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Editorial Team
Better Living Through Beekeeping
In an article for the New York Times, Helen Jukes, author of “A Honeybee Heart Has…
Connecting with Mother Earth
Watch Curated Content from Terra's YouTube Playlist
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How Plants Cool the Planet
Climate change is getting pretty scary, but plants can make things better, if we help them help us!
Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/jimi
Visit my website: https://jimisol.net
This video was made with support from Fenwick Foundation. https://fenwickfoundation.org
Thanks to the Ecosystem Restoration Alliance for help with research, networking, and serving as a fiscal sponsor to make Fenwick Foundation's donation possible.
Music by EddieHoncha, from AudioJungle.net
Sources:
Most water plants take up comes out through the leaves: https://cid-inc.com/blog/transpiration-in-plants-its-importance-and-applications/
For every molecule of CO2 sequestered, several hundred molecules of water are evaporated: https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/water-uptake-and-transport-in-vascular-plants-103016037/
Temperatures have been measured to be cooler in forests: https://www.google.co.nz/books/edition/A_Trillion_Trees/Cz00EAAAQBAJ?hl=en
Plants house condensation-nucleating bacteria: https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo1037
When water condenses at cloud level, it releases the heat it absorbed during evaporation: https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/condensation-and-water-cycle
Up to half of this heat released during condensation radiates back into space: https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/bams/78/2/1520-0477_1997_078_0197_eagmeb_2_0_co_2.xml?tab_body=pdf
Clouds create a net cooling effect: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/GlobalClouds/cloudiness2.php
Healthy ecosystems absorb water into the soil which replenishes groundwater: https://www.nrdc.org/experts/lara-bryant/organic-matter-can-improve-your-soils-water-holding-capacity
Plants sequester carbon and put it underground: https://amazingcarbon.com/PDF/JONES-LiquidCarbonPathway(July08).pdf
Sequestered carbon can stay underground for hundreds of years: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/terra-preta
The ocean food web is based on plants: https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/marine-life/aquatic-food-webs
Marine ecosystems seed clouds: https://www.publish.csiro.au/EN/pdf/EN07080
Marine ecosystems sequester carbon in the form of shells: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2017.0891
Tree-planting based on large quantitative targets can backfire: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10661-018-7131-3
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
0:33 Transpiration
1:16 Condensation Nuclei
2:25 Clouds
3:14 Sequestration
3:43 The Ocean
4:19 Conclusion -
The Big Lie About Nuclear Waste
What if we could actually USE nuclear waste?
Check out Storyblocks and sign up here for great footage: https://storyblocks.com/cleoabram
Subscribe to support optimistic tech content: https://www.youtube.com/cleoabram?sub_confirmation=1
Watch Johnny’s explainer on nuclear power here - and subscribe to his channel! https://youtu.be/QzTgZ6kOEM8
Nuclear waste is scary. Maybe you’ve seen it as glowing green goop in The Simpsons, or as a radioactive threat on the news. Either way, you likely know it has been a major block to the use and improvement of nuclear power. Over the last few decades, experts, politicians and the public have had heated debates over what to do with this radioactive material created by nuclear power plants.
But what if there were a way to not just store nuclear waste, but actually USE it?
This video is about the effort to make electricity out of nuclear waste. Really. It turns out, we developed the tools to do this decades ago. This story is about a technology we left behind and the people who want to bring it back.
For this video, I had the privilege of visiting one of the largest and oldest research centers in the US, the Argonne National Laboratory. I’m incredibly grateful to the researchers and staff I met there, and for their time in showing me their work. I also had the opportunity to speak with representatives from Oklo, a company working on new forms of nuclear power, including recycling nuclear waste as fuel. One of the best parts of making Huge If True is meeting and learning from people pushing what we can do in the hopes of improving the world for everyone else.
Chapters:
00:00 Nuclear waste isn’t what I thought
02:21 How I got obsessed
03:27 How much energy is in nuclear waste?
05:31 Thank you Storyblocks!
06:20 How do you get electricity?
06:50 What is uranium?
07:28 How does a nuclear reaction work?
08:05 Why is nuclear waste dangerous?
08:40 What do we do with nuclear waste?
09:35 How do you make electricity from nuclear waste?
11:21 Why doesn’t the US reuse nuclear fuel?
12:20 Is recycling waste feasible?
13:41 What is Huge If True?
Corrections:
07:09 The number refers to the total number of nucleons (either a proton or a neutron) in the atom, not the neutrons alone. A U-235 atom contains 92 protons and 143 neutrons (an atomic mass of 235). The U-238 atom also has 92 protons but has 146 neutrons (an atomic mass of 238). I should have said these *differ* by the number of neutrons in the atom. Thanks to the commenters who pointed this out!
