:20,960 Speaker 1: hundred years, go back and dig back up, and it 405 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:25,560 Speaker 1: will be totally inactivated. So it's it's the stuff that 406 00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:30,960 Speaker 1: is radioactive is extraordinarily manageable. Yeah, it is. And um, 407 00:24:31,080 --> 00:24:32,480 Speaker 1: like I said, we don't want to make it sound 408 00:24:32,480 --> 00:24:34,919 Speaker 1: like this is perfect. There is. They do predict the 409 00:24:35,119 --> 00:24:39,400 Speaker 1: short to medium term radioactive waste problem and they say 410 00:24:39,480 --> 00:24:43,200 Speaker 1: that's due to activation of the structural materials the actual 411 00:24:43,560 --> 00:24:47,360 Speaker 1: thermonuclear device itself. Yeah, and while you don't need much tritium, 412 00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:51,520 Speaker 1: even a few grams of tritium is problematic. Um. But 413 00:24:52,800 --> 00:24:57,879 Speaker 1: hopefully you know, there's no accident, although they say accidents 414 00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:00,240 Speaker 1: with these um as if you just turn the power off, 415 00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:03,199 Speaker 1: it stops everything. It's not like a chain reaction can 416 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:07,080 Speaker 1: occur like a fission reactor. There's no out of your control. 417 00:25:07,119 --> 00:25:09,720 Speaker 1: There's not a meltdown. There's which Also, if you want 418 00:25:09,720 --> 00:25:11,240 Speaker 1: to know more about that, go listen to our how 419 00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:14,800 Speaker 1: nuclear meltdowns work UM episode. That was pretty good. We 420 00:25:14,880 --> 00:25:17,680 Speaker 1: really sit right after Fukushima, but it applies to all 421 00:25:17,880 --> 00:25:22,240 Speaker 1: fission um reactors. That's right. So the goal is ultimately 422 00:25:22,359 --> 00:25:27,879 Speaker 1: deuterium deuterium reactions where your pargether. It does. And the 423 00:25:27,920 --> 00:25:30,320 Speaker 1: reason why is again, it's abundant fuel. You can get 424 00:25:30,320 --> 00:25:34,160 Speaker 1: it from desalinating sea water and then um. Secondly, it's 425 00:25:34,160 --> 00:25:37,120 Speaker 1: not radioactive at any point, so it wouldn't make the 426 00:25:37,119 --> 00:25:41,560 Speaker 1: the thermonuclear reactor itself radioactive, that's right. The reason why 427 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:44,080 Speaker 1: we're not doing that already is because we can't achieve 428 00:25:44,080 --> 00:25:47,960 Speaker 1: the temperatures necessary. That's right, Which leads us to the 429 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:51,879 Speaker 1: two big stumbling blocks. Um. Everyone knows this is a 430 00:25:51,880 --> 00:25:53,520 Speaker 1: great idea. There's no one out there saying, oh, I 431 00:25:53,520 --> 00:25:56,320 Speaker 1: don't know about this fusion thing. Creating a star in 432 00:25:56,359 --> 00:26:00,119 Speaker 1: a box sounds kind of weird. The problem is the 433 00:26:00,119 --> 00:26:02,640 Speaker 1: the barriers that we have here on planet Earth. Um, 434 00:26:03,160 --> 00:26:08,000 Speaker 1: which is one temperature into pressure. Uh. We have achieved 435 00:26:08,040 --> 00:26:12,800 Speaker 1: the temperature which is the requirements is one dred million 436 00:26:12,920 --> 00:26:15,600 Speaker 1: kelvin and like you said, that's about six times hotter 437 00:26:15,600 --> 00:26:19,639 Speaker 1: than the Sun's core, which is pretty intense um. And 438 00:26:19,680 --> 00:26:22,080 Speaker 1: the other is pressure. Like we said, we need to 439 00:26:22,080 --> 00:26:24,280 Speaker 1: get them within I'm not gonna make you read all 440 00:26:24,280 --> 00:26:28,640 Speaker 1: those zeros again, but smash them that close in order 441 00:26:28,680 --> 00:26:30,760 Speaker 1: to fuse. And since we don't have that kind of 442 00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:33,520 Speaker 1: mass and gravity that the Sun does, there are a 443 00:26:33,600 --> 00:26:38,200 Speaker 1: few pretty genius ways that we're working around that. Uh. Yeah, 444 00:26:38,240 --> 00:26:42,880 Speaker 1: there's basically two as it stands, and then the Lockheed 445 