Summary of #15 - Brian Catt on energy density, the climate "crock", and much more

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00:00:00 - 01:00:00

Brian Catt emphasizes the importance of energy for prosperity and criticizes climate change legislation that aims to make energy more expensive, which would result in a reduction in progress made in the last century. He discusses the limitations of wind power, the potential of nuclear energy, and the safety concerns surrounding different types of energy sources. Catt dismisses the misconceptions about the dangers of nuclear power and emphasizes the importance of using data to analyze different phenomena. Finally, he suggests that transitioning to safer and more efficient energy options would be a simple process using new technology.

00:00:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses how climate change legislation aims to make energy more expensive and reduce its use, which would result in reverting to an agrarian and feudal economy, leading to a reduction in progress made in the last century. He emphasizes that prosperity depends on how much energy each individual is capable of deploying while cautioning Americans that they are rich and use almost 50% more energy per capita than people in Europe. Brian suggests that the gap between the supply of energy and disposable wealth is critical in terms of living standards. Furthermore, the more energy each person can deploy, the better off they are individually and the more prosperous the country is.
00:05:00 In this section, the speaker discusses the connection between a developing country and the number of children per couple, stating that regions with a higher number of children tend to be those that are still in the misery of medieval times, such as Central Africa and Afghanistan, for they have no rule of law. He adds that women in those countries are often told what to do and are not empowered, but as soon as their children stop dying, and they start going out to earn money, they become empowered. In terms of energy, the speaker says that wind and water were the primary energy sources before the industrial age, explaining how steam changed everything and how electricity eventually led to productivity gains. Finally, the speaker criticizes the elites who control the government, questioning how much wealth they're taking back through taxation, among other means.
00:10:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the different types of fuels and energy intensity. Coal is a great fuel as it is highly energetic and relatively cheap. Gas is ideal as it can be piped to power stations, is clean-burning, and produces only carbon dioxide and water vapor as greenhouse gases. In contrast, bio-fuels such as wood are not viable due to the large amount of land it uses, and wind and water power cannot provide the same energy intensity as coal or gas. Catt also talks about the negligible effects of greenhouse gases on climate change, saying that there is no emergency or big problem, and the net effect is likely to be zero or have a small effect too small to measure.
00:15:00 In this section, energy expert Brian Catt explains the limitations of wind as an energy source. While wind energy may seem "free," it is a weak and unstructured source that is always intermittent and unpredictable, which means you can't rely on wind power alone. Wind turbines require acres of land, tons of steel and concrete and around 10 times the equivalent amount of a nuclear power station. Moreover, if you are using offshore wind turbines, they will last probably about a third of the time, in comparison to a nuclear power station, making them four times more expensive in terms of lifetime energy output. When you factor in the intermittency, you need a 100% gas backup for when the wind isn't blowing, which is a huge capital expenditure. Furthermore, the idea that an interconnect to Europe will be sufficient to back up wind turbines is nonsense, as a cable across Europe will cost approximately as much as building a new capacity power station.
00:20:00 In this section, the speaker discusses the challenges of transmitting electricity underwater, which involves using high voltage in order to reduce the electrical resistance in cables. However, this approach is expensive and carries risks such as accidental damage from boats or other objects. The speaker notes that coal and gas, despite being intermittent energy sources, are better and cheaper options than relying on wind turbines, which require expensive batteries to store energy. The speaker argues that the cost of batteries makes them impractical for back-up power, and that nuclear power is a preferable alternative in terms of cost, sustainability and waste management.
