Reply To: Questions regarding DPF.

[benf]

I have an art background not a scientific one, so I can’t claim to be an authority on research. I am able see and interpret what I see and make deductions. I’m seeing pictures of the polar caps receding, pictures of dead coral reefs and vast areas of the ocean that are uninhabitable. I see and hear less songbirds and frogs. I have to watch out for Mosquitos now carrying diseases that were tropical. Whole forest are dying from beetle infestations. It goes on and on. I rely on what experts have to say and have written on the subject, just like I’ve learned from scientists like Darwin and Einstein, without necessarily really knowing the science. I’ve just read this article posted on the NY Times website by Paul Krugman:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/11/magazine/11Economy-t.html?scp=1&sq=krugman cap and trade&st=cse
I’ve looked at graphs from climate researchers from MIT that show sea levels rising some 30 ft. in the coming decades. I’ve read books and articles such as A Reef In Time by J.E.N Veron which describes the negative impact of ocean acidification. There was the article in Scientific American describing how global warming started with agrarian farming some 8,000 years ago and it has halted the next ice age in it’s tracks. So I’m thinking of what Isaac Azimov once wrote about an alien planet that mechanically controlled it’s global temperature, but maybe this is a subject for another thread!
I don’t necessarily believe everything I read, but when I’ve read lot’s of compelling information from people who devote their lives pursuing research and their conclusions corresponds with some of what I and others see hear and feel, it carries a lot of weight. Regarding what Focus Fusion should leverage, GW or GWD, I think there are some major obstacles that have to be overcome with convincing people that Focus Fusion (using pB11) is a safe and benign nuclear power alternative that makes economic sense, compared to traditional fission or even “enhanced safety” fission designs. The anti-nuke movement of the 70’s and 80’s was a really big deal imho. It stopped fission nuclear power in this country and slowed it elsewhere. It was part of the growing concern for the environment by the public. People haven’t forgotten or changed their view that transporting and burying spent fuel rods is a bad thing. They haven’t forgotten about Three Mile Island or Chernobyl. I’m not one to stifle debate, but as far as what carries weight…the public with it’s concern for the environment, could certainly, for example, impact how the NRC handles emerging technologies such as FF. Additionally we have the issue of nuclear weapons proliferation and brinksmanship that reinforces fear of the word nuclear. Lots of work has to be done to allay this fear. Focus Fusion caught my interest because the society has been directly engaging in the discussion that must take place with people who fear advanced technology solutions to the both the energy crisis and global warming.
The global warming debate will go on, partly genuine, partly a diversionary tactic for the big oil and coal industries. Global warming deniers have made contributions to this debate and in these forums on other topics as well, but I fear what I see.