Future of science: 'We will have the power of the gods'
Date: Thursday, November 01, 2007 @ 22:15:52 UTC
Topic: Science


A leading theoretical physicist has tapped the best scientific brains of the age to provide a startling vision of the future. Roger Highfield reports

...Prof Sir Chris Llewellyn Smith Director, UK Fusion Programme

"Between 15 and 20 years from now, we will be ready to start building a fusion power station that will produce electricity [from nuclear fusion, rather than fission, the reaction that drives existing nuclear power stations]. After that, before the middle of the century, we hope to have large-scale fusion power."...



Electricity from Plant life

Dr Andreas Mershin, Centre for Biomedical Engineering, MIT

"Plants have developed this amazing ability to capture sunlight and create chemical energy and store it. Now we can grab the machine – the protein inside the plant called photosystem, which is responsible for generating energy for the plant – and hijack its function to create solar electrical power. Our goal is to provide an alternative to regular silicon-based solar panels. What we're trying to do is produce a material that you can paint on a metallic surface, expose to light and have some electricity."

...

"We will have the power to animate the inanimate, the power to create life itself," says Prof Kaku. "We will have the power of gods. But will we also have the wisdom of Solomon?"...

Source: Future of science









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