Nuclear fusion has gotten close with advances, which i'll discuss in a moment. But if you believe we need to solve our energy problems in the next 30 years, given the time scale to develop, demonstrate and then deploy, i don't think it's going to be a very big part of the near to mid term solution. The first plasma happens in a few years, and the first introduction of fusible material sometime in the 20 thirties. There've been two other developments that suggest maybe there are other ways of doing this.
According to Steven Koonin, when it comes to climate change, the media, politicians, and other prominent voices have declared that “the science is settled.” Koonin avers that the long game of telephone from research to reports, to the popular media, is corrupted by misunderstanding and misinformation. Koonin says that core questions about the way the climate is responding to our influence, and what the impacts will be remain largely unanswered. Koonin acknowledges that the climate is changing, and he claims the whyand how aren’t as clear as you’ve probably been led to believe, and what the impacts will be remain largely unanswered.
In this engaging conversation Michael Shermer challenges Dr. Koonin with many of the most common critiques of his book, Unsettled: What Climate Science Tells Us, What It Doesn’t, and Why It Matters, and Steven Koonin responds by drawing upon his decades of experience — including as a top science advisor to the Obama administration.