Weird meme format where neither option is mental gymnastics.
Not great, not terrible
Submitted 10 months ago by Zuriz@sh.itjust.works to science_memes@mander.xyz
https://sh.itjust.works/pictrs/image/dc2c2cba-b702-490e-8f83-64684de65c3a.jpeg
Comments
NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone 10 months ago
marcos@lemmy.world 10 months ago
Well, one of those is “easy”, the other is really hard.
Etterra@discuss.online 10 months ago
frezik@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 months ago
Thorium-232 has an extremely long half life (longer than the age of the universe) and it’s reasonably abundant. That’s the isotope useful for the thorium fuel cycle.
So it’s not quite that bad for threading this needle. The fuel cycle is a little more complicated than uranium–it’s not fertile as it is–and that could slow down R&D of a new nuclear program by getting stuck at some step.
FundMECFSResearch@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 months ago
Thorium is the Fusion of Fission.
Since the 60’s we’ve been told that thorium tech is just around the corner and it will replace uranium.
frezik@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 months ago
China has a working prototype today. There weren’t any theoretical issues, someone just needed to put the money down.
Same thing with fusion, really.
Zwiebel@feddit.org 10 months ago
This doesnt remove a single step from the image
frezik@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 months ago
It removes the “hope intelligent life evolves fast enough”.
If it was only Uraniam, then you need U-235. That has a half life of about 700M years. Cut in half 2 more times, and there’s almost none left. So if intelligent life took another 1.5B years to develop on Earth (which it easily could have), then that path is cut off.
With Thorium, the sun would probably expand to a red giant first.
deegeese@sopuli.xyz 10 months ago
troyunrau@lemmy.ca 10 months ago
As a geoscience, I like spicy rocks
Zuriz@sh.itjust.works 10 months ago
🤯
Rivalarrival@lemmy.today 10 months ago
I don’t know why people this k fusion power is so complicated. We know how to create it. The problem is we haven’t figured out any use for it other than to heat cities.
To 400,000C.