00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:45,280 Speaker 1: Martin one, which will a lot of people are skeptical 446 00:26:45,320 --> 00:26:47,639 Speaker 1: about what we should say. It's kind of a variation 447 00:26:47,720 --> 00:26:50,560 Speaker 1: on the on one theme. But there's basically there's two 448 00:26:50,880 --> 00:26:54,120 Speaker 1: ways that we've figured out to create nuclear fusion reactors 449 00:26:54,119 --> 00:26:58,280 Speaker 1: so far. One is using magnetic confinement and the other 450 00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:06,120 Speaker 1: is using inertial lineman. So magnetic confinement uses that tacomac technology. Yeah, 451 00:27:06,119 --> 00:27:08,520 Speaker 1: it's sort of like CERN. You know, it's using magnets 452 00:27:08,560 --> 00:27:12,200 Speaker 1: to to create pressure. I guess in cerns case are 453 00:27:12,240 --> 00:27:15,200 Speaker 1: using it to create speed, right, but in this case 454 00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:18,040 Speaker 1: is to create pressure. Right. So what you're doing is 455 00:27:18,040 --> 00:27:21,399 Speaker 1: is you have a um, you have this donut shaped chamber, 456 00:27:21,480 --> 00:27:24,760 Speaker 1: and that's your reaction chamber. And then again rings around 457 00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:27,360 Speaker 1: the doughnut that go on around the inside and outside 458 00:27:27,359 --> 00:27:30,560 Speaker 1: of the donut. I know, I'm kind of imagining wonderful 459 00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:35,440 Speaker 1: donuts doing Homer sims in area. Um, they create electromagnetic fields. Now, 460 00:27:35,640 --> 00:27:40,280 Speaker 1: remember this plasma is hydrogen gas that's been heated up 461 00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:43,600 Speaker 1: to a temperature so hot that the electrons just float 462 00:27:43,640 --> 00:27:47,240 Speaker 1: off and move around freely. And because of this higher temperature, 463 00:27:47,520 --> 00:27:51,359 Speaker 1: these particles have become really really energized, so they're moving 464 00:27:51,400 --> 00:27:53,399 Speaker 1: and bouncing all over the place and the pressure is 465 00:27:53,440 --> 00:27:57,639 Speaker 1: building up. But because electrons are negatively charged and because 466 00:27:57,680 --> 00:28:02,359 Speaker 1: protons are positively charged, if you use alternating electromagnetic fields, 467 00:28:02,400 --> 00:28:05,800 Speaker 1: you can contain this plasma. So that's this incredibly hot 468 00:28:06,280 --> 00:28:09,119 Speaker 1: gas that's six times hotter than the core of the 469 00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:13,840 Speaker 1: Sun can be contained within the electromagnetic fields. That's right. 470 00:28:14,280 --> 00:28:16,840 Speaker 1: And uh, we talked about power and power out it 471 00:28:17,000 --> 00:28:20,879 Speaker 1: need you need about seventy megawatts of power to create 472 00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:23,879 Speaker 1: this to start this fusion reaction, but you're gonna yield 473 00:28:24,200 --> 00:28:28,760 Speaker 1: about five hundred megawatts. That's the ID project, I believe. Yeah, 474 00:28:28,760 --> 00:28:31,040 Speaker 1: that's the ider and that's um, that's only a three 475 00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:34,439 Speaker 1: hundred to five hundred second reaction. But like we said earlier, 476 00:28:34,440 --> 00:28:39,120 Speaker 1: the eventual goal is that it's sustaining itself, uh, which 477 00:28:39,160 --> 00:28:42,280 Speaker 1: is just a beautiful concept. So basically what they do 478 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:46,840 Speaker 1: is they have the the the gas is injected into 479 00:28:46,840 --> 00:28:50,760 Speaker 1: the chamber, the hydrogen gas, and then there's the electromagnetic 480 00:28:50,840 --> 00:28:52,719 Speaker 1: fields that are holding the plasma in place. But then 481 00:28:52,800 --> 00:28:55,160 Speaker 1: remember we said, the Russians figured out that if you 482 00:28:55,200 --> 00:28:57,960 Speaker 1: put an electromagnetic field in the middle of the whole thing, 483 00:28:58,400 --> 00:29:01,640 Speaker 1: it will stabilize that asthma, but it also heats it up, 484 00:29:01,680 --> 00:29:04,320 Speaker 1: so it serves this double purpose. And then just to 485 00:29:04,360 --> 00:29:07,400 Speaker 1: add a little extra temperature, they shoot it with microwaves 486 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,080 Speaker 1: and some other stuff and then heat it up. And 487 00:29:10,120 --> 00:29:13,520 Speaker 1: then as the plasma goes crazy and all the fusion 488 00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:17,480 Speaker 1: energies released, the neutrons move their way outside of the 489 00:29:17,560 --> 00:29:21,520 Speaker 1: electromagnetic field into the blanket, which they heat up, and 490 00:29:21,600 --> 00:29:24,560 Speaker 1: the heat energy is transferred to power that turbine to 491 00:29:24,640 --> 00:29:27,280 Speaker 1: remove the horse down the down the lane, and it's 492 00:29:27,320 --> 00:29:29,600 Speaker 1: just creating steam. Yeah, and there's I mean, that's like, 493 00:29:29,680 --> 00:29:32,000 Speaker 1: that's what Ider is doing right now. That's what they're 494 00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:35,560 Speaker 1: trying to prove um and then also as ider is 495 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,440 Speaker 1: spending billions and billions and billions of dollars and running 496 00:29:38,440 --> 00:29:43,840 Speaker 1: into tons of delays. Um, it's an amazing project. Lockheed 497 00:29:43,880 --> 00:29:46,800 Speaker 1: Martin basically just came out and said, Oh, by the way, 498 00:29:46,840 --> 00:29:48,800 Speaker 1: this thing that you're trying to do that's gonna be 499 00:29:48,840 --> 00:29:54,080 Speaker 1: a hundred feet tall and require staggering amounts of energy 500 00:29:54,080 --> 00:29:56,520 Speaker 1: and money. We're doing one that puts out the same 501 00:29:56,560 --> 00:30:00,200 Speaker 1: amount of energy as yours, but it's a t to 502 00:30:00,240 --> 00:30:02,600 Speaker 1: the size, which means it's almost out of the gate 503 00:30:02,640 --> 00:30:06,880 Speaker 1: commercially viable. Yeah. That is their skunk Works UM division 504 00:30:06,920 --> 00:30:10,160 Speaker 1: of Lockheed. And they announced this like three days ago 505 00:30:11,320 --> 00:30:14,960 Speaker 1: here in mid October. And um, they've gotten a lot 506 00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:18,520 Speaker 1: of blowback from the scientific community because they wouldn't release data. 507 00:30:18,720 --> 00:30:20,680 Speaker 1: They don't have data. They said it's a high beta 508 00:30:20,720 --> 00:30:24,120 Speaker 1: device right now, and kind of shut out the scientific 509 00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:29,040 Speaker 1: community as far as questions go. And um, every scientist 510 00:30:29,080 --> 00:30:32,200 Speaker 1: that I saw interviewed for this said, yeah, they're they're 511 00:30:32,200 --> 00:30:34,480 Speaker 1: trying to get some attention, to get some partners to 512 00:30:34,560 --> 00:30:36,240 Speaker 1: join in. Well. Yeah, Plus, it makes you want to 513 00:30:36,320 --> 00:30:39,040 Speaker 1: run out and buy Lockheed Martin stock, because if one 514 00:30:39,120 --> 00:30:43,400 Speaker 1: company can figure out how did create a thermonuclear fusion 515 00:30:43,440 --> 00:30:46,840 Speaker 1: reactor here on Earth that's scalable, that fits in a truck. Yeah, 516 00:30:46,960 --> 00:30:50,240 Speaker 1: that that that that person would be very wealthy. Yeah. 517 00:30:50,280 --> 00:30:52,720 Speaker 1: So it's a dubious claim, but they are, you know, 518 00:30:53,280 --> 00:30:55,960 Speaker 1: they're working towards a good thing. I'm not like poopooing 519 00:30:55,960 --> 00:30:58,440 Speaker 1: the whole thing. But until they have hard data and 520 00:30:58,480 --> 00:31:01,040 Speaker 1: like some proof, then I think the scientific communities got 521 00:31:01,040 --> 00:31:03,200 Speaker 1: their arms folded right now. Yeah, and and I mean 522 00:31:03,240 --> 00:31:06,120 Speaker 1: they have at least some details. It's just not detailed 523 00:31:06,200 --> 00:31:10,120 Speaker 1: enough for a scientist's detailed enough for Aviation Week. Yeah, 524 00:31:10,400 --> 00:31:12,320 Speaker 1: they wrote an article on it, and basically what the 525 00:31:12,520 --> 00:31:15,800 Speaker 1: what the guy they interviewed was saying was that over 526 00:31:15,840 --> 00:31:19,240 Speaker 1: at either they have a low beta ratio, which is 527 00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:23,800 Speaker 1: the amount of electro magnetism that you need compared to 528 00:31:23,840 --> 00:31:26,360 Speaker 1: the amount of plasma you can put into the chamber. 