So I have never listened to a podcast. Does that make me weird? Anyhow, I decided why not listen to something I enjoy. So I went out on the web and found this marvelous podcast from RetroBits. This particular episode was all about the c programming language. The episode can be found here: http://podbay.fm/show/74839819/e/1162801320. Now, it takes a little while for the host to get around to the point, but I don't really mind the techie talk. The tone and pace of the podcast is very easy going.
I first became interested in the c language about four years ago. C++ was the first language that I started developing with, and naturally I became very curious with the c language. Lately I have been delving deeper into the c language and I am very intrigued with what I have found. The host of the podcast goes on to discuss the origins of the c language and it's importance to the development of the UNIX kernel. He covers the transformation the B language into c and the porting of c to other platforms. What I found interesting was the importance of the portable library that c used. Such portability of a programming language allowed c to be used across different systems. This was a monumental development in programming, leading to real portability of the UNIX kernel.
I was enthralled with this podcast. The host is knowledgeable, entertaining, and friendly. I actually visited the site and listened to another of the episodes. This experience has really left me rather disappointed in myself for not listening to more podcasts! I have made a resolution to myself that I will no longer allow such a wealth of information to go to waste. I have already downloaded several episodes and I am in the process of finding a decent app to use. If there are any suggestions, please enlighten me!
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Miniature Fission Reactors: The Future of Energy?
Energy. The limiting factor of all human society for the last hundred years. Ever since the advent of electricity, We have been struggling to produce more of it. In the 1950's, we developed nuclear power. The concept is that a power plant contains a sustained fission reaction that heats water into steam in order to turn a turbine, which then produces electricity. So, once we discovered this source of power, we began to construct these massive plants to produce electricity using nuclear fission. but, as efficient as easy as it is, nuclear power has a dark side.
Maybe you have seen the video footage of the hydrogen bomb tests in Nevada. Maybe you have read about the horrible effects that people have suffered from radioactive contamination. Nuclear radiation is extremely dangerous and lethal. On the 26th of April in 1986, the nuclear power plant at Chernobyl, USSR exploded and melted down, spewing tons of radioactive waste and gas throughout the surrounding areas. The entire city is now a ghost town, and the radiation levels are so high that access is restricted to only those wearing protective gear. The problem with nuclear power is that the reaction can get out of control. When a nuclear reaction goes haywire, materials that are not meant to be involved suddenly become caught up in the nuclear reaction. This can cause massive catastrophic events and irradiate whole areas.
Sounds frightening, doesn't it? So who in their right mind would want a nuclear reactor in their backyard!?! Well, there is a man named Taylor Wilson who would really like to put a nuclear reactor right in the middle of your town. For those of you unfamiliar with Mr. Wilson, I'll provide a little background. At age 14 he became the youngest person to ever achieve nuclear fusion, in his garage. He is now 19 years old. Recently, he has assisted the U.S. Government in securing nuclear facilities around the country against potential terrorist attacks. This man is nothing short of a prodigy. And he has an amazing plan to bring affordable, clean, safe energy to your community.
Mr. Wilsons' marvelous idea is a mini fission reactor. A reactor that would be buried underground and supply up to 100,000 homes with electricity. But this is no ordinary nuclear reactor. First of all, it doesn't use the same type of fuel as your typical fission reactor. In fact, these mini-reactors can use multiple sources of fuel, the most useful being Thorium. Thorium is nice because it's not nearly as volatile and plutonium or uranium. It's also relatively easy to mine and much more environmentally friendly.
Second, these nuclear reactors can not melt down. The way that they are constructed makes meltdown virtually impossible. The fuel source is molten liquid already, and the reactor is maintained at air pressure! This means that even if there were to be some sort of puncture, not only would there be no chance of a reaction proliferating outside of the reactor, but there would be no chance of radioactive material spraying about and irradiating everything!
Finally, (the best part!) these mini-reactors require refueling only once every thirty years. A typical reactor requires refuelling every 18 months. This is good news for several reasons. Such infrequent refueling means that they use less fuel. It also means that they use the fuel more efficiently. It also means that nobody has to crack open the reactor and shove stuff inside it! So, we could potentially wire one of these babies up, bury it, and totally forget about it for 30 years. That sounds almost too good to be true.
As you can see, there are myriad benefits to installing these miniature reactors. We are struggling to find environmentally friendly ways to produce power right now, and a technology like this is too good to pass up. In my opinion, we need to get these deployed as fast as possible. We have had some bad experiences with nuclear power, but if we can improve our designs, rethink our approach, and be responsible, we can really take advantage of this emerging technology.
Credit for this post goes to Mr. Wilsons' awesome TED Talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/taylor_wilson_my_radical_plan_for_small_nuclear_fission_reactors.html
Maybe you have seen the video footage of the hydrogen bomb tests in Nevada. Maybe you have read about the horrible effects that people have suffered from radioactive contamination. Nuclear radiation is extremely dangerous and lethal. On the 26th of April in 1986, the nuclear power plant at Chernobyl, USSR exploded and melted down, spewing tons of radioactive waste and gas throughout the surrounding areas. The entire city is now a ghost town, and the radiation levels are so high that access is restricted to only those wearing protective gear. The problem with nuclear power is that the reaction can get out of control. When a nuclear reaction goes haywire, materials that are not meant to be involved suddenly become caught up in the nuclear reaction. This can cause massive catastrophic events and irradiate whole areas.
Sounds frightening, doesn't it? So who in their right mind would want a nuclear reactor in their backyard!?! Well, there is a man named Taylor Wilson who would really like to put a nuclear reactor right in the middle of your town. For those of you unfamiliar with Mr. Wilson, I'll provide a little background. At age 14 he became the youngest person to ever achieve nuclear fusion, in his garage. He is now 19 years old. Recently, he has assisted the U.S. Government in securing nuclear facilities around the country against potential terrorist attacks. This man is nothing short of a prodigy. And he has an amazing plan to bring affordable, clean, safe energy to your community.
Mr. Wilsons' marvelous idea is a mini fission reactor. A reactor that would be buried underground and supply up to 100,000 homes with electricity. But this is no ordinary nuclear reactor. First of all, it doesn't use the same type of fuel as your typical fission reactor. In fact, these mini-reactors can use multiple sources of fuel, the most useful being Thorium. Thorium is nice because it's not nearly as volatile and plutonium or uranium. It's also relatively easy to mine and much more environmentally friendly.
Second, these nuclear reactors can not melt down. The way that they are constructed makes meltdown virtually impossible. The fuel source is molten liquid already, and the reactor is maintained at air pressure! This means that even if there were to be some sort of puncture, not only would there be no chance of a reaction proliferating outside of the reactor, but there would be no chance of radioactive material spraying about and irradiating everything!
Finally, (the best part!) these mini-reactors require refueling only once every thirty years. A typical reactor requires refuelling every 18 months. This is good news for several reasons. Such infrequent refueling means that they use less fuel. It also means that they use the fuel more efficiently. It also means that nobody has to crack open the reactor and shove stuff inside it! So, we could potentially wire one of these babies up, bury it, and totally forget about it for 30 years. That sounds almost too good to be true.
As you can see, there are myriad benefits to installing these miniature reactors. We are struggling to find environmentally friendly ways to produce power right now, and a technology like this is too good to pass up. In my opinion, we need to get these deployed as fast as possible. We have had some bad experiences with nuclear power, but if we can improve our designs, rethink our approach, and be responsible, we can really take advantage of this emerging technology.
Credit for this post goes to Mr. Wilsons' awesome TED Talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/taylor_wilson_my_radical_plan_for_small_nuclear_fission_reactors.html
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