Neil deGrasse Tyson Explains Electric Power

How clean is your electric car? In this Earth Day explainer, Neil deGrasse Tyson and comedian co-host Chuck Nice break down the emissions from generating electricity and how electric vehicles really are cleaner.
Aren’t we burning fossil fuels to get electricity? So are the emissions from your car just transferred elsewhere? We break down coal fire power plants and how much of our power is supplied by fossil fuels. Neil asks, how much does salt cost? We discuss the history of salt as a strategic commodity and how to turn power into salt in the eyes of Americans. How did innovations in food preservations change our view of salt? You’ll learn how this connects to the commodification of oil and how our society is similarly dependent on it for life. Doesn’t a car really just need power? Should we be more or less casual about our electricity usage? What transportation issues do we face with alternative forms of energy? How does our choice to use electricity impact the energy marketplace? All that and more, on another StarTalk explainer!
About the prints that flank Neil in this video:
"Black Swan” & "White Swan" limited edition serigraph prints by Coast Salish artist Jane Kwatleematt Marston. For more information about this artist and her work, visit Inuit Gallery of Vancouver: inuit.com/​.
Support us on Patreon: / startalkradio
FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to StarTalk:
KZbin: kzbin.info...
Twitter: / startalkradio
Facebook: / startalk
Instagram: / startalkradio
About StarTalk:
Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up!
#StarTalk #NeildeGrasseTyson

[@coin5207]

'My face becomes a lot smarter when you're in it' ~Chuck Nice, April 2021

[@paulfischer9597]

Infinity cars

[@RandomBoye]

Face sitting at its greatest.

[@johnstanson3479]

“No, but I do bathe with a toaster when things get bad” is an amazing line. 😭

[@amantedecapaldi4037]

I didn't get that 😭

[@mahmoudali6605]

@@amantedecapaldi4037 bathing in with a plugged in toaster causes electricity to shock ones body, usually to attempt suicide. Hence, the "when things get bad"

[@amantedecapaldi4037]

@@mahmoudali6605 wth? It's new suicide method in the market. Wow didn't know that... Thx 😊👍

[@nick_john]

Chuck, are things really that bad?

[@chrisrenfro2058]

I think its hilarious. That being said you should check out the ted talk about casual suicide.

[@johndallara3257]

Neil explains a fundamental issue of strategic commodities well. There is no free lunch, but there are new strategic commodity to replace the old ones. This also glosses over many looming realities.

[@redpooljack777]

Which "looming realities"? The Peak Oil høa× or the CO2 Çlimate Çhange høa×?

[@johndallara3257]

@@redpooljack777 8:14 Niel glosses over the issue of electricity, it does not invent itself. Presently it is mostly generated from fossil fuels the thing he wants to get away from. In the future for us to transistion wholey to electricity we would need ...A new grid ... Batteries to store the renewable energy for use when it is needed ...new transformers to handle the massive loads ....this is just back of the napkin thinking here but ther Niel's and his like have no intrest in that fact and are not pursuing it. They do want our stove, water heaters, cieling fans and whatever else they can get away with. The remedy they persue shows the lack of rerality they are pushing. They love to preach at us though.

[@richardpratt3091]

Like...

[@johndallara3257]

@@richardpratt3091 Niel glosses over the issue of electricity, it does not invent itself. Presently it is mostly generated from fossil fuels the thing he wants to get away from. In the future for us to transistion wholey to electricity we would need ...A new grid ... Batteries to store the renewable energy for use when it is needed ...new transformers to handle the massive loads ....this is just back of the napkin thinking here but ther Niel's and his like have no intrest in that fact and are not pursuing it. They do want our stove, water heaters, cieling fans and whatever else they can get away with. The remedy they persue shows the lack of rerality they are pushing. They love to preach at us though.

[@walterstockhecker5579]

@@redpooljack777Trigger easily, eh?!🤣

[@thirdstratus8746]

Neil is that teacher that makes science interesting.

[@honeychurchgipsy6]

The answer to "Aren't we burning fossil fuels to get electricity?" is not "yeah" but "sometimes and not necessarily". In Scotland all electricity is now produced using wind or solar power, and they export energy to us in the rest of the UK - so it can be done folks!!

[@mndy129]

People never heard of dams, huh

[@holly50575]

Wow!

[@Cr3at1vem1nd]

How do you stabilize the Hz in the grid with just solar and wind?

[@maxwellsimon4538]

@@Cr3at1vem1nd same way you do in any electrical system, with an inverter. The question you should be asking is how they keep the voltage the same throughout the day, which is probably with wattage limits.

[@edwinamazona5474]

Ha ha it can be done with just a small population. And lots of farting cows Scotland is as just as hipocite as the Democrats are.

[@isragashi11]

The talent that Neil has between explaining and humor is just AMAZING

[@StaticBlaster]

Yeah he's extraordinarily eloquent.

[@jamesmcclain3588]

I love the guy but he’s not great at letting other people speak.

[@MC_Snowman]

Chuck gives him balance lol

[@bayronroman9728]

He is a human treasure

[@yellowradiation1003]

@@jamesmcclain3588 its harder then you think in podcasts, everyone is guilty of doing this in most podcasts

[@danieljonhson6367]

I was a generator mechanic in the army and from my experience it takes a lot of fuel to make electricity

[@keithbranch7718]

That why water dam is one of the best method...Made take long time to build..Its alway method with out fuel..Just got find the method

[@blackkitty1774]

@@keithbranch7718it took oil to build those dams

[@mishmashek]

​Everything cost energy. It is investment. Our planet have mechanisms to get CO2 from atmosphere. So in future when we will have these structures and stop overpolluting planet it could get to the balance and stop greenhouse effect. This is very good strategy from my point of view.@@blackkitty1774

[@gbxgbxgbx]

@@blackkitty1774 yeah but not much, compared to electricity output.

[@CarkeekW]

agreed, electric motors are a lot more efficient than a petrol vehicles transmission though and the heat and friction from the engine , the petrol motor and trans etc loses 70-80% of its energy and 20-30% drives , the EV loses 20%- of its energy and 80%+ drives so that is the other side of the equation to balance out . huge energy x 0.2 vs some energy x 0.8 . The power has to be delivered from wind, solar, dams , nuclear , tidal to make a bit more progress. The sun has infinite energy in terms of the human race , things are getting more efficient and as they become in demand the progress will happen more rapidly and be cheaper.

[@brittburton3264]

Back in the 70’s there were two small power plants running off of water in my small town. My stepfather, he proposed to bring them back into service, they had been abandoned. He determined that they’d produce about 70kw each. He wanted about $80k to get them both back in service, one needed new equipment and such and the other just needed a bit of work. The town turned him down cold. Too expensive. Those two abandoned power plants are still their, the dams they were on, the town has since destroyed.

[@travis303]

You know you live in the north when the question is asked "how much is salt" and instead if table salt your mind goes straight to ice salt

[@Metalkatt]

Chuck: We'll pay you in pepper! Me, a history nerd: Well, now you're just being greedy. Have to get rich quick, don't we?

[@richardhockey8442]

When the contents of your spice rack was worth more than it's weight in gold, had a large padlock on and only the housekeeper could open it.