529 00:31:26,960 --> 00:31:34,200 Speaker 1: So there's like five percent plasma electromagnetivity or electromagnetism just 530 00:31:34,280 --> 00:31:37,400 Speaker 1: to keep this plasma thing from just blowing up, because 531 00:31:37,440 --> 00:31:39,880 Speaker 1: that can happen. They might not melt down, but if 532 00:31:39,920 --> 00:31:42,960 Speaker 1: everything went wrong, the whole thing could blow up. Well, 533 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:45,120 Speaker 1: and you know, you know what an atomic bomb is 534 00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:47,120 Speaker 1: it's it's a fusion reaction, right, and this is a 535 00:31:47,200 --> 00:31:50,120 Speaker 1: lot of those all put together in one hundred foot 536 00:31:50,200 --> 00:31:53,720 Speaker 1: um tower. Uh. This guy was saying that the beta 537 00:31:53,840 --> 00:31:58,800 Speaker 1: ratio for their machine is like, So, what he was 538 00:31:58,840 --> 00:32:00,880 Speaker 1: saying is they figured out a way and again it's 539 00:32:00,880 --> 00:32:03,560 Speaker 1: not very detailed, but they figured out a way to 540 00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:08,200 Speaker 1: contain the plasma, but in a way that also allows 541 00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:10,640 Speaker 1: it to expand because if you think about it, the 542 00:32:10,680 --> 00:32:13,840 Speaker 1: more plasma there is, the more hydrogen atoms there are, 543 00:32:14,160 --> 00:32:17,240 Speaker 1: more hydrogen atoms, more isotopes there are, the more nuclear 544 00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:20,600 Speaker 1: fusion reactions are events you can have, the more energy 545 00:32:20,680 --> 00:32:23,400 Speaker 1: you can yield. Right. Yeah, so they're saying they figured 546 00:32:23,440 --> 00:32:25,800 Speaker 1: out how to contain the plasma, but again, like you said, 547 00:32:25,800 --> 00:32:30,400 Speaker 1: the scientific community is really skeptical because they think it's 548 00:32:30,400 --> 00:32:32,160 Speaker 1: just a pr synge. Well, I think they made the 549 00:32:32,200 --> 00:32:35,680 Speaker 1: mistake by saying they invented a magicometer to make it 550 00:32:35,720 --> 00:32:39,160 Speaker 1: all happen, and that's and don't ask about it. Yeah right. 551 00:32:39,400 --> 00:32:41,800 Speaker 1: I did see though that we're lockeed was using the 552 00:32:41,960 --> 00:32:47,760 Speaker 1: figure eight in stelerator configuration. Uh, and I think that's true. 553 00:32:47,800 --> 00:32:49,720 Speaker 1: I tried. I found a couple of more sources that 554 00:32:49,760 --> 00:32:51,080 Speaker 1: were kind of vague about it, and I think the 555 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:53,560 Speaker 1: details on it are just vague period. But I don't 556 00:32:53,560 --> 00:32:55,720 Speaker 1: know why they would abandon the donut shaped if the 557 00:32:56,080 --> 00:32:59,920 Speaker 1: figure eight was uh, you know, nine fifties technology that's 558 00:33:00,040 --> 00:33:02,880 Speaker 1: have been disproven. Well, supposedly, their whole jam was that 559 00:33:03,240 --> 00:33:06,480 Speaker 1: the even in the doughnut in the Tacomac, this donut 560 00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:11,360 Speaker 1: shaped reactor, plasma has a tendency to just move around 561 00:33:11,440 --> 00:33:14,360 Speaker 1: and make its way out Like it's not it's still 562 00:33:14,400 --> 00:33:19,600 Speaker 1: not fully contained, and they're using something basically mirrors to 563 00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:23,000 Speaker 1: catch the plasma that's getting out and moving it to 564 00:33:23,880 --> 00:33:26,840 Speaker 1: parts of the electromagnetic field that are less dense. So 565 00:33:27,000 --> 00:33:29,320 Speaker 1: there's a bunch of protons in this part of the field, 566 00:33:29,560 --> 00:33:32,640 Speaker 1: that field is being strained, but then maybe there's not 567 00:33:32,720 --> 00:33:35,680 Speaker 1: that many protons over here, so they use mirrors to 568 00:33:35,760 --> 00:33:39,880 Speaker 1: direct the protons to the low density area of the field. Yeah, 569 00:33:40,040 --> 00:33:42,360 Speaker 1: even the whole thing out, which makes sense. But again, 570 00:33:42,440 --> 00:33:45,360 Speaker 1: if you're not releasing data, don't expect the scientific community 571 00:33:45,440 --> 00:33:48,320 Speaker 1: to buy it. You got that right. So there's another 572 00:33:48,400 --> 00:33:52,440 Speaker 1: way to build a thermonuclear reactor that's currently being worked 573 00:33:52,480 --> 00:34:11,800 Speaker 1: on two and we'll talk about that right after this, so, buddy, 574 00:34:11,920 --> 00:34:15,680 Speaker 1: magnetic confinement is pretty neat, and we talked about that 575 00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:19,560 Speaker 1: and that's uh understandable, and I love it. I want 576 00:34:19,560 --> 00:34:23,080 Speaker 1: to date it. But internal confinement I want to marry 577 00:34:23,600 --> 00:34:27,719 Speaker 1: because it has lasers. Um At the National Ignition Facility 578 00:34:27,800 --> 00:34:32,160 Speaker 1: at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, they are actually using laser beams. 579 00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:34,200 Speaker 1: They have a device called the n i F device 580 00:34:34,600 --> 00:34:37,719 Speaker 1: where they focus a hundred nine two laser beams on 581 00:34:37,800 --> 00:34:40,960 Speaker 1: a single point in a ten meter diameter target chamber 582 00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:46,000 Speaker 1: called a whole realm that's got to be German. And 583 00:34:46,080 --> 00:34:48,719 Speaker 1: basically inside that target chamber, they have a little tiny 584 00:34:48,760 --> 00:34:52,880 Speaker 1: pea sized pellet of deuterium tritium in a little plastic cylinder. 585 00:34:53,600 --> 00:34:56,200 Speaker 1: It's funny that it can be plastic somehow. Yeah, you'd 586 00:34:56,200 --> 00:34:59,040 Speaker 1: think it would introduce like impurities or something into it. Yeah, 587 00:34:59,120 --> 00:35:01,000 Speaker 1: or it would need to be like iron or something. 588 00:35:01,040 --> 00:35:04,160 Speaker 1: I don't know. It just seems unstable, but uh, that 589 00:35:04,320 --> 00:35:07,560 Speaker 1: is one point eight million jewels of power from these lasers. 590 00:35:07,880 --> 00:35:10,000 Speaker 1: They're just gonna heat the cylinder up, generate some X 591 00:35:10,080 --> 00:35:13,879 Speaker 1: rays and then that radiation will convert that pellet into 592 00:35:13,920 --> 00:35:18,279 Speaker 1: plasma and compress it. So again they're creating plasma, but 593 00:35:18,360 --> 00:35:21,719 Speaker 1: instead of smashing it together with magnets, they're superheating it 594 00:35:21,800 --> 00:35:24,359 Speaker 1: with lasers. So that's your that's your your money's on 595 00:35:24,360 --> 00:35:26,040 Speaker 1: that one. You're like, I just think it's neat because 596 00:35:26,040 --> 00:35:30,160 Speaker 1: I like lasers. But that's your preference of the two. Yes, well, actually, 597 00:35:30,160 --> 00:35:34,240 Speaker 1: whichever one works is going to be my preference. Okay. Uh, 598 00:35:34,280 --> 00:35:36,800 Speaker 1: And that one will yield fifty two times more energy, 599 00:35:37,160 --> 00:35:40,560 Speaker 1: more energy out than energy put in, so that's that's 600 00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:44,200 Speaker 1: a good goal. So um, yeah, I guess basically the 601 00:35:44,239 --> 00:35:47,759 Speaker 1: whole point of magnetic confinement is that if you can 602 00:35:47,800 --> 00:35:52,279 Speaker 1: do without electro magnets, you're you're you have a more 603 00:35:52,360 --> 00:35:57,439 Speaker 1: simple and elegant I mean the internal confinement or inertial inertial. Yeah, 604 00:35:57,440 --> 00:35:59,960 Speaker 1: that's what I mean, inertial confinement. Basically, the whole thing 605 00:36:00,120 --> 00:36:04,080 Speaker 1: just happened so fast. You don't even need these magnets 606 00:36:04,080 --> 00:36:08,000 Speaker 1: to confine plasm because you're not creating the sustained ignition, right. Yeah. 607 00:36:08,000 --> 00:36:10,160 Speaker 1: I might have said internal confinement before. By the way, 608 00:36:10,200 --> 00:36:14,319 Speaker 1: it's inertial. Yea. So what about cold fusion, buddy? That 609 00:36:14,360 --> 00:36:17,279 Speaker 1: was all the rage I remember back in the eighties. Yeah, 610 00:36:17,320 --> 00:36:22,560 Speaker 1: because in some researchers said that they