[ExI] A Nobel laureate and climate change

[john clark]

On Sep 19, 2011, at 11:50 AM, Eugen Leitl wrote:



http://www.theoildrum.com/node/2379



It says:



 "neither nuclear breeding reactors nor thorium reactors will play a 
significant role because of the long lead times for their development 
and market penetration."




One has to ask a long lead time compared with what? Compared with the 
short lead time needed for the development 
and market penetration of space based power satellites or the short time
 needed to turn the entire planet into one giant wind farm? 

"Yes, you can disagree, but I'm not interested in discussing specifics of EROEI "

In a ideal world energy returned on energy invested 
would be be same as energy returned on money invested so the most 
efficient energy source would automatically become the most popular,  
but that can't happen in a place like Germany which gives huge subsidies
 to "renewable" energy, much of it paid for with big taxes on nuclear 
fuel that reactors use. So you end up with a distorted economy doing 
idiotic things like encouraging farmers to stop growing food and make 
ethanol instead which drives up food prices.  


  "of dilute resource"

  

You mean a dilute resource like solar or wind? Energy doesn't get much more diluted than that. 


  "enrichment." 

  

Thorium needs no enrichment, in fact the Thorium you did out of the 
ground is made up of only one isotope and is as I said almost as common 
as lead.  


  "The issue is settled for me." 

  

So I'm going to stick my fingers in my ears and hum, la de daw daw, I can't hear you!



  John K Clark



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