[@RK-tf8pq]

Pepper was also an important commodity, which led to discovery of America. Europeans were looking for a sea route to India (since Turkey shut down the land route) as they could not live without the spice black pepper. So many European explorers embarked on looking for a sea route, including Columbus, who missed India completely and went around the globe to reach America (That is why he called the natives Indians).

[@kadmus78]

@@RK-tf8pqColumbus actually sailed west, across the Atlantic, thinking he'd get to Asia faster than going around Africa, just had the wrong idea about the Earth's size. He didn't "miss" India, going blindly around the world.

[@RK-tf8pq]

@@kadmus78 you are right. I stand corrected.

[@VRDejaVu]

@@kadmus78 small correction: he didnt missjudge the circunference of earth, he just didnt knew there was land there. The assumption at the time was that there was just ocean. In alternative, some scholars think that, since the some north European tribes (like the vikings) had already been to America a few centuries before Colombo, the existance of that continent somehow was fed to him and thats why he was so adamant about doing the trip (he tried to sweet talk multiple royal houses until the Spanish gave in).

[@user-qp2xy5zs7r]

I alway try to seek the ground truth when questioning an issue and I want to thank Chuck & Neil on not masking the facts in this episode and explaining it in depth. Keepin'it-💯

[@pugazhenthi6868]

Thanks for creating this series of talks, Dr. Tyson and Chuck (sorry if I spelled your name incorrectly 😅). This show is taking science to the public with a good dose of humor.

[@Manizzie]

SALT FORGIVE ME!!! I have taken you for granted😩

[@SleeplessRonin]

Don't you mean for granulated?

[@EazyE11]

@@SleeplessRonin 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@ViratKohli-jj3wj]

@@SleeplessRonin bahaha

[@msmith53]

....No, For “Granite”...lol

[@nineball039]

Watch the movie Gandhi. While it can't do the salt march justice, one can get an overview of the British hold on salt in India and one of Gandhi's famous acts of civil disobedience. "The 1882 Salt Act gave the British a monopoly on the collection and manufacture of salt, limiting its handling to government salt depots and levying a salt tax. Violation of the Salt Act was a criminal offence. Even though salt was freely available to those living on the coast (by evaporation of seawater), Indians were forced to buy it from the colonial government."

[@nickl2571]

I'd love (and pay) to see these explaination videos in a much longer format where you dive even deeper. Great work both of you!

[@chriseradley6083]

I would pay for it too!

[@StevenStarkem]

Yea there's a podcast for that... On this youtube channel too...

[@morewealth23]

I'd pay for it in salt.

[@matteomanara4518]

It’s called Cosmos space odyssey

[@jpaschl]

Just don't pay in salt

[@jasonmeadors3524]

Cannot love this enough for taking the big-picture, science-grounded view over the drill-and-burn mentality. Thank you.

[@chiphill4856]

I agree. Yet there are still those, just check the comments, who look around and say that because the grid, generation and consumption are not tailored to electricity that it is impossible and will never work. They forget about the product development cycle. It takes time, but humans will solve this issue despite political resistance.

[@micflynn1]

And yet you don't realize how much oil is used to create products in everyday life it's not just gasoline or diesel fuel is used to make plastics it's used to make nylon it's used to make all kinds of things including food.

[@DontEverGrowUp]

In the next episode, perhaps you could cover how batteries are made and the environmental impact from their construction and disposal.

[@Imasphere]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z6C5o3x-mMmroKM

[@alcaedafiebre]

there are many other methods in development for energy storage at a grid level, such as storing it as heat, molten salt, molten metal, pump hydro, etc, electric is still the way to go, as all forms of energy can be turned into electricity and be used in the most efficient way available

[@brentross69]

And all of the fossil fuels required to make your solar panels, wind mills and your electric car....

[@Klemeq]

Disposal? Sorry, I think you mean recycle. EV batteries are about 95% recyclable.

[@ZipZoomZip]

EV batteries are too valuable to dispose of. They are recycled into new batteries by shredding them and then mining the concentrates for all the valuable metals so they don't have to go dig up new ones. Try that with oil or gasoline when you are done with it!

[@LtNduati]

"I only bathe with a toaster when things get bad" took me out, I love this channel lol

[@biggripper9795]

That's edgy, haha I like it

[@MarcSylex]

"No, but I bathe with a toaster when things get bad." That's was quite a dark matter.

[@97ynoT91]

HA! Dark matter... 🤣

[@herbaldb]

Let's not forget about the carbon footprint of power plants, power companies, and everything else needed to be able to plug your car in.

[@dustylong]

Like the batteries

[@kenjohnson5472]

Love it that you brought it up early that electric cars have no emissions at the tailpipe BUT the emissions are at the coal fired electric generator

[@jmatt98]

Most likely gas fired power stations not coal

[@EVmike]

@@jmatt98 Average US electricity 20% from coal in 2022. NG up, coal down.

[@markcox8127]

And that even if an EV is recharged with coal electricity, that it’s high efficiency means it’s driving more miles per unit of pollution than a gas car.

[@keith726able]

​@markcox8127 yes, the power plant captures more energy from the fuel than an inefficient internal combustion engine ever can. So, each pound of burned fuel will give more available energy in a power plant than in a car. Turning that fuel's energy into electricity will yield more available power from the power plant than the energy lost in an engine. The electric car should use less pounds of fuel if the electricity it uses comes from an efficient power plant.

[@Ryuujinv01]

Another note: even if it never becomes salt, even if 100% of the grid is put on oil, those plants generating electricity are worlds apart more efficient than the engine in your car. In both energy creation and ability to control and regulate emissions.

[@Kev2980]

This is very true, cars are only able to utilize about 10-30% of the energy that comes from combustion of fuel, the rest is lost to heat and limitations of engine and driveline inefficiencies. Electric can utilize up to 80% and even a little over. It also takes alot of fuel to transport fuel, where as the logistics of electrical power is much more efficient and cheaper after the initial setup.

[@jeffery1524]

You're forgetting Japan and China wear masks to protect themselves from pollution. Who will regulate them?

[@VNtergon]

Wrong. Electric plants that run on Gas use the same type of turbines to spin their generators as used in jet planes (without the afterburner). So their thermal efficiency is about the same. They dont however use any sort of catalytic converters. So cars are much much much cleaner.

[@VNtergon]

@@Kev2980 and what about the efficiency of generating that electricity and then transporting it and then charging you car? Try to account those.

[@Kev2980]

@@VNtergon accounted for, you can look it up, up to 90 is the efficiency of logistics of energy all the way to your wheels. Creating electric energy, storing it, transferring it, and charging your car is much much more energy efficient than transporting gasoline and burning it inside an engine

[@vanchick3262]

I have been living alone, tiny and "off grid" for 3 1/2 years and learned a great deal about what self sufficiency means. I still buy food at the grocery store and rely on both propane & gas for heating & cooking. I would like to switch to using wood for heat although at least during winter months I will still need a generator because solar power is not available during snow storms when panels are covered and the sun is not shining. Cutting back on fossil fuel consumption and living within our means in an appropriate sized dwelling for the size of our family while curtailing waste and promoting self sufficiency is a trend right now and I whole heartedly support it since I know how well it can work. I hope we can all be part of the solution not the problem.