successfully created nuclear 611 00:36:22,600 --> 00:36:28,560 Speaker 1: fusion using um just room temperature stuff like palladium. They 612 00:36:28,560 --> 00:36:33,839 Speaker 1: took palladium and um banaeals and beer cans pretty much 613 00:36:34,520 --> 00:36:37,719 Speaker 1: heavy water which had a deuterium in it, and they 614 00:36:37,760 --> 00:36:40,759 Speaker 1: put the whole thing together and created nuclear fusion without 615 00:36:40,800 --> 00:36:44,759 Speaker 1: the high temperatures, hence the name cold fusion. And if 616 00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:48,800 Speaker 1: you can get around these high temperatures, then you work 617 00:36:48,800 --> 00:36:52,759 Speaker 1: out the whole material science problem, right. And if you 618 00:36:52,800 --> 00:36:56,239 Speaker 1: work out the whole material science problem, then this is 619 00:36:56,400 --> 00:36:58,920 Speaker 1: it's a desirable thing to have cold fusion. The problem 620 00:36:59,000 --> 00:37:02,359 Speaker 1: is is a lot of scientists tried to replicate these 621 00:37:02,400 --> 00:37:04,960 Speaker 1: guys findings and weren't able to so basically they were 622 00:37:05,040 --> 00:37:07,520 Speaker 1: kicked to the curb. So does that mean has cold 623 00:37:07,560 --> 00:37:10,640 Speaker 1: fusion been abandoned or are people still trying to get 624 00:37:10,640 --> 00:37:12,799 Speaker 1: on that train. No. In two thousand and five, some 625 00:37:12,920 --> 00:37:17,120 Speaker 1: U c l A. Researchers basically said, um, we think 626 00:37:17,120 --> 00:37:19,879 Speaker 1: we might have this thing down, and they did. That's 627 00:37:19,920 --> 00:37:27,719 Speaker 1: something called um pyro electric crystal fusion. Pyroelectric fusion's a crystal, yeah, 628 00:37:27,800 --> 00:37:31,360 Speaker 1: we're basically it's the same result they do what would 629 00:37:31,360 --> 00:37:34,279 Speaker 1: be called cold fusion. UM The problem is that has 630 00:37:34,320 --> 00:37:36,360 Speaker 1: a negative net energy yield. You have to put in 631 00:37:36,400 --> 00:37:39,359 Speaker 1: a lot more energy than you get out of it. Right, Well, 632 00:37:39,400 --> 00:37:44,719 Speaker 1: that's no good um either. Seems like they are making 633 00:37:44,760 --> 00:37:47,839 Speaker 1: headway more than Lockheed despite their claim. Um, they are 634 00:37:47,880 --> 00:37:51,200 Speaker 1: being like we said, it's in Europe and it's being 635 00:37:51,200 --> 00:37:54,799 Speaker 1: financed by a bunch of different countries. Um. The U 636 00:37:54,920 --> 00:37:57,400 Speaker 1: s is in, but they're kicking in. I think the 637 00:37:57,520 --> 00:38:02,080 Speaker 1: least amount only about seventeen million euros last year. Of 638 00:38:02,120 --> 00:38:04,759 Speaker 1: course we contributed dollars, but they're giving it to us 639 00:38:04,760 --> 00:38:08,160 Speaker 1: in euros. Um. I think the EU spends the most, 640 00:38:08,239 --> 00:38:12,120 Speaker 1: about eighty million. South Korea and China kicked in about 641 00:38:12,160 --> 00:38:16,520 Speaker 1: twenty and nineteen million respectively each. And I saw earlier 642 00:38:16,560 --> 00:38:18,440 Speaker 1: where Russia was involved, but then I didn't see what 643 00:38:18,480 --> 00:38:23,400 Speaker 1: they had contributed financially. Ye are they still all right? Well, 644 00:38:23,440 --> 00:38:26,040 Speaker 1: maybe they're just uh, we're writing a chip for them 645 00:38:26,080 --> 00:38:29,960 Speaker 1: for later. They'll just pay us back. Uh. But it 646 00:38:30,040 --> 00:38:33,200 Speaker 1: is a very expensive prospect um, and you need you know, 647 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:35,759 Speaker 1: countries getting together for something like this is not the 648 00:38:35,800 --> 00:38:38,120 Speaker 1: kind of thing that like the US can take on 649 00:38:38,120 --> 00:38:40,719 Speaker 1: on their own, I guess, unless you're Lockeed Martin and 650 00:38:40,760 --> 00:38:44,120 Speaker 1: you don't have to prove your data, right, So this 651 00:38:44,360 --> 00:38:48,960 Speaker 1: nuclear fusion, we'll see what happens. Yeah, you got anything else, man? No, 652 00:38:49,160 --> 00:38:51,800 Speaker 1: I just say everybody should go read a Star in 653 00:38:51,840 --> 00:38:55,000 Speaker 1: a Bottle on the New Yorker. It's really really good. Yeah, 654 00:38:55,040 --> 00:38:58,040 Speaker 1: it's pretty neat. Um there. You can also go to instructibles. 