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France runs fusion reactor for record 22 minutes (newatlas.com)
submitted 2 years ago by to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] 6 points 2 years ago (7 children)

I'm sceptical. Even if somebody would present a working fusion reactor today, what would the timeline to replace everything based on fossil fuels even be? Build several thousand of expensive fusion reactors in every country of the world, even in geopolitical rivals like China, Russia or North Korea or war-torn third world countries? Replace every car with an electrical one? Replace home heating everywhere? Rebuild every ship and airplane worldwide?

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  • [–] 15 points 2 years ago (3 children)

    If there were a practical fusion reactor shown today, it'd be 10 years before it could be started to be deployed at commercial scale.

    More to the point, fascism isn't going away just because we have better electricity sources. Cheap power is a problem in capitalism.

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  • [–] 8 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    But pushing for more renewables can also be a way to stop fascism. Those texan oil barons are funding Trump exactly because they want to keep their business. Putin is funding all those right wing parties because he wants to keep selling gas. And the Saudis, Qataris and other dictators are also not to keen on not selling oil and gas.

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  • [–] 1 point 2 years ago

    The EU stopped using increasing amounts of power around 2010 despite continued economic growth (yes, even if you account for imported goods).

    Not that consumerism and the exploitation of the global south aren't existential tragedies for our species, I'm just pointing out that while capitalism does require never-ending growth, it is interesting to note that it empirically doesn't require ever-increasing power to do so.

    Fascism is a byproduct of capitalism but unrelated to energy prices. Doesn't matter if gas is 1€/L or 2€/L when Musk, Murdoch, or Bernard Arnault decide what gets voted, printed and shown on TV.

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  • [–] 5 points 2 years ago

    I mean yea that's the plan. What are the other options? Force every countrie to stop producing instead to reduce carbon emissions that way? Wich one Sounds more realistic? And I feel like you assume that fusion reactors are dangerous because your comments about war torn countries. But it's not possible to turn them into weapons. They run on hydrogen. And if they ever oberheat or something the magnets stop working and the reaction stops.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago

    I was just making an abstract sci-fi joke based on how cold fusion has been presented like a Holy Grail in the past. Obviously a better source of energy isn't going to solve all our problems, no matter how good it is.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 years ago

    Progress is progress, and it's good to be skeptical (I literally just posted a comment saying "I'm skeptical"!), but progress is good. 🙂 What other alternatives are there?

    If it doesn't make dollars, it doesn't make sense. That's why the electric car movement is having a hard time really taking off rn; it is hard to justify & all the tech, all our builds, aren't exactly super economical yet. And they're not built for tough conditions, heavy towing, long commutes, and easily workable & recyclable components.

    ...but things are, indeed, getting better. If you look at it from a macro view. Lithium recycling can be done even a decade ago, but IIRC it was relatively small scale & the lithium could be refreshed "most of the way", not fully. The right things will catch on when their time is right & its viability is realized.

    Man's greatest strength is our shared knowledge, technology, science, and innovation. I encourage you to make good decisions in your personal life and be positive. 🙂

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