Bill Gates, Toshiba Team Up On Nuclear Reactor

[Clintonio]

[citation][nom]daft[/nom]as someone who is partially one of these "left wing nuts" im all for it. thought, with it being buried underground. i have to wonder how long it would take to get to it in case something does go wrong[/citation]
They'll either have tunnels to it, or the fact of being underground makes safety concerns irrelevant (depends on how deep they bury it). I can't see them burying it close enough to the surface to make damage where they can't even access it.

 

[lashton]

actually as loong as it built comsuming delepted uranium and has a few fail safes (like humans cant pull it apart) it should be really good for cars

 

[manitoublack]

[citation][nom]... Also it would also be a lot cheaper: natural uranium is about 99% depleted uranium while a tiny part of the rest is the type used in reactors today.It's still radioactive, but in a much weaker way than U-235.Uranium is both more abundant and longer lasting than fossil fuels. This can give us centuries of power without polluting, buying time to find even better energy alternatives[/citation]

Uranium is not more abundant than fossil fuels.

And While U-235's half live is an order of magnitude shorter than U-238 (700million years vs 4Billion for U-238,) its relatively safe to handle in your hands.

Note the 3-states regarding U-235 content in Uranium Fuel:
Depleted Uranium: U-235 contend 0.711% per weight (What the bulk of US reactors run on, and are of the BWR type. Most other reactors use mildly enriched Uranium.)

The idea of a Nuclear Battery (not what's powering the Voyager space craft,) or Container Mounted has been around for a while (with the Japanese, and more specifically Toshiba beating the drum the hardest.) Other ideas have centered around using reactors designed for Naval use, which are typically designed with serious space constraints.

Anyway before I get to carried away, it's great news that Bill's parting with his hard earned for a project such as this. I know it will eventually become a reality (in the next 50 years I'd hope) as this will be the best solution for powering remote sites/towns, without the need for a constant stream of oil or gas. I'd be happy to have a Nuclear Reactor in a shipping container at the mine sit I work at. Beats the Several Thousand liters of Diesel we currently consume per hour... That's right Several Thousand Liters per Hour

 

[plasmastorm]

So now, who in thier right mind lets a man who cant make a bug free OS now design a Nuke reactor.

Abandon Planet imo.

 

[mr_tuel]

I'm all for nuclear cars, so long as the reactors are resilient enough to withstand even the violent wrecks that kill the occupants. I know its morbid, but we wouldn't want 'dirty bombs' driving everywhere...

 

[BPT747]

[citation][nom]plasmastorm[/nom]So now, who in thier right mind lets a man who cant make a bug free OS now design a Nuke reactor.Abandon Planet imo.[/citation]
This is ok because the electrical and nuclear engineers that will design the plant will not allow a non proven control's technology to be used in any industrial application.

not that we will be allowed to do this the environmentalists are 100% against nuclear fusion and once they are told what nuclear fision does, they will be against it too. We could have 100% of our power generated from nuclear plants and have no waste.
and unlike what those idiots on life after people say our nukes will simpily shut down and go inert if they are left unattended.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

I don't know very much about nuclear power so it is difficult for me to form an opinion. Mine main concerns are safety and nucelar waste.

 

[Gin Fushicho]

I'm very happy Bill gates is funding something like this. we need more cheap energy.

 

[Guest]

I will give any one of you if you can legit describe what happened in 3- mile island without looking it up on wikipedia. Most of what people know is garbage. Nuke power is safe. The Navy operates these little things called nuclear-powered submarines and has never suffered a single nuclear reactor disaster.

 

[anamaniac]

A small fusion/fission reactor would be perfect for remote communities (such as much of Canada).

While we do need to get our wasteful energy use under control, this is a viable option. I especially like the idea of waste-free usage.

Bill, you're a mans man.

 

[Kaiser_25]

Yes with proper training and oversight nuke power is safe, cheap and very effective. I think if they can get this project up and running is the next best thing to full green energy (solar hydro etc) go Bill keep setting that bar high for rich people!!

 

[Neog2]

[citation][nom]jhansonxi[/nom]Toshiba said it is in preliminary discussions with TerraPower, a unit of Intellectual Ventures, a patent-holding concern partially funded by Mr. Gates. Intellectual Ventures, based in Bellevue, Wash., is run by a former Microsoft Corp. executive, Nathan Myhrvold.So the company that brought us HD-DVD is teaming up with the guy that thinks he has a solution for hurricane control and the patent trolls.I'm not expecting this to go well.[/citation]
You do realize that Toshiba Owns 51% of samsungs optical-disk drive products right???? It was a win, win for Toshiba.
Sure they wanted HD-DVD to win, but they are still cashing
in day and night with all of the Toshiba-Samsung Bluray drives being sold in samsungs, and a number of other brands.