655 00:38:58,080 --> 00:39:01,760 Speaker 1: If you want to build a uh nuclear fusion reactor 656 00:39:01,760 --> 00:39:04,840 Speaker 1: in your garage, you can do so. Um, you're not 657 00:39:04,840 --> 00:39:06,959 Speaker 1: going to create energy because, like we said, you're gonna 658 00:39:06,960 --> 00:39:09,239 Speaker 1: be putting more than you get out. Um, but there 659 00:39:09,280 --> 00:39:11,800 Speaker 1: are instructions and that kid did it. His was a 660 00:39:11,800 --> 00:39:16,399 Speaker 1: little more advanced than the instructibles one obviously, but um yeah, 661 00:39:17,440 --> 00:39:21,320 Speaker 1: sixteen year old kid. Yeah, he's amazing because his was legit. 662 00:39:21,800 --> 00:39:23,440 Speaker 1: He's done more than that too. His TED talk was 663 00:39:23,440 --> 00:39:27,640 Speaker 1: pretty impressive. Cool. He's like working on with Homeman Security 664 00:39:27,680 --> 00:39:33,000 Speaker 1: already for various projects that have nothing to do with this. Yeah. Yeah. Uh. Well, 665 00:39:33,040 --> 00:39:35,640 Speaker 1: if you want to learn more about nuclear fusion, you 666 00:39:35,680 --> 00:39:37,920 Speaker 1: can type those words in the search bar how stuff 667 00:39:37,920 --> 00:39:40,560 Speaker 1: works dot com. And since I said that, it's time 668 00:39:40,560 --> 00:39:44,480 Speaker 1: for a listener mail, and Chuck, before we do listener mail, 669 00:39:44,480 --> 00:39:46,359 Speaker 1: I want to um give a shout out to our 670 00:39:46,440 --> 00:39:48,640 Speaker 1: Kiva team. Yeah, for those of you you don't know, 671 00:39:48,719 --> 00:39:51,840 Speaker 1: we did a podcast many years back on micro lending. 672 00:39:52,640 --> 00:39:55,600 Speaker 1: UH in Kiva k I v a dot org is 673 00:39:55,640 --> 00:40:01,400 Speaker 1: a organization where you can loan UH entrepreneurs and well 674 00:40:01,520 --> 00:40:03,319 Speaker 1: used to be just developing countries. Now you can do 675 00:40:03,400 --> 00:40:06,840 Speaker 1: it here in North America as well, UH twenty dollars 676 00:40:06,840 --> 00:40:09,160 Speaker 1: at a time that you can get paid back for. 677 00:40:09,280 --> 00:40:11,319 Speaker 1: You can get your money back if you're not happy, 678 00:40:11,440 --> 00:40:13,719 Speaker 1: or you can just keep reloaning that money and it 679 00:40:13,760 --> 00:40:16,000 Speaker 1: helps them get their small business going. And we started 680 00:40:16,080 --> 00:40:19,000 Speaker 1: Kiva team many years ago and it is killing it. 681 00:40:19,560 --> 00:40:24,080 Speaker 1: So you got some stats for us. So basically, as 682 00:40:24,280 --> 00:40:29,880 Speaker 1: of October nineteen, UM, we have loaned Our team has 683 00:40:29,960 --> 00:40:36,160 Speaker 1: loaned two point seven million dollars two people in developing 684 00:40:36,200 --> 00:40:39,880 Speaker 1: countries nice and in the US here there um. And 685 00:40:40,080 --> 00:40:43,320 Speaker 1: the big one is we've exceeded one hundred thousand loans 686 00:40:43,560 --> 00:40:45,960 Speaker 1: man by our team. Our team only has eight thousand, 687 00:40:46,040 --> 00:40:49,640 Speaker 1: seventy nine members, So all eight thousand seventy nine of 688 00:40:49,680 --> 00:40:53,239 Speaker 1: you guys, thank you. Way to go. Congratulations, Yes and 689 00:40:53,280 --> 00:40:57,640 Speaker 1: thanks as always to Glenn and Sonja are de facto Kiva. UH. 690 00:40:57,680 --> 00:41:00,480 Speaker 1: What would you call them presidents presidents, Presidents of the 691 00:41:00,480 --> 00:41:02,800 Speaker 1: stuff you should know, Team captains of the stuff you 692 00:41:02,840 --> 00:41:06,680 Speaker 1: should know Team no presidents, Okay, presidents. President is Glens 693 00:41:06,760 --> 00:41:11,120 Speaker 1: like yes president, Uh. Yeah, they've been really like keeping 694 00:41:11,160 --> 00:41:13,280 Speaker 1: it going for us. Yeah, and when you know, sometimes 695 00:41:13,320 --> 00:41:16,520 Speaker 1: we'll forget and Glennill nudges. Hey, guys, remember the Kiva team. 696 00:41:16,600 --> 00:41:19,200 Speaker 1: We should mention it, right, So the next the next 697 00:41:19,200 --> 00:41:22,000 Speaker 1: goal we have is for three million dollars in loans 698 00:41:22,040 --> 00:41:24,600 Speaker 1: and we're on our way to it. So come join us. 699 00:41:24,680 --> 00:41:28,240 Speaker 1: We uh, don't begrudge people who are late to the party. 