00:25:00 In this section, Brian Catt dismisses the idea of building a nuclear bomb out of the civilian nuclear program due to the low probability of being able to get the fuel rods and the high level of danger involved in handling them. In the event of a security breach of a nuclear power plant, shutting down the reactor and dropping the rods would be the first response, and the modern ones have emergency cooling that lasts for about 72 hours, enough time to prevent them from melting down. Catt explains that there is no possibility of a nuclear explosion in a power station as it requires pure uranium with over 90% purity, and 95% of the fuel in a power station is uranium-238, which is fissile but can't fission.
00:30:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses nuclear energy and its potential as a fuel source. He explains how uranium and thorium are the primary sources of nuclear energy and that there is an abundance of uranium in the sea that can be extracted. He also discusses radiation and the effects of being close to it. He clarifies that the danger is not from electromagnetic radiation but rather from ionizing radiation, which can be fatal at close distances. Chernobyl is also mentioned, in which he explains how close people could be to the power plant without experiencing real ill effects.
00:35:00 In this section, Brian Catt explains how nuclear reactors have advanced over the years and how modern reactors include containment vessels with low-enriched fuel that can shut down quickly. Furthermore, he explains that Chernobyl was a graphite core type that is typically used in the production of weapons-grade plutonium. Thus, no commercial reactor would have such a core. Moreover, the primary issue with the Chernobyl reactor wasn't radiation but the lack of containment, which led to iodine and strontium spreading across the countryside. Brian Catt explains that nobody died from radiation from Fukushima, but thousands died due to evacuation, including those who were living in elderly care homes and were forcibly relocated. Finally, Brian Catt explains that nuclear power is statistically safer than other forms of energy production, including hydroelectric and fossil fuels, as the energy from sun and wind is also associated with risks like falling from solar rooftops and wind farms.
00:40:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the safety concerns surrounding hydroelectric dams and radioactive isotopes. While there are rigorous safety regulations in place and inspections to ensure faults are caught, third-world countries or in some situations, the professionals handling the dam may not be competent. Such disasters can occur in mining waste pools, coal-fired power stations, or even caused by gas leaks, resulting in needless deaths. Regarding radioactivity in medical procedures, injecting radioisotopes such as radioactive technetium into a patient for a nuclear medicine scan is safe since its biological half-life is less than a day, and it decays rapidly within a few hours. However, the prospect of breathing near an open nuclear core is not advisable.
00:45:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the misconceptions about the dangers of nuclear power and how it is possible to build reactors in a way that is safe and discreet. He points out how the popular portrayal of nuclear accidents from Hollywood movies has created a false perception of reality. Catt also explains the cooling process and how it has nothing to do with the primary cooling circuit for the reactor, which operates at 400 degrees. Additionally, he questions why power stations are made so obvious and proposes a design that integrates the reactors into the surrounding environment. Finally, he mentions how regulatory red tape is largely responsible for slowing down the construction process but in reality, it would be possible to build nuclear plants relatively quickly.
00:50:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the safety concerns around interfering with China's energy plants, stating that individuals who do so will end up dead or in prison. He talks about China's energy plans and reveals that they plan to build 126 coal plants and 30 nuclear plants. He shares his knowledge regarding the chemical reaction's energy and explains the famous equation E=MC^2 is the reason that nuclear boilers produce much more energy per reaction as compared to chemical reactions. Finally, he recommends Gapminder to the viewers as a tool to learn how to use data to analyze different phenomena.
00:55:00 In this section, Brian Catt talks about the safety of transporting radioactive waste and how nuclear reactors are built with extremely durable materials. He shares his amazement at the footage of an F4 Phantom flying into a lump of concrete at 500 miles per hour, which is equivalent to the walls of a reactor being built. The clip showed that the bit of concrete just goes, which is what it is designed to do since immovable objects always win. Catt adds that people have tested using technology like helium-cooled Pebble Bed Reactors, and Trisol fuel is now being used to replace boilers for supercritical coal reactors in China. While red tape could delay progress, Catt notes that the transition to safer and more efficient energy options would be a simple process using new technology.