[@johnnelligan7093]

Love it! Wood is the best renewable source of energy. It's clean too.

[@Wis_Dom]

I wish i could live off the grid. I love the convenience of living near the the city, but i hate people. If that makes any sense, lol.

[@allennolden8735]

The mechanical battery they made looked fairly interesting. I'd be curious how well it works over time.

[@RPRIMICI]

I thought this discussion was headed towards the Solar Two solar project (built in 1995). It uses sunlight focused or concentrated on salt. The sunlight's heat makes the salt molten and the molten salt is used as an energy storage medium. In 2011, the Solar Tres in Spain became the first commercial solar power plant of its kind. The molten salt is used to heat water into steam for steam turbine generators and since the molten salt is able to retain intense heat long enough, the salt is able to generate power 24 hours per day.

[@larryjankowski2923]

I believe it was shut down. It was killin =g birds that flew into the concentrating beam and were being killed, and sometimes even vaporized.

[@chiphill4856]

The idea is still being worked. Remember,her we are in the early stages of developing an entirely new energy system from harvesting, to distribution, to consumption. Try and open your mind up to the posibilities.

[@catherinerobbins1943]

Happy Earth Day!!!

[@ejmtv3]

Can you explain the part where NDT said we don't need Earth Day?

[@mfdonkey2952]

man o man what a show! i cant believe its a 14 min video, it only felt like 5! you guys rock out! educational, funny and serious! we need more people on this planet like you two guys, thank you kindly for what you's do!!!!

[@spookyninja4098]

Hey Neil - still living in Denial of the UFO evidence released by the US Navy just this week showing UFOs checking out the USS Russell and USS Omaha as verified by the Pentagon as real. True science is exploring All the evidence

[@crutchgecko]

NDT speaks so slowly I put the replay speed on x1.75 so I can get more of him.

[@geofru]

​@crutchgecko yes. Too much time on the entertainment and so I finally went to 1.75 to gather some facts. Could have done much more in the time to cover obstacles to going more renewable energy.

[@jeffreyryan7671]

The obstacles of renewable energy is that they lack energy density, And they create more greenhouse gasses than they save. @@geofru

[@mindblown42069]

First time watching these two together, wasn’t expecting this to be so funny. Loved it.

[@BrookseyJay]

They become lovers

[@TommyFlanagan666]

@@BrookseyJay I was going to scold you for this comment but then I chuckled at it and lost all credibility. Damn you, BrookseyJay! 😂

[@BrookseyJay]

@@TommyFlanagan666 thank God I was starting to lose hope that we still had a sense of humor!😁

[@rodmcc91306]

This is the best argument for alternative power sources I've ever heard. Thank you so much.

[@steve-o6413]

Inspiring talk about Energy, thank you for having this conversation...

[@carcar5984]

It's moronic libtard propaganda from another brain dead celebrity. He conveniently totally ignores all the reasons that going electric is completely impractical. Just a few glaring problems are 1) you can't fill a jerry can with electricity and take it to a remote location, so a very expensive power grid is required for everything. 2) I live in Fl, so hurricanes knocking out power for weeks is a pretty common thing. It would be quite hard for the bucket trucks to take the line workers to fix the power of their trucks can't be charged. But add earthquakes to that, too. 3) what about all the pollution necessary to mine and refine the rare earth elements needed to make those electric car batteries? Their environmental impact is FAR higher than even a coal power plant. Then it gets thrown into a landfill to toxify the earth. 3 major reasons an electric reliant society would be crippled on a regular basis with no outside interference from anything but mother nature, but this 'scientist' couldn't manage to consider even a single one? I used to really respect this guy, but since Trump got elected he has chipped away at his credibility until none remains. He is a joke. An embarrassment of his former self. He has zero respect for science so I have zero respect for him as a scientist

[@zvishineweather8962]

@@carcar5984 Yes, he dropped the ball on this one, but your withering criticism of him is wrong.

[@ViratKohli-jj3wj]

@@carcar5984 hello moronic peasant

[@ViratKohli-jj3wj]

@@carcar5984 did you even see the video, he never even said to go all electric, infact he was explaining something completely different from what you have written here

[@mjolnirswrath23]

@@carcar5984 what they don't even address is the fact that we're going into another 12,000-year cycle where the sun is just going to basically tear our atmosphere off but you know they don't address what a Carrington event would do to just about everything electrical today and how we're right on the cusp of one in fact we're being hit right now with three solar flares and it's just now ramping up to more

[@RC-fp1tl]

Neil forgot to mention that even an electric car that got its power from 100% fossil fuels still has less direct/indirect emissions per mile than a internal combustion engine car. Just food for thought.

[@thanosaias2717]

It's the other way around

[@brianjc85]

@@thanosaias2717 not unless the car is doing better than 88 mpg. Just one reference of many. www.ucsusa.org/sites/default/files/2020-05/evs-cleaner-than-gasoline.pdf

[@niko7496]

the biggest factor here is that 50% of a car's carbon footprint is already emitted before it leaves the factory. electric cars however have a much shorter lifetime.

[@robfj3414]

@@niko7496 The evidence so far says otherwise.

[@erikk77]

@@thanosaias2717 No it's not. A gasoline engine car has an energy efficiency of about 20 to 30%, Modern turbo diesel trucks 55%, Electric cars about 75 to 85%. With an electric motor car there's less wasted heat and don't have a gearbox (with all the wasted friction and drag).

[@chrishvs]

Curious to get this info. Per unit of energy in order to create the electricity from a coal plant as used by an electric vehicle, compared to a fuel combustion car with equivalent EPA measure.

[@killianmichael8880]

I love watching you both. Quick mind and quick wit working together.

[@Mikey2313.]

Not sure those two things are different.

[@solomonraj_sr]

"Generations to come will be proud of what we have done for them rather than ashamed." -Neil deGrasse Tyson

[@yutubvlogs8889]

That was deep

[@Forgan_Mreeman]

i nearly teared up

[@Morristown337]

we need to follow up on break thrus with new cleaner nuclear power options. Thorium fueled nuclear reactors when perfected may be the cleanest we can hope to replace. This also backs up my idea that global warming is exagerated greatly to better prepare us for the complete end of oil within 51 years natural gas is gone is 53 and coal will last up to 100 more years. SO its worse for the environment but it will better prepare us for the collapse of the bronze age times 20.

[@HxTurtle]

@@Morristown337 it's funny. in the past, we did run out of oil about 250 times so far (it just surprisingly never really happened.) after this massive "disappointment," to not repeat the same mistake again, we just call an arbitrary date in the future that's far enough away to not hold accountable for having been wrong again, lol.

[@cbeserra]

No comments on batteries?

[@PawlSpring]

The salt story is entertaining and useful to fully explain the metaphor. Well done!

[@dennisrowan1704]

Technologogical improvement bringing obsolescence of a previous age. Age of scarce salt repleced by abundant salt. Age of scarce cartel controlled fossil fuels replaced by abundant renewable energy, hydro, sun, wind, tidal, geothermal, fuel cells et al...cost of energy dropping...but fossil fuel propagande trying to avoid stranded FF assets.

[@jeffcows7563]

It's a lie my mom canned lots of food for the winter and only used salt for flavor. Get your facts rite.

