“The Science Table” provides an exclusive series led by Reichart Von Wolfsheild, former host of “Invention USA”
(History Channel). Roland Kupers (physicist and former Shell Oil executive) and Dr. Frank Shu (astrophysicist and Energy Advisor to Taiwan) have a candid debate about new energy technologies and their scalability in the near future. Shot in a 100-TON concrete cave, the episode candidly surveys the world of energy from oil to renewable nuclear fission.
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Bill_Nigh_the_Science_Guy
That wasn’t a “candid debate” – that was a 3-way prizefight!! Great Stuff!!
LuvScience
Would love to have heard some discussion of Thorium though
Maxim Heiddeger
Ya, I think the Thorium reference in the title was a tease; but smartly so as it will probably be the focus of the next candid debate
PretttyLovinIt
Give me Thorium or give me death…actually, I suppose that would just be nuclear fission
ScienceNerd
Ok, let’s get serious here and talk about what this debate was really about – that bifurcated moustache on Reichart Von Wolfsheild. Was that thing for real or was it just a movie prop moustache??
PerdySmart
Serious – Reichart needs to get a patent on that “moustache” of his. It could simply be called the “Von Wolfsheild,” kinda like the “Van Dyke” beard
Mandy
Moustache or “Two-stache”??
Jar Jar
Is that “two-fer” thing really on purpose or is he one of those guys who just can’t grow a real moustache; you know, “patchy” in places? Lol
Peterson
Look at that moustache – must be that “Movember” time of the year again
Jason X
You mean “Two-vember”??
Jason X
That thing rocks!! It’s the greatest facial hair invention since the Elvis Mutton Chops!
Ari
It’s like he grew a pair of eyebrows on his upper lip!
Zaney
Once I saw that “Two-stache” thing on Reichart’s upper lip I was transfixed, and couldn’t focus on any part of the discussion they were actually having
enrique
Wow, less than 3 minutes into the video and there is already serious tension between those 3 guys. They look like they are all ready for a cage match…
cyberman
I gotta be honest, that big video screen of Roland Kupers (angry) face in the background was kinda creepy…like he was just some kind of giant living head
tudorspace
These 3 guys are definitely NOT going to be hangin’ at happy hour after this discussion
johnnywalker
Is there an underpaid intern underneath the table who is shifting around the video screen of Roland Kupers so that he is facing the other two guys as he is talking to each of them?
bell1602
One thing we learned from this debate is that…these guys do not like each other LOL
Jonah
The sparks were really flying in that one!! Like a science nerd PPV fight!!
Michele
That debate was better than the 3rd presidential debate between Obama and Romney!
sounder
Was Reichart supposed to be the moderator? Or the instigator??
chemtrail
so mostly what we learned was that most current forms of energy are either too expensive or difficult to produce, too finite, unsustainable or toxic…(queue up Thorium)
John ross
After seeing Reichart Von Wolfsheild and that split moustache, I think he could be in the running to be the next “Most Interesting Man in the World”
thunder jack
Why was this held in a 100-ton concrete cave? Were they expecting a nuclear explosion or something?
avonord
Does Reichart live in that cave?? His secret, nuclear explosion-proof man cave…
mustard man
So is Reichart Von Wolfsheild the actual Thorium cycle patent holder??
MR woodcock
I really wouldn’t mind learning more about Thorium…instead of debating the merits of which current energy sources are the most expensive, toxic, accident-prone and likely to kill us all at some point
archer
Reichart is definitely looking like the “Fourth Musketeer” in that get-up. Just give him a rapier
mash button
so after watching this video 3 times, my 2 takeaways are this: 1) these 3 guys don’t like each other 2) that effin moustache
who me?
That man-cave was created by reichart’s friend and inventor, scotty ziegler, consisting of over 100,000 kilos of hand poured concrete. Where in the world is this cave, though?
techhead
Again, who is the thorium cycle patent holder? Reichart Von Wolfsheild? If so, he’s sitting on a billion dollar gold mine
daniel77
India is set to build the first thorium reactor, by 2016. By 2050, they want 30% of India’s energy to come from thorium reactors. Of course, by 2050, the population of India will be about 20 billion
james hutton
Good luck to India on that; the US has been trying to build thorium reactors for the past 50 years to no avail and spent untold billions doing so. According to one source, at least.
joffrey_is_not_dead
Thorium was actually named after Thor. Yes, that Thor, the Norse god turned into comic book hero and now movie franchise
blazeking
Can’t wait for “The Science Table” discussion on thorium so we can clear up the facts on it and get the latest (and most accurate) information on it. So many things about it need to be disambiguated
Palmitate
SONGS (San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station) is being shut down permanently due to various issues. Why don’t they just convert this to a Thorium nuclear plant rather than scuttle the entire thing?