01:00:00 - 01:35:00

Brian Catt discusses the benefits of nuclear energy, emphasizing that it is the only energy source with sufficient energy density to efficiently store power. He argues that nuclear energy will be used to make liquid fuels for vehicles in the future and that electrification is not a practical solution as grids continue to be powered by fossil fuels. Catt also argues for using the most efficient fuel until it runs out and notes the conflicts of interest in UK committees. He questions the climate change narrative and encourages presenting factual data to counteract false information spread by activists.

01:00:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the importance of nuclear energy and its cost-effectiveness despite safety concerns. He argues that nuclear energy lasts for a long duration, using minimal natural resources, and has low maintenance and fuel costs, making it energy-efficient. He also explains that the future would involve running nuclear energy for as long as they like, while they wait for the eventual exhaustion of fossil fuels. Eventually, they would have to switch to electric cars that could use the cheap nuclear power and, thus, move from drilling for oil to synthesizing liquid fuels and other products using nuclear energy.
01:05:00 In this section, Brian Catt suggests that nuclear is the only viable long-term solution for powering the world, primarily because it is the only source of energy dense enough to store a sufficient amount of power efficiently and safely. He believes that in the future, we will use nuclear power to make liquid fuels for vehicles. Catt argues that electrification, the popular solution to the climate problem of current times, doesn't make sense as grids are powered by fossil fuels that are burned in power stations, which doesn't decrease emissions. Instead, he recommends using the best available source of energy, which for the time being is nuclear.power.
01:10:00 In this section, Brian Catt argues for using the fuel that works best, such as gas, until there is no other choice than to make a change. He claims that using bioethanol can be a bad use of land and food, and burning hydrogen in a boiler is leaky and dangerous. Catt also argues that fossil fuels are the best way to heat, and using other alternatives, such as a heat pump, is inefficient, expensive, and requires a whole new heating system to be installed, making it an unrealistic option for most homeowners. Finally, he describes subsidies rackets, where hydrogen is generated and then mixed with gas to monetize it, and ethanol is put in petrol as a parasitic way to get a subsidy.
01:15:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the government intervention in crops and energy, leading to laws that benefit rich elites at the expense of ordinary citizens. He highlights the conflicts of interest in UK committees and suggests that energy policy is legalized crime. According to Brian, the UK should use the most efficient fuel until it runs out instead of using the alternative energies that are not as good. He also touches on the UK energy crisis and, despite contingency plans, raises concerns of energy rising to the point where even a pint of beer could cost an unreasonable amount.
01:20:00 In this section, Brian Catt talks about the potential of invading Oman to access gas, suggesting that it may be the best way to get enough gas and stating that politics and greed are limiting the potential of clean energy. He explains that wind power was only initially used due to the inability to build nuclear power plants fast enough and the lack of belief in their ability to replace fossil fuels while still allowing for fossil fuels like gas and coal to be used. Catt further argues that the well-funded activists are oppositional of nuclear power because it is a cheap and zero-emission solution, unlike renewable energy, which will be unable to replace fossil fuels entirely. He also highlights the ignorance of politicians when it comes to technology. Catt contrasts this with the knowledge of the Chinese who have a significant number of engineers, mathematicians, and scientists at top political levels and have exported more renewable energy than they use in their country.
01:25:00 In this section, the speaker claims that the climate change narrative is a tool for the elites to protect their position of power and wealth by limiting the energy supply of the risingly prosperous independent mass of people. He explains that the inventor of this plan, Maurice Strong, linked carbon dioxide to energy use and blamed it for climate change, thus forcing people in the West to reduce it. However, the speaker refers to evidence that polar bear populations have doubled and the Greenland ice has been accumulating over the years. The speaker also highlights that taking advice about energy supply from the United Nations is unwise as they make up science and have a political agenda.
01:30:00 In this section, Brian Catt, the former environmental advisor to Obama, discusses how none of the IPCC's recommendations are supported by the science in the scientific reports. He emphasizes that all energy infrastructure should have political objectives that should be decided by engineers and not politicians. Catt mentions that, in his view, Greta Thunberg has little knowledge of energy and climate topics, despite earning significant media attention. Lastly, he encourages people to follow him on Twitter as he will begin posting twitter-sized nuggets of information with possibly a graph or paper reference and to check out his 90-second video talk on Vimeo that summarizes the issues and conclusions.
01:35:00 In this section, Brian Catt discusses the importance of presenting factual data and logical conclusions in order to counteract false information spread by activists and fact-checkers who are paid by the same people. He explains that he is comfortable with opposing opinions as long as they are based on factual data and can be debated logically. He expresses his appreciation for the ability to spread messages via the internet and humorously compares it to the historical practice of pamphleteering. The interview wraps up with thanks and hopes for future discussion.