aka “The Fracking Song”

More reasons to fund fusion.

Update as of March 13:  Nuclear situation worsens.  Full blown disaster. Fund fusion!

A devastating 8.8 earthquake has struck Japan unleashing terrible tsunamis and untold damage.  Our prayers go out to those struggling with the aftermath.

First Aid

Before we continue, take a moment to support Red Cross relief efforts.  Text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10; the charge is automatically added to your phone bill.  Or donate online at http://www.redcross.org

Is someone you know missing?  Google Crisis Response can help.  It has information on the crisis with real time updates and a “Person Finder” (Embedded here in the left column).

Our efforts are already getting help from the international community of DPF researchers. So what’s the next step—get help from another intelligent species?  Maybe the dolphins can lend us a flipper.

Some of you have noticed that the “aneutronic fusion peace symbol” we use on our site is sometimes rotated.  When this happens, don’t be alarmed!  It’s not “upside down”, it’s “arms upward.”  It is well in keeping with the glorious tradition of the symbol.

The New Jersey Technology Council hosted a Clean Energy Summit at Princeton Plasma Physics Lab September 23rd.  Since I’m newly arrived in the Garden State, it was a great event for providing an overview of the local clean energy landscape, with many representatives and speakers from the state’s energy agencies.  The fact that half of electricity in New Jersey comes from nuclear fission was certainly brought up, but it was disappointing that at a venue dedicated to creating “A World Powered By Fusion Energy,” I don’t recall a single speaker uttering that other “F” word.  And that extends to not even a mention of NSTX or other PPPL investigations.  (Just to be clear: IFusion!)

If Focus Fusion is successful, will it mean that all the investment of time, energy, passion and money that has gone into traditional renewables is wasted?  If we can get unlimited energy for a song, will all those solar energy companies go bankrupt?  Is this a win/lose proposition?

In: Energy: Meeting soaring demand, “the BBC’s Alex Kirby looks at the challenge of providing the world with energy without damaging the environment, as part of Planet Under Pressure, a BBC series on environmental issues.”  As usual with this type of analysis, Fusion is dismissed.  In response, I logged on to the BBC and sent a comment to the editor.

What is heat pollution, what causes it and what are the dangers?  How does Focus Fusion change the equation?

Here are some thoughts on the transition for the Energy industry.  As you can see, we need to think this through a lot more to come up with some practical policies,  strategies, suggestions.

$200 Million per kg.
27 kg and decaying.

Energy and security intersect in many different ways.