700 00:41:28,920 --> 00:41:33,200 Speaker 1: Just go to kiva dot org, slash teams slash stuff 701 00:41:33,239 --> 00:41:34,839 Speaker 1: you should know and you can sign up. That's right. 702 00:41:34,960 --> 00:41:39,160 Speaker 1: So now it's time for listener mail, right indeed, sir, 703 00:41:39,200 --> 00:41:44,160 Speaker 1: I'm gonna call this sky writing follow up um from Australia. Hey, guys, 704 00:41:44,200 --> 00:41:47,000 Speaker 1: recently listened to how skywritting works and it reminded me 705 00:41:47,040 --> 00:41:50,200 Speaker 1: of something. Although this may not be suitable for listener mail, 706 00:41:50,520 --> 00:41:53,920 Speaker 1: which I disagree actually because i'm reading it. I was 707 00:41:53,960 --> 00:41:55,759 Speaker 1: maybe eight or nine when a few friends and I 708 00:41:55,800 --> 00:41:58,919 Speaker 1: were out on the street playing uh and doing things 709 00:41:58,920 --> 00:42:02,440 Speaker 1: at nine year old do it's so awkward to say that, 710 00:42:02,880 --> 00:42:07,840 Speaker 1: So you're not replacing something right there, No one, Um, 711 00:42:07,880 --> 00:42:10,359 Speaker 1: they were just doing nine year old things, good clean fun. 712 00:42:10,880 --> 00:42:12,760 Speaker 1: We looked up and saw a plane starting the skywrite. 713 00:42:12,800 --> 00:42:15,640 Speaker 1: We're instantly intrigued what was being written? They started with 714 00:42:15,640 --> 00:42:17,560 Speaker 1: an H and then an oh. This went on for 715 00:42:17,640 --> 00:42:21,200 Speaker 1: maybe twenty minutes until finally the word Hooters was scrawled 716 00:42:21,239 --> 00:42:25,799 Speaker 1: across the sky. I'll be a backwards so I guess 717 00:42:25,920 --> 00:42:28,560 Speaker 1: they had the Hooters restaurant chicken wing chain in Australia. 718 00:42:28,640 --> 00:42:34,080 Speaker 1: I guess they're a rich kid. Yeah, really immature rich kid. Yeah. 719 00:42:34,239 --> 00:42:37,880 Speaker 1: Or that. My brain couldn't comprehend how this person managed 720 00:42:37,920 --> 00:42:41,280 Speaker 1: to screw up writing a word backwards. The best reason 721 00:42:41,360 --> 00:42:43,480 Speaker 1: my childish brain could come with was a skywriting took 722 00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:46,719 Speaker 1: place somewhere between us and a group of people that 723 00:42:46,760 --> 00:42:49,239 Speaker 1: it was initially intended for, and that I just thought 724 00:42:49,360 --> 00:42:52,560 Speaker 1: it was written up and downwards rather than across the sky. 725 00:42:52,800 --> 00:42:55,480 Speaker 1: Um until now, I've never understood or bother to learn 726 00:42:55,880 --> 00:42:57,880 Speaker 1: why it was like that. So thank you for keeping 727 00:42:57,920 --> 00:43:01,480 Speaker 1: the podcast great allowing me to figure that out. That 728 00:43:01,800 --> 00:43:11,759 Speaker 1: is from Marlin. Hello boy, uh hap happaraci chi nice. 729 00:43:11,800 --> 00:43:15,640 Speaker 1: Have you ever seen a word like that. Hapoor Rachi 730 00:43:16,600 --> 00:43:23,040 Speaker 1: ha poor Rachi. Marlin from Sydney, Australia. Man, thanks a lot, Marlin. 731 00:43:23,400 --> 00:43:28,719 Speaker 1: H And that's Marlin with an a even oh yeah, Marlan. Well, 732 00:43:28,760 --> 00:43:31,759 Speaker 1: thanks a lot, Marlin, and we're gonna say like that. Sure. 733 00:43:32,440 --> 00:43:34,600 Speaker 1: If you have an awesome last name and want to 734 00:43:34,680 --> 00:43:36,640 Speaker 1: share it with us, you can tweet to us at 735 00:43:36,800 --> 00:43:39,200 Speaker 1: s y s K podcast. You can join us on 736 00:43:39,280 --> 00:43:42,040 Speaker 1: Facebook dot com, slash Stuff you Should Know. You can 737 00:43:42,120 --> 00:43:44,760 Speaker 1: send us an email to stuff Podcast at how Stuff 738 00:43:44,760 --> 00:43:47,120 Speaker 1: Works dot com and as always, joined us at our 739 00:43:47,200 --> 00:43:49,040 Speaker 1: home on the web. Stuff you Should Know dot com. 740 00:43:52,160 --> 00:43:54,280 Speaker 1: Stuff you Should Know is a production of iHeart Radios. 741 00:43:54,280 --> 00:43:56,839 Speaker 1: How Stuff Works for more podcasts for my Heart Radio 742 00:43:56,880 --> 00:43:59,439 Speaker 1: because at the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever 743 00:43:59,520 --> 00:44:00,800 Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite chips