[@JamieTransNyc]

@@jeffcows7563 It is not a lie, for thousands of years, salt was the only way to preserve food. Nations like Rome would go to war to establish control of salt.

[@checoregalado]

I so much enjoy these two guys, one with such good ideas and a different vision and the other smart, funny. So much entertainment.

[@davidreidenberg9013]

Let’s not forget that even though the process of generating the electricity usually involves burning something somewhere, the efficiency of the power plant is greater than the efficiency of burning the gasoline in an internal combustion engine. Moreover, the process by which the oil is distilled into gasoline and the manner which that gasoline gets in the tank has an environmental impact.

[@stevecampbell7620]

kzbin.infostf2YrznkZU

[@stevecampbell7620]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJDdgWCZm9utqJI

[@stevecampbell7620]

www.youtube.com/@RobertBryce

[@stevecampbell7620]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/nF6yZqOfmaqpo68

[@stevecampbell7620]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/nF6yZqOfmaqpo68

[@sloanemichaele]

Fun video with great perspective. As an electric power enthusiast since the early 70's, this transition to electric power in so many areas is very exciting. @neildegrassetyson, as the transition to electric power is underway, how do we factor in the global environmental costs of battery production and transportation into this discussion?

[@FayazShaikh]

And are we have enough renewable sources to meet demands of complete electrification? Every drop of oil will be burned until it's the last one....

[@lisat9707]

He did touch on this in a very interesting way. He basically said battery tech is Old. We need to put our brains to work solving that inefficient and problem causing issue.

[@averyfinewoman]

Love your explanations that are easy to understand. I would like to hear more about electric cars (waste products, used batteries, etc...).

[@kingz42]

Do a search in KZbin for cobalt mines in Congo. Heart wrenching.

[@markrickel1632]

Chuck is hilarious. Bathe with a toaster when things are bad was awesome on the fly. Brilliant.

[@jamessomerson]

During the "spice trade" pepper was more valuable than gold by weight, and was actually a form of physical currency btw.

[@OmniphonProductions]

...and now, thanks to Neil and Chuck, I understand what it means to be "worth your salt"...and how it pertains directly to earning one's salary. I also understand how, in the long term, electric cars _today_ lay the groundwork for ending fossil fuel dependence in the _future,_ even while still largely dependent on coal-burning power plants _currently._ (No electrical pun intended.)

[@NeetchianQueen]

that phrase is from history. similar to currant analogies like Tossing the Salt for who gets the football at the beginning of the game.

[@patrickmcdaniel2845]

Also keep in mind how that coal is transported to the power generation plants………diesel burning trains…….which leads us back to fossil fuels.

[@denniss1211]

Understandable statement after watching this vid.... BUT ... This is a statement from the ages when salt was life... like stated in the vid. Soooo "worth your salt" means "worthless".

[@OmniphonProductions]

@@denniss1211 Many phrases from antiquity still survive in modern vernacular. The situations they reference may no longer apply, but that doesn't necessarily change the meaning of the phrases themselves. Then again, many people still say, "Bless you," when somebody sneezes...having no idea why. In that case...as with, "Worth your salt," the _general_ sentiment is maintained, even while awareness of its _root_ is lost over time. For that matter, the etymological basis of, "Goodbye," is absent for most people who say it, even those who are generally religious. Linguistic Evolution is just one fascinating subset of Evolution in general. Yes?

[@pepawlowski]

Neil never mentions that every electric machine today depends on cobolt. 74% of all cobolt comes from the Congo. And that story isn’t pleasant. Unless this resource is intended to tie the world over until something else, oil will be consumed for a long long while.

[@asajayunknown6290]

Fission reactors REALLY need to be included in these conversations, especially the thorium versions, and/or small reactors (like in US submarines). I completely understand the desire for "magic bullet" solutions, but the current "green" solutions are far from environmentally friendly. Yes, thorium would have some radiation issues, but nothing anywhere near the volume, meltdown, and half-life issues with uranium reactors.

[@joeelliott2157]

Fission needs to be more seriously considered, and not just automatically rejected, as we have done over the last several decades. Is fission really worst than other options, like coal, natural gas or gasoline? Solar, hydroelectric, wind, tidal power, just don't meet the demand. The difference can only be made up burning fossil fuels, or reducing our demand for power (which isn't going to happen in America, let alone the rest of the world), or using Fission. At least with today's technology.

[@jamesjohnson3910]

Remember were dealing and learning about alternatives. Alternatives! Not solutions. Just alternatives. Less reliance upon an uncontrollable substance replacing it with more cost effective IN THE LONG RUN less environmental impact. Yes, less, not none but less. Reduced if you like that word better. But nevertheless, a step in the right direction. Many owners of alternative powered vehicles wouldn't go back to the old tech of the ICE. And please don't start with vehicle fires. The NHTSA has released the numbers on that. 100,000 gas cars, 1500 fires. 100,000 electric cars 25 fires. Um yeah, math doesn't watch Fox News I guess.

[@asajayunknown6290]

@@jamesjohnson3910 I think you had a Freudian-like slip. Uncontrollable? Do you know anything about thorium reactors? No need for cooling towers and fresh water. The reaction stops and starts basically at will. No chance of meltdown. And I find your lack of concern about thermal runaway with lithium to be "interesting." Two ships now, burning uncontrollably, one at the bottom of the Atlantic, the other about to be. Completely environmentally friendly? I think not. All forms of alternatives to fossil fuels should be considered. Not just the politically correct versions.

[@gigglehertz]

The military and NASA have a virtual blank check to power their vehicles like submarines and deep space probes. Anything is possible if money is no object. Nuclear is the most expensive way of producing electricity, and that's with government subsidized insurance. The reality is it needs to be cheaper than fossil fuels or there will be no perceived advantage to transitioning to green power by the majority of Americans. Solar and onshore wind already beat coal on cost and gas on cost, and it's just a matter of time before adding batteries to solve intermitency also wins on cost. When that happens it will be businesses and consumers that make the transition, not governments and environmentalists. That day is very fast approaching as there is around a dozen or so major battery factories in various stages of planning or construction right now.

[@johncmitchell4941]

I suspect the uranium nuclear status quo won't give in to the advantages of thorium reactors until/unless fusion becomes feasible and threatens to make fission as we know it obsolete.

[@ghandimauler]

My mother's father worked in a Scots coal mine. For the 3rd shift in a row (a bad event underway), my mom brought down his food for her dad for the 3rd shift. In payment of the overtime, the overseer sent my grandfather home with a cabbage. My mom's mum thought that was great. Talk about working for cabbage....

[@cogentdynamics]

Speaking on the overall efficiency picture would be interesting. Transportation, generation and regeneration are but some of the factors. It would be a complex but interesting comparison.

[@KenIn_NH]

Always great content from a year or so ago but with electric rates nearly tripling in the northeast (US) I can tell you I'm MUCH more aware of where my electricity comes from today! 😫

[@Dave-ty2qp]

So after listening for 15 minutes what did we really learn? Nothing new. It still takes fuel to male electricity. Wind and solar can't cover the loss of nuclear, and fossil fuels, so now What? Changing the status of Pluto didn't change its orbit, or influence. It is still Pluto. LOL

[@mikep490]

@@Easy-dk2dp Yes, from "fossil" plants.

