this post was submitted on 01 Dec 2023
218 points (98.7% liked)

World News

39019 readers
2525 users here now

A community for discussing events around the World

Rules:

Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.

We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.

All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.


Lemmy World Partners

News !news@lemmy.world

Politics !politics@lemmy.world

World Politics !globalpolitics@lemmy.world


Recommendations

For Firefox users, there is media bias / propaganda / fact check plugin.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/media-bias-fact-check/

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

Joint project with EU involves more than 500 scientists and engineers and more than 70 companies

The world’s biggest operational experimental nuclear fusion reactor – a technology in its infancy but billed by some as the answer to humanity’s future energy needs – has been inaugurated in Naka, Japan.

Fusion differs from fission, the technique used in nuclear power plants, by fusing two atomic nuclei instead of splitting one.

The goal of the JT-60SA reactor is to investigate the feasibility of fusion as a safe, large-scale and carbon-free source of net energy – with more energy generated than is put into producing it.

The six-storey-high machine, in a hangar in Naka, north of Tokyo, comprises a doughnut-shaped “tokamak” vessel set to contain swirling plasma heated up to 200mC (360mF).

It is a joint project between the European Union and Japan, and is the forerunner for its big brother in France, the under-construction International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER).

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] naturalgasbad@lemmy.ca 19 points 11 months ago (2 children)

LNL demonstrated ignition and EAST demonstrated minute-scale high confinement. This is the most promising period in fusion research in a long time.

Interestingly, these innovations continue to be driven by government-funded research institutions rather than private industry.

[–] Nastybutler@lemmy.world 8 points 11 months ago (1 children)

That's not surprising at all. The investment required with the high possibility of failure makes this a non starter for private business which are inherently risk adverse.

[–] FancyManacles@lemmy.world 8 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Private businesses engage in extremely risky enterprises everyday, it's why things like explicit liability exist. The issue with something like this is their cost benefit analysis tells them that succeeding would create diminishing rates of return. Solving fusion reaction for the purposes of generating electricity eliminates a form of scarcity. Scarcity or manufactured scarcity is the only thing that enables corporations to continually increase profits.

[–] Nastybutler@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago

That's a good point. I should have mentioned ROI in my post

Interestingly, or in this case, obviously.