As far as the nuclear device goes. I believe Popluar science talked about this tech like two years ago. and I thought it was
cool then.

 

[digiex]

I hope Bill Gates does not impose rental rights to reactors it help develop like what M$ is going with its software...

 

[ossie]

That corroborates well with:
"In persuading policy makers and the public of this danger, the “hockey stick” became a major tool of persuasion, giving CRU a major role in the policy process at the national, EU and international level. This led to the growing politicisation of science in the interest, allegedly, of protecting the “the environment” and the planet. I observed and documented this phenomenon as the UK Government, European Commission, and World Bank increasingly needed the climate threat to justify their anti-carbon (and pro-nuclear) policies. In return climate science was generously funded and required to support rather than to question these policy objectives… Opponents were gradually starved of research opportunities or persuaded into silence. The apparent “scientific consensus” thus generated became a major tool of public persuasion…"
http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt/index.php/heraldsun/comments/how_government_cash_created_the_climategate_scandal#68680
[citation][nom]dman3k[/nom]You gotta love Bill Gates for using his money on aiding humanity.[/citation]
Beside vaccines, genetically modified crops, climate change scams, the patent ubertroll gets involved in the next highly lucrative big bu$iness. Of course, exclusively to the benefit o humanity, right? Wrong.
[citation][nom]lauxenburg[/nom]YES! They better actually do it. Why people are so scared of nuke plants confuses me. They are very safe. The chance of anything happening is the same chance a regular power plant blows up. It's a good alternative and its cheap. With improved nuke power this will be better.[/citation]
Tell that to the Ukrainians, and their neighbors...
When a "regular" power plant blows up, it would eventually level a block around, without much more problems - blackouts excepted. With a nuclear one, you get the environmental devastation of a full fledged nuclear war.
[citation][nom]the_krasno[/nom]Consuming depleted uranium means that a lot less of radiation is involved. Provided it's safe and efficient this could be an alternative for fossil fuels and traditional nuclear power... It's still radioactive, but in a much weaker way than U-235... This can give us centuries of power without polluting, buying time to find even better energy alternatives[/citation]
Tell that to the Irakis, they already benefited from the indiscriminate use of depleted uranium munitions...
The huge rise of radiation induced illnesses, and child leukemia, and malformations is negligible, as long as profits can be reaped.
[citation][nom]beayn[/nom]Bill investing in a nuclear reactor? What if it gets a blue screen of death while buried?[/citation]
It would just make a huge Black Smoke of Death... to the entertainment of the wintarded micro$uxx fankiddie herd, which finds every idea fantastic, when billy boy is somehow involved.

 

[r0x0r]

[citation][nom]ossie[/nom]Beside vaccines, genetically modified crops, climate change scams, the patent ubertroll gets involved in the next highly lucrative big bu$iness. Of course, exclusively to the benefit o humanity, right? Wrong.[/citation]

So what's your solution to energy shortages and global warming, and what are you doing about it?

Before you complain about Bill Gates and focus only on the negative points (good luck finding a 100% amicable solution!), just remember this old Chinese proverb:

"Those who say that something cannot be done should not be interrupting those who are doing it".

 

[Guest]

would we really trust these units when made in china at lowest possible cost to maximize profit?

 

[r0x0r]

[citation][nom]cmulder[/nom]would we really trust these units when made in china at lowest possible cost to maximize profit?[/citation]

Yes, because we're really going commoditize nuclear power plants to the point where we ship them out from a factory in China.

That reminds me, I need to swing past Costco tomorrow and pick up a pair of jeans and depleted uranium.

 

[zak_mckraken]

Uranium : the "green" energy! 😉

 

[Guest]

Nuclear reactors will never end up in cars. The limiting factor is the shielding required to protect humans from the gamma and neutron radiation that fission reactors all emit. Hence the need to bury the reactor underground. The US should have invested heavily in Nucliar Power back in the 1970's but unfortunately we had Democrats in charge of congress in those days. Too bad.

 

[FenrirXIII]

[citation][nom]vgdarkstar[/nom]No kidding, what a guy! The world is his RTS game...[/citation]

It's a huge game of Civilization akin to Sid Meier's, except instead of countries building up their empires, it's Gates and Google. Google has the stronger navy forces with their floating servers, though.