[@davidbaldwin7733]

He doesn't dare say that electric vehicles create much more pollution than internal combustion vehicles over its life(production, usage, disposal).

[@HollywoodCowboy]

@@mikep490 Hello Mike. I have a question for you. I know that's what people are taught. (Oil comes from plants.) Can you show us any plant fossils in the crude oil? I would love to see some pictures. I'm not talking deposits in tar pit either... Let's take a different track. Was the Great Oxygenating Event caused by plants or other organisms? 🤯

[@peterlip8]

@@davidbaldwin7733 I've heard this theory, but also heard this theory debunked. Depends on who you believe. I believe that ICE & EVs will be pretty much line ball for the whole life cycle of the car if the electricity source is 100% sourced from fossil fuels. The greener the power sourse, the bigger the win for EVs. Given the future is moving greener for our electricity production, this will only skew in favour of EVs going forward. The other side affect of going green, is better air quality in our cities. Can't happen soon enough in my eyes.

[@jeff6555]

Does order of operations matter? Is it better to clean the energy mix first and THEN update cars? It seems that the current process of slowly replacing the automobile fleet while also greening the electrical supply seems the most efficient to me.

[@sschmidt1775]

This really opened my eyes! as Neil says himself, from the book Turning Oil into Salt. I was thinking too close minded about just the CO2 etc.. So it is about having an alternative to oil. I understand that it is important getting strategically less dependent. But it also allows alternatives sources to grow slowly.

[@jasonberry3820]

Nuclear power is still the most efficient and cost effective power generation source.

[@ranjanagosavi4735]

Loved to hear nuclear. One of the cleanest sources of energy

[@Hyperpandas]

In terms of ghg emissions, sure. Does have a bit of a waste problem though.

[@ranjanagosavi4735]

@@Hyperpandas yeah. But it does go deep underground and lie there, almost where it came from. Right?

[@Hyperpandas]

@@ranjanagosavi4735 Not quite. Accidents can happen in transport and storage.

[@papagrounds]

Neil really can put it so that anyone can understand what's going on. Let's make oil the new salt!

[@berk6240]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/iYmznoWJfdlrbMU

[@harimsn]

@@berk6240 nonnegative b Lvbxove as ay

[@hauoliakua]

I live in an area where electric vehicles don't really make sense. Not enough charging stations and so cold in winter 1/4 the year that they lose a lot of that already small range. But I hope it gets sorted out. Because my area also shows up on the "worst air quality in the country\world" lists too often. I'd love to get to a point where all vehicle emissions could be offloaded to the power company (and simplifying how to deal with emissions at a single source).

[@trainmaster0217]

Star Talk....what a great, great show. Love the humor. Neil is the best.

[@commenterperson4481]

_7:20__ "You used to be hot, SALT. No longer. __-Now it's Chipotle-__ Now you are just SALTY!!"_

[@evangaudet]

Neil is the greatest story teller of all time. I want him to tell me the story of Excalibur. I want to hear Neil teach me about investing finances.

[@xMarble]

Neil has the type of voice that fits right in with Morgan Freeman's voice. Great for story telling ♥

[@Poppageno]

Check out the Nick Zentner channel and hear geologic stories!

[@codyporche98]

He is a decent story teller. Not the best of all time. That is my opinion.

[@jasonsniderman7803]

Love how he explains how it’s not primarily about the environment but rather to break the dependency on oil. Electricity can be generated by many sources.

[@JustinLodes]

Yeah for sure. I’m in the process of going solar now

[@BrookseyJay]

I wonder if there’s another energy other than electricity because that’s what we are dependent on

[@martinlaird9712]

It takes one double V12 diesel digger running for a full day To mine lithium for enough batteries for 2 cars! That digger runs on oil. Oil is required even for plastics!

[@beyondfossil]

​@@martinlaird9712 Sure, but the final goal the global energy transition is that even that double V12 diesel digger will be replaced with something electric. Realize that we're *currently* in the middle of the energy transition and it is accelerating. To be clear, just because there currently exists _both_ renewables and fossil fuels at the moment does _not_ mean any failure of renewables. Because the transition takes time (years) in order transition smoothly with minimal economic disruption. Moreover, every unit of renewable energy technology manufactured helps dismantle fossil fuel hegemony bit by bit. In that way, using fossil fuels to create more renewable energy products is actually *the best* use for fossil fuels! OTOH, one of the *worst ways* to use fossil fuels is within an internal combustion engine (ICE) car. It has an appalling nominal efficiency of 20% where a whopping 80% of it is lost to heat! All along with lots of toxic emissions blown right into our faces in the neighborhoods where we live, play, and work. Furthermore, burning just 1-gallon of gasoline produces an astonishing 20lbs of CO₂. That doesn't even include the massive 24x7x365 ongoing global effort of people, machinery, finances and investments to explore, drill, transport, refine, transport again that fuel to get to gas station all before a _single drop_ of it is burnt for energy. The ICE car needs to eliminated ASAP and that is the first big domino to fall in bringing down the fossil fuel hegemony. Note that plastics are *tiny* portion of the total daily oil use of some 100-million barrels *per day* burnt up for energy in a one-time effectively irreversible process. Moreover, there are growing alternatives to plastics by the way of bio-plastics derived from plant based sources. Bioplastics are going to be especially vital for the food industry for one-time use utensils and packaging since bioplastics degrade quickly and naturally.

[@msandersen]

@@BrookseyJayThere’s a variety; energy can for instance be stored as potential energy, eg pumped hydro, as another form of chemical, eg using generated electricity to make hydrogen which can be transported and stored. Batteries can use many types of materials and chemicals, not just lithium which are currently used for their high energy density and compactness in mobile devices, neither of which are critical in mains battery storage, eg nickel-hydrogen or nickel-cadmium.

[@yellowboxster06]

Good points all. Not having a dependence on oil certainly may reduce the potential for oil-supply related wars. Still, we have raw material sourcing issues for our current battery technology, and these logistical issues alone cold potentially create tensions around the globe as oil has. Admittedly these issues could go away if our current trends in battery technology keeps going in the right direction. Other infrastructure issues I see include extending (or upgrading) the electric transmission line network to make sure more rural areas of the country don’t get overlooked. Obviously there are a myriad of other issues to work out as well. I suppose sooner or later the government will figure out a way to tax us for electric vehicle use to offset the oil revenue loss. In the end we’ll likely be a “greener” environment but I wouldn’t expect everyday people to actually gain much in the process except learning new trip-planning skills and paying higher car payments until we establish a new normal so to speak. Great video.

[@cassandramcdavid]

Theres an old saying that "he isn't worth his salt". I hadn't thought of the salt trade in a long time. Thank you

[@Blue_3rd]

But he’s the salt of the earth 😃

[@iareid8255]

Cassandra, the romans, I think it was, paid their army in salt and that is how we get salry as term for payment for work done.

[@MidnightBlackHawk]

Neil Talks are always refreshing. Thank you for what you do Sir!