You can find me on TikTok here for short, fun tech explainers: https://www.tiktok.com/@cleoabram
You can find me on Instagram here for more personal stories: https://www.instagram.com/cleoabram
You can find me on Twitter here for thoughts, threads and curated news: https://twitter.com/cleoabram
Bio:
Cleo Abram is an Emmy-nominated independent video journalist. On her show, Huge If True, Cleo explores complex technology topics with rigor and optimism, helping her audience understand the world around them and see positive futures they can help build. Before going independent, Cleo was a video producer for Vox. She wrote and directed the Coding and Diamonds episodes of Vox’s Netflix show, Explained. She produced videos for Vox’s popular YouTube channel, was the host and senior producer of Vox’s first ever daily show, Answered, and was co-host and producer of Vox’s YouTube Originals show, Glad You Asked.
Additional reading and watching:
- Johnny’s video on nuclear power: https://youtu.be/QzTgZ6kOEM8
- My previous video for Vox on nuclear reactors shutting down: https://youtu.be/KC7YD98HixM
- “The Nuclear Waste Problem” by Wendover Productions: https://youtu.be/uU3kLBo_ruo
- “Nuclear Waste: What Do We Do With It?” by Sabine Hossenfelder: https://youtu.be/aDUvCLAp0uU
- “What Happens to Nuclear Waste?” by The Infographics Show: https://youtu.be/imsRLscqTW0
- “Nuclear Waste Is Manageable. We Just Have To Do It.” by Joe Scott https://youtu.be/96et8ZGsxJY
- “Finland Might Have Solved Nuclear Power’s Biggest Problem” by The B1M: https://youtu.be/kYpiK3W-g_0
- “The energy in nuclear waste could power the U.S. for 100 years, but the technology was never commercialized” CNBC https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/02/nuclear-waste-us-could-power-the-us-for-100-years.html
- “Nuclear Power Policy,” NRC 1977: https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1209/ML120960615.pdf
Vox: https://www.vox.com/authors/cleo-abram
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10108242/
Gear I use:
Camera: Sony A7SIII
Lens: Sony 16–35 mm F2.8 GM and 35mm prime
Audio: Sennheiser SK AVX
Music: Musicbed + Tom Fox
—
Welcome to the joke down low:
Why did the light bulb fail his math quiz?
He wasn’t too bright.
Leave a comment with the word “bright” in it to let me know you’re a real one :) -
How to Fix a Broken Ecosystem
Permaculture instructor Andrew Millison explains the process for repairing a degraded ecosystem. We begin with the metrics for assessing ecosystem health, and then go over the steps to triggering biological activity and ecological succession.
Andrew Millison’s links:
https://www.andrewmillison.com/
https://permaculturedesign.oregonstate.edu/
JOIN THIS CHANNEL to get access to uncut video content and live Q & A sessions:
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SIGN UP FOR ANDREW'S FREE EMAIL NEWSLETTER:
https://share.hsforms.com/1X79TznHYRCWc-8xE3hty7Q9opt -
Why We Find Rainforests in Unexpected Places
Many of us are familiar with rainforests; lush and exotic environments that serve as the pinnacle of life on Earth. For the most part we assume these only occur throughout the tropics, but as it turns out certain areas in the temperate latitudes can receive just as much rainfall, creating a number of rainforests in unexpected places.
Support me on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/atlaspro
Follow me on Twitter @theatlaspro
Sources / Further Reading
https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.1001127
https://imgur.com/6lvzmXZ
https://www.npr.org/2020/08/18/903593291/the-evolutionary-history-of-penguins-is-far-from-black-and-white#:~:text=New%20Research%20Suggests%20Penguins%20Originated%20In%20Australia%2C%20New%20Zealand%20New,climes%20over%2022%20million%20years.
https://nyskiblog.com/directory/weather-data/new-york/state-average-precipitation-map/
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ecog.05075
http://nsidc.org/greenland-today/2019/11/
https://ign.ku.dk/english/about/arboreta/arboretum-greenland/forest-plantations
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyrcania#/media/File:Map_of_the_Achaemenid_Empire.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caspian_tiger#/media/File:Panthera_tigris_virgata_dis.png
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Turkeys-total-precipitation-normal-1970-2010-distribution-prepared-by-TSMS_fig8_262456093
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argonauts#/media/File:Constantine_Volanakis_Argo.jpg
https://studenthandouts.com/world-history/ancient-greece/pictures/map-ancient-greece-greek-colonies.htm
https://external-preview.redd.it/w5GWr82JXHIeXZFSajk-sRmzkjRlj0c1hGt3StA04SQ.jpg?auto=webp&s=8cbaa1439ea33594d4a7102ab3f6b084de74cfcb
https://www.skogur.is/en/forestry/forestry-in-a-treeless-land/history-of-forests-in-iceland
https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comments/22pyrd/us_precipitation_map_3000_x_2200/
https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comments/a4o66s/europe_average_yearly_precipitation_link_to/
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-77764-1_2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake-effect_snow#/media/File:Lake_Effect_Snow_on_Earth.jpg
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