Perry Masonite
SONGS is majority owned (about 78%) by Southern California Edison (SCE). So SCE was running that ship, which pretty much explains why it’s going down lol
Streamer of Media
Check out this March 2014 article in Streaming Media about Raw Science, which also highlights this particular premiere episode of “The Science Table” debate about current and new energy technologies
http://www.streamingmedia.com/Articles/Editorial/Featured-Articles/Raw-Science-Bringing-Science-Education-to-the-Streaming-World-95466.aspx
enquiring minds
Excellent article in Streaming Media about Raw Science. Well framed by reporter Troy Dreier, he allows Raw Science’s Co-Founder and CEO Keri Kukral to cogently articulate the burgeoning consumer appetite for this type of material and to explain the origin, nature and goals of her media venture, where she provides enticing examples of content that is or has already been produced. A brilliant synopsis into what should undoubtedly be a knock out of the park as a business venture.
ways & means
Overall, a very pithy 9 minutes of relevant debate which perhaps leaves us with more questions than answers, but in this case in a good way, as these questions, if addressed properly, will help us to get closer to implementing the most optimal energy solutions that we can.
dexter77
The 2 don’t seem to agree on much; actually it seems the only thing they agree on is that coal kills more people than nuclear does. pretty ironic
ernest banner
this is an interesting short debate/discussion, with reichart presumably acting as host/moderator. however, he’s much more involved in the discussion as a 3rd party debater than as a neutral moderator, and to his credit he does well at that, playing devil’s advocate
denver64
This debate lasted less than 9 minutes – is this the abbreviated version or is there a longer version?
purge victory
Frank Shu asserting the “certainty of the collapse of civilization if we keep burning fossil fuels the way we are” is very sobering. What sort of timeclock are we on in terms of our stores of fossil fuels before they are depleted?
sputnik
Kupers brought up a very interesting point about the notion that we haven’t built enough nuclear reactors to bring down the cost curve on them.
josiah
but then he also says we can’t build nuclear reactors in developed nations anymore because it’s too cost prohibitive and would also require some sort of regulatory licensing time of at least 10-15 years…so i guess that means no more nuke reactors going up in 1st world countries?
krazyman
Kupers does assert though that it is feasible to put up nuke reactors in underdeveloped nations, like the plan China has to build 100 nuclear reactors; and inherent in that is also the assertion that that amount of reactors would bring the cost curve down
thomas fee
it sounds like the answer is thorium reactors. when are we going to have that discussion
jenny66
Supposedly the US govt has been fiddling around with thorium as a power source instead of uranium for 50 years or so, yet we dont have 1 thorium reactor nor have i heard of any coming on the horizon…
newer tech
If thorium is so much more abundant than uranium, and cheaper and also safer and not capable of being weaponized, why in the hell don’t we have thorium reactors all over the place??
OG Theo
We have yet to see the discussion on thorium. Can’t wait for that…
apianist16
Kupers says that the cheapest form of power is wind and solar, but Shu counterpoints him by saying that’s because he isn’t figuring load factor into it; ie, wind is used 30% of the time and solar 20%, whereas nuclear reactors are used 90% of the time so in fact that they cheaper than wind and solar
john rose
but then Kupers laughs him off and says that that “load factor” argument isn’t true, but I don’t recall Kupers saying *why* it isn’t true?
homer simpson
he never did explain, because reichart stepped in and asked the question of ‘how do we calculate the actual cost?’ then kupers talks about how wind or solar is 50% cheaper per kilowatt than nuclear and Shu laughs him off…so it’s a laugh-off…who’s telling the truth?
homer simpson
also, after laughing off Kupers, Shu then says that nations like France and Sweden that switch to nuclear or hydro when the wind and solar are shut off have lower costs, and that is a fact…apparently
jamie p
the safety issue of nuclear is a very good point; very paradoxical, as nuclear is much safer than coal yet we are afraid to death of nuclear
cryptic
yes, that is the point (the only point i believe) where shu and kupers agree – that coal kills more people than nuclear
homie13
that’s why i don’t get why we haven’t implemented thorium yet, instead of uranium?
gears of war
perhaps this may explain why we haven’t used thorium: “Thorium: the wonder fuel that wasn’t”
http://thebulletin.org/thorium-wonder-fuel-wasnt7156
hightech
I still wanna know where that 100,000 kilo concrete man-cave is located!! It’s like the secret bat cave or something…
isisgoddess
or Dick Cheney’s bunker!! He sold it to buy another Jarvik!
Julius
How many years of fossil reserves do we have before we are depleted?
ontario
How long will the keystone pipeline supply us with crude oil?
Grande Rio
somehow need to harness geothermal power like Iceland is going to do; they project to be fossil fuel free within a few years
cyclone
regardless of which way we go we need energy independence from the gulf states
keyman
we need energy independence from everyone, not just the gulf states. western europe needs energy independence from the gulf and especially russia
jodel
now that putin’s grabbed crimea, and then eventually the rest of ukraine, he controls the fuel to the europe and has them by the b*lls. they are the ones that really need energy independence
moxie14
yep, they need to tap into Iceland’s geothermal power
peterfied
between the geothermal, hydro, wind and solar, you’d think western europe would be able to go fossil free and thus putin free
mikey fixx
In WW2 Hitler went out of his way to control the caucasus and balkans regions, namely ukraine, so he could control all those vast oil reserves. Welcome to putin 2014. What are you going to do western europe?
colonel freedom
I guess it all comes back to thorium. Or does it? Waiting for that episode of The Science Table
ollie northam
Looks like India is at the forefront of the thorium race. We should help fund them with this to completion so that we can replicate it here
joe nameth78
India has about 25% of the world’s thorium reserves; let’s hope they are on the verge of a breakthrough with their thorium reactor progress
cyberthune
You’d think we’d be able to utilize solar in CA, but then again look what happened to Solyndra.
maximus
for the time being, we need to open that keystone pipeline, till we find the best fossil alternative. good old fashioned oil
thunder buck
How far off are we from effectively harnessing thorium? And what if it turns out it wasnt what we expected it would be?
brian williams11
I’ll believe thorium when I see it happen