[@spookyninja4098]

Hey Neil - still living in Denial of the UFO evidence released by the US Navy just this week showing UFOs checking out the USS Russell and USS Omaha as verified by the Pentagon as real. True science is exploring All the evidence

[@davidc2838]

I don't know...Neil seemed a little "Salty" today! ;-)

[@fredmidtgaard5487]

These brothers really know how to explain stuff! Love it!

[@timking2822]

Wow! Excellent overview putting the EV trend into perspective. While it's not perfect, it offers a new direction with a future.

[@ebred76]

That’s very optimistic. What exactly are you willing to sacrifice to achieve that perspective.

[@Piorze]

Plus, even if the power plant uses fossil fuels to generate the electricity for your car, it does so with easily double the energy efficiency than a regular car engine.

[@Tore_Lund]

No IT does not! Physics Works the same at the powerplant! A kWh produced in the US has in average a footprint og 450g CO2, which means a Tesla emits 110g CO2/mile! A compact diesel, as popular in Europe emits 145g CO2 Per mile, but a Tesla in Europe, only emits 80g CO2/mile, or 7g CO2 in Norway, because our Grids are cleaner! So if you own a Tesla in the US, it is never going to recoup its manufacturing emissions, before you get rid of your goal fired plants.

[@user-yn5sk5ru5g]

@@Tore_Lund nice stats. Source? A the grid will get greener, a diesel will not. Additionally, do you want diesel exhaust in your neigbourhood poisening your kids, or in a powerplant where its away from people and the gases can be easily scrubbed. Anyway. EV is better, even when coal is used for electricity

[@jpdemer5]

@@Tore_Lund Efficiency, not physics, is what matters... and powerplants are much more efficient than gasoline or diesel engines, which waste (as heat) more than half the energy put into them. And conventional vehicles have comparable emissions costs in their manufacture, which you don't "recover", whatever that even means.

[@mjolnirswrath23]

@@user-yn5sk5ru5g now they speak to me about how toxic lithium is? Do you even know that as you're charging something you're actually being exposed to outgassing lithium? No I suppose you didn't you're just trading one toxin for a more unstable more toxic substance of which where are you going to mine all this lithium because I don't think you understand where lithium actually is and where it's mine from or how destructive lithium mining is go look up a lithium mine and look at the pictures of it now realize that most of the lithiums reserves in the world are in former or current rainforests and the process to extract it is fracking

[@davidc2838]

@@Tore_Lund You're inaccurate and we've already nearly gotten rid of the coal plants. 19% of electricity came from coal in 2020 in the US...and they're shutting down plants across the country at faster and faster rates...mostly due to the economic inefficiency...but that's fine too.

[@FishyFelix]

Personal vehicles make a small percentage of the oil and gas used to power them. It’s the shipping tankers, jet planes and semi trucks that are the highest consumers of oil. Also, you can’t forget mining equipment. We’re far from being oil independent and we need a huge leap in battery technology to be able to go fully electric.

[@VivekaDSV]

Divide consumption by actual work done and private cars moving one oerson at a time will skyrocket. Plus, I'd factor in heating as well

[@FishyFelix]

@Mark Bohm I myself use a kerosene heater for assisted heat source at home. Power frequently goes out and kerosene heaters don’t need electricity to run.

[@HCkev]

Personal vehicles electrification is just one step, it's not the end-all solution. Eventually we'll be able to move to alternative ways of powering all what you mentioned(note that we're already working on the transition of semi-trucks). The wheel needed to be invented before the car could be invented.

[@FishyFelix]

@@HCkev I understand steps need to be taken but why go after the smallest carbon producing problem? Why not go after factories or big manufacturing plants? The Walmart centre in your neighbourhood produces more carbon and all the vehicles in the town.

[@denniss1211]

@@FishyFelix Where do you think kerosene comes from?

[@darwindemartelaere3195]

Excellent delivery of information in a way anyone could understand. Side note: as far as oil on French fries, you've never eaten poutine, lol.

[@D0li0]

I'm so glad to have finally had someone else mention that wind and hydro are also forms of solar energy!!! It's simply a matter of the time delay. PV solar is ~8minutes new photons. Wind is a few days old to be the built up thermal differentials. And hydro a few weeks or months or annual snowpack from rain amd snowfall. And even other biomass and fossil fuels are solar powered, just on years to milenia long time frames and also much lower efficiencies. As they all begin with photosynthesis at ~1~3% conversion efficiency, and fossil conversion is as low as 0.0008% efficiency (photon to ICE car wheel). Versus about ~36% for wind photon to BEV wheel, or ~10% for solar PV (based on EROI power factor) photon to wheel...

[@GK-qc5ry]

I thought this was going to be a discussion about the carbon footprint of making an electric car and mining the metals for the batteries.

[@daviclar867]

Yeah, would have been better with just the genius.

[@davidc2838]

Did you read the headline??

[@jensconcepts671]

I thought that was were he was heading with the battery 150 year old technology and the need to do better

[@davidc2838]

@@jensconcepts671 They've already gotten better, faster, cheaper and much larger production volume. They're already driving the costs lower...doing better every year. ICE engines are not.

[@mahmoudali6605]

You guys rock!!! Neil, thank you for being open minded, peaceful, and inspiring so many people. I'm sure you have made a difference in many lives, but i know that You have made a difference in one life, mine.

[@j.d.o.453]

that so cool. how?

[@mahmoudali6605]

​@@j.d.o.453Inspired me to take off some filters that held me back in opening my mind further. I'm seeing from a new perspective and want to explore and discover what research can examine.

[@j.d.o.453]

@@mahmoudali6605 With so much at stake, I would hope for a think tank focused on that. Not how to smear the other side before some election.

[@BogdanBaudis]

In the old country under old system working in my proper profession I could only starve so I took ODD jobs. One of them was cleaning the coal dust chutes in the coal-fired power plant. 1st: the coal ALWAYS burns, there maybe no flames but the coal dust oxidizes all the time and this heats it up, so we learned to fashion wooden planks under our work-boots . 2nd: if it is hot enough so you really cannot touch it will melt the nylon, and if the rope on which you are hanging on in the chute is from nylon ... try not to have the rope touching the dust deposits ... 3rd: the dust deposits are because the dust gets water-sprayed in storage (to prevent the open flames), this causes it to bake to the chute until the chute is blocked, since the dust is wet and hot the working environment is that of wet sauna (Russian: bania); just lovely (no more than 30 minutes in the chute, 3 liters of water to drink per shift). 4th: the fire chamber underneath is pressurized, normally no problem if there is enough dust in the chute, so the weigh of the dust balances the pressure from the fireplace, but at some point the chute is empty and there is just a barrier of interlocking movable bars keeping the inferno from turning you into dust (ash) but barely so; they (plant operators) HATE turning the fire off and there is a small chute past the bars to keep the fire going for about 1/2 hour and block the actual fire reaching the bars (which would hold for 5 minutes, tops). It is a GREAT MOTIVATOR to work FAST. Conclusions: 1 - Even if we have to burn something, burning oil or gas seems immensely better solution. Not burning any of it even better. 2 - The logical conclusion for the coal fired plant when it needs major fixing is research the option of converting to oil or gas, if that is not applicable: lots of dynamite, after that: a tall fence for a decade or so. If oil/gas conversion is applicable, it still should end with lots of dynamite and the tall fence. 3 - Anybody who wants to "keep the jobs" and dig the stuff and burn it, must be BRAIN-DAMAGED.

[@rodirichwuda3438]

What conduit articulates the purposes by which such a transition of sources can change and also harm our present tole and distribution of coinciding energies?

[@quantum_shhhhart]

some people talk trash how Neil interrupts people.. the level of his PASSION gives me infinite space for his need to just let out his thoughts.

[@kevocaudillo4564]

Most people need interupted!!! Especially when Neil is tringn to get a point accross in a limited amount of time.

[@peterdorn5799]

when neil started talking salt, thought he would pivot to molten salt reactors, developed in the 60's at oakridge national laboratory

[@koori3085]

Was expecting the same.

[@peterdorn5799]

@@koori3085 glad to have you on the advocating team, I look for opportunities to tell the story as often as possible

[@koori3085]

@@peterdorn5799 never understood, if you could use the fuel as a coolant and cut one loop out of the design, just seems like a win-win situation. Political pressure put a stop to them?

[@holly50575]

Thank you! I had no idea this was an option for the world!!!!! I actually feel a great sense of relief after reading more about this!

[@vardenfell971]

its shocking how little the public knows of these old school reactors. safer than anything else.

[@lhwong7906]

Imagine if everything runs on electric, even if the power plants runs on fossil fuels, it'll be way easier to design some kind of carbon capture or any other kind of device that can reduce the pollution impacts of burning fuel for electricity generation because all the emissions are at the same place.

[@rayp7135]

The issue is what is cleaner a coal fired production and delivery of a KW or the same amount of energy produced by an internal combustion engine? Also, the electric production and delivery can be continuously improved and further cleaned up.

[@VictorValdes1fcb]

Been waiting all week for this

[@GhettoHuerta]

Teslas energy business is partly focused on storing energy!! This is so important

[@steve-o6413]

Maybe one day we won't need to store it, but that day isn't Today...

[@GhettoHuerta]

@@steve-o6413 Why wouldn’t you ever want to store it? It’s extra energy you can save for bad days and transfer to places that need it

[@user-yt2xv1gs7l]

@@GhettoHuerta Imagine a planet GRID where australia could produce electricity for the united states and the other way around, maybe efficiency over the transport could drop but that would be so cool( no need to store)

[@johnblumeraitis2475]

Storing energy is essential to travel. Imagine the stored energy required to leave this star system, travel to another and come back.

[@mdombroski]

Saying the sun is giving you free energy is like saying the oceans are giving you free drinking water.

[@sixstanger00]

Well no, it's not. Somebody flunked science class, I see. The Sun literally radiates energy. Sunlight IS energy. That is not the same as the ocean giving you free drinking water because sea water must be desalinated. You don't need to do anything to sunlight other than COLLECT IT.

[@braderickson4390]

Great points! Where’d you get your artwork behind you?

[@theinterruptedlife1783]

These episodes are pure gold (or in the spirit of this episode, "data"). Thank you Mr.Tyson and Chuck.

[@Justin-gv3lp]

He mentioned wind and hydroelectric are actually solar power. Technically fossil fuels are solar power as well. The organic matter that makes up fossil fuels originally got their energy from the sun too, it’s just been stored in the earth’s crust for millions of years.

[@chakawoowoo]

All energy consumption in earth is direct or stored solar energy. The sun is the source of all energy in any form period

[@antcowan]

@@chakawoowoo except nuclear and geothermal.

[@biomed007]

Yes I did not like that statement, because those are independent forms of energy at this point, because even in a series of cloudy days you will still have the wind and hydro.

[@sonofole739]

@@antcowan Sorry, I cant resist... As Niel loves to say, the heavy atoms of nuclear power and thorium that powers geothermal are also solar sourced (just from a different star) since anything other than hydrogen is stardust.

[@bikerdog2b]

What is the difference between bio fuel and crude oil? Both are plant matter and we are green washed to believe bio fuel is somehow cleaner because we processed it instead of the earth.

[@jearl1272]

Please cover the inefficiency of electrical transmission over wire. Undiscussed problem with electrical loss due to line resistance. A few years ago it was 40%+. Better now?

[@nullvoid001]

I have huge respect for Neil deGrasse Tyson and love his sense of humor, and the way he is able to break things down in a manner that most can understand. What frustrates me at times is that often, hopefully just due to time constraints that many side issues are ignored or overlooked. Examples are things like, we get so much more from crude oil than gasoline. Oil is required to lubricate the gearboxes in wind turbines, grease is required to lubricate turbines in hydro-electric power stations, many medicines come from distillates etc, etc. Would love to hear his perspective on things like that and how much mining is required to extract the minerals and ore required for current battery mnufacturing, not to mention the forward effects.

[@valoriethechemist]

Yes!! Thank you. I’ve been saying salts one of the oldest known and used preservatives. Makes me chuckle a little when a product says “preservative free” and contains a ton of salt or vinegar :)

[@furikakez]

“Preservative free” means it doesn’t have any artificial chemical substance that prevents it from spoiling. It doesn’t count any natural preservatives like salt, sugar, etc.

[@valoriethechemist]

@@furikakez Yes... I’m quite aware... that’s what I mean. It’s all just marketing BS.

[@birdy4life]

also baking soda :)

[@GhettoHuerta]

Economics!!! The study of the use of scarce recourses which have alternative uses.

[@Mark-gl2fz]

Hello, great show, if you multiply the efficiency of conversion in a power plant times the efficiency of the electric vehicle, it is significantly better than the efficiency of a gas car burning the same fuel

[@andregosselin9170]

Great content. I appreciate your great mind! My question to you is, without crude oil, how are we to lubricate machinery and moving parts?

[@dmandman9]

The amount of crude needed to lubricate parts is miniscule compared the amount needed to fuel engines. It's compared to using pounds of salt to preserve food to last months without refrigeration vs using a few spoonfuls season a chicken

[@andregosselin9170]

@@dmandman9 :) I can always agree with you. How do you feel about the resources it takes to make batteries. What is to happen with old batteries that can no longer be recycled? I would like to see an innovator in the US pick up on the air compressed engine.

[@dmandman9]

@@andregosselin9170 batteries can be recycled. There are companies that are forming more and more that are into recycling these batteries as the market develops. As for mining, yes, that needs to be made more environmentally friendly. But in truth, the petroleum we currently use has environmental effects from drilling, to transporting it, to consumption. Also, it seems as though when I answered your question, you shifted the goalposts.😅. And even factoring in when the electricity is generated using fossil fuels, the EVs are still more environmentally friendly. But as electric power production becomes cleaner, EVERY EV that is currently on the road becomes cleaner by default. But a petroleum fueled vehicle meets the environmental standards effective when it was produced. It never becomes cleaner. Again, when a cleaner source of electricity generation is used, ALL EVs using the electricity generated by that power station become cleaner by default. Another thing, although not ready yet, alternative battery materials are being developed that are more environmentally friendly than cobalt and lithium. Hopefully, they’ll be ready soon. But even today lithium and cobalt mining can be made more environmentally friendly just like they made other forms of mining less damaging in the USA. By the way, it’s interesting that some of the people who oppose better workplace safety standards, oppose stronger environmental laws, and oppose raising the minimum wage in the USA are all of a sudden sooooo concerned about dangerous workplace conditions, environmental damage, and low wages of people half way around the world. Yes, we SHOULD be concerned. But when people oppose bettering the conditions for those next door to them while CLAIMING concern for others, I tend to not believe they really care. Call me skeptical 🤨

[@szatmaritomi9387]

Interesting talk about energy, thank you for having this conservation 😉

[@evanstevens8021]

we're electric beings

[@marcelo.n]

Guys, both of you, LOVE the channel - and surely, your interactions. Thanks for all the "funinfomative" videos!

[@TroyNaumu808]

I love listening to Mr. Neil deGrasse Tyson. It is so enlightening and educational.

[@Workerbee-zy5nx]

K..

[@BrookseyJay]

Do you mean for a black man? Sounds like that’s the direction you were heading

[@robertlezama1958]

​@@BrookseyJayWhen I read between the lines like you're doing here, I gather you are trying to start something ... how did you come to that conclusion?

[@rickypen]

You mean Dr Neil DeGrasse Tyson yes? Or professor! Don't demote the man!

[@Workerbee-zy5nx]

@@rickypen 🤣

[@1234567marks]

I’d like to thank you guys for this series of videos, I’m in a long convalescence following major surgery and boredom is a real PIA, however the informative and humorous way that you present the various topics is both fascinating and entertaining, really helps me pass the time, terrific work, thanks very much 👍👍👍👍

[@davidnovakovich5583]

I think it’s absurd to think of being ashamed because we harnessed the power of fossil fuels. Without fossil fuels any other power technology couldn’t have come about. I think it’s wise to look at the use of fossil fuels as a limited resource, and a huge mistake to think of it only in terms of the brain washed carbon footprint lies. Hydro is probably the least impactful to the environment overall longterm. I’ve felt for decades that to be able to somehow tap into the massive power of the sun in a far greater way than now possible or practical would be awesome. And let’s not get so blinded by the green ideology that we forget that defending our once great country (that is now in an extremely dangerous decline) will necessarily be dependent on fossil fuels for the foreseeable future.

[@CrazyGaming-ig6qq]

I LOVE these videos, cool detailed scientific information in a happy fun atmosphere, that most people can understand. Something that wasnt mentioned is how much less efficient a small combustion engine, like in a car, is versus a power plant. It's a huge difference, it's vastly more energy efficient.

[@rcircle2008]

Every single motor vehicle needs electricity to operate. Oil needs electricity to get out of the ground and get to refiners to get it to the mixing stations that mix with ethanol (which also takes electricity). EVs are cleaner even when they are off from coal. And coal-fired plants are going away and being replaced largely with natural gas which is really efficient and really clean.

[@jimmcintosh3718]

You guys are having altogether too much fun. But then, so are we. Keep it up. Humor is a great educational force multiplier.

[@martinishot]

Very few people want to talk about what the power usage is and the footbridge left behind in building a car, any car. We are actually better off if people just get existing cars to last as long as possible.

[@kevinyoutsey79]

Happy Earth Day 🌎

[@ejmtv3]

Can you explain the part where NDT said we don't need Earth Day?

[@thomaslane1547]

@@ejmtv3 Sure. Earth Day is about reducing pollution and negative impacts on Earth, of which we have many. If we weren't harming Earth in any way, and that was normal, we wouldn't need an Earth Day.

[@sheikhparvez]

He said we are stellar meaning we are made of cosmic dust and we belong to stars and hence Earth day is superfluous

[@JohnnyLeuthard]

That's a great explination. I never thought of it in that way, "Turning oil into salt".

[@stephenwilliams9628]

Everyone having their own personal vehicle was possibly humanities worst idea ever

[@corb555]

In many states you can decide where you want to get your power from (Fossil Fuel, or renewable). It's not a big cost difference.

[@gpsoulhunter7335]

but do you really know where its coming ? here in germany , idiots protested to close nuclear power plants and now we buy electricity from other countries who produce it with coal ...

[@corb555]

@@gpsoulhunter7335 In the US you know where power comes from (except for Texas which is not on the Federal grid). Power companies are regulated and need to have set contracts with power generators. They can't randomly switch around because they might not be able to get power when they need it and the transmission facilities might not have the capacity. Texas on the other hand has no agreed contracts ahead of time and each power company can switch to any source in Texas at any time (as long as the source agrees).

[@macc240038]

Add in the taxpayer supplied government subsidies required to make renewables competitive.

[@JustinCglass]

@@gpsoulhunter7335 im pretty sure Chernobyl had nothing to everything to do with that

[@walterjohnson3103]

you cannot decide where you get your power from, unless you are completely separated from the grid. I've worked in power generation for almost a decade. you are still getting your energy from the closest generation facility on the line. the federal government gives, "green credits" to power generation companies based off of their renewable megawatt generation. these companies can then use these credits benefits to offset their taxes for that generation. this is a way the government incentivizes renewable power. but these credits don't have to be applied directly to that generation facility. in fact, they are bought and sold on the open market like a commodity. long story short. your power comes from the same place. these companies buy green credits off the market and label the electricity you consume as "Green Power." then if they are not the local power company, they still pay the power company for the same power you always paid for. use the credits for their taxes. then charge you for the cost of the power, the credits, and a management fee.

[@nathanrocks2562]

I just love Neil's segway from cars, to salt, back to cars, and oil. The almighty black honey. Neil's comparison of the bottlenecked oil industry to the versatility of the electric industry just blew my mind. Happy Earth Day everyone! 🌎🌱🌻🌳🌊 Stay safe and keep looking up!

[@nathanrocks2562]

Yes we already invest in crypto. It's basically free money

[@vincewilson1]

Just don't look up when you walking beside a busy highway! 😁

[@punkisinthedetails1470]

"Segway"

[@alexs3187]

Segue, not one of those electric things you ride around on. 😂

[@nathanrocks2562]

@@alexs3187 thank you!

[@brighamcamper5655]

Neil- could you do the episode on the modular thorium nuclear power plant. I live in an area for the trusses power plant is out of state. And we are discussing a 4 unit thorium power plant between two cities.

[@Redwing47]

I know that years ago scientists and engineers tried to capture lightning energy in a capacitor,the capacitor was undersized and blew to smithereens on first lightning strike. That’s because no one knew now much electrical energy was in a lightning bolt,I wonder if any one has tried to ascertain lightning voltage and amperage since that failure?

[@NotCapitalist]

That's an interesting perspective on the reason to move to electric vehicles. Very interesting idea

[@B1u35ky]

Electric vehicles are only practical if you are always on the grid though. Hydrogen vehicles have range similar to long range electric vehicles but can be refiled in a few minutes like a gas car

[@Mal-ws3kt]

@@B1u35kyRight now yes, but eventually they will have enough range to be as versatile as gas vehicles.

[@B1u35ky]

@@Mal-ws3kt but you still need to plug them in. Hydrogen cars are a better version of electric vehicles.

[@MarkLLawrence]

Don't need the grid if you have your own solar panels and battery storage. Many EV drivers have already done this.

[@B1u35ky]

@@MarkLLawrence yes but that's not practical on a large scale especially looking into the future. Hydrogen power is simply better but it's not as established as battery electric, yet.