Themes

Raw Notes

• We have 3 grids - one in the west, one in the east, and one in Texas
• 70% of grid transmission lines are 25 yrs old
• We rely on 2x the power plants that we actually need bc our grid is so inefficient
• Power outages:
  • 2001: 15
  • 2007: 78
  • 2011: 307
• We have e the biggest number of outage minutes of any developed nation
• Avg US power outage is 120 minutes and growing whereas the rest of the developed world is 15 minutes and shrinking
• By 2050, every power plant in the US will need to be replaced by new plants
• I’m hawaii, just over 12% of homes have solar panels, which means on certain sunny days, they generate more power than the entire state needs
• In Texas, wind is 9% of energy, and in Iowa it’s 30%
• In Texas, one day in sept 2015 saw price per megawatt hour go negative bc there was so much wind energy being produced
• Electric grids was largely and urban phenomenon until the Great Depression when the gov stepped in and brought it to rural areas
• America’s infrastructure is migrating to a new logic, one that emphasizes small, fast, adaptive, local.
• 60% of men who run our electricity system are within 5 yrs of retirement
• In 2009, there were 25 wind farms in columbia river gorge, now there are 50. Each turbine produces over 1000 kWh of power. The whole area generates 6000 megawatts, enough power for 4.5M households.
• But the grid must be balanced. Consumption must always match production. Storage is not good enough yet. Almost all our energy is “fresh”
• Wires for electricity aren’t like pipes, and energy doesn’t “flow.” Power lines are there to direct halos electromagnetism to something as  simple as a toaster. Someone presses the lever on the toaster, opening up a pathway for the energy, moving into and thru the toaster, where it is slowed down as it passes. The slowing down creates heat and toasts your bread. After a few seconds, the lever pops back up, closing the channel.
• The reason your toaster doesn’t explode every time is bc there are so many other “open channels” open across the country at the same time. There’s enough electricity to power our machines, but not so much that it destroys them. Variable generation makes this tough.
• Coal plants from a cold start can generate in 5 mins, nat gas is 15 mins, and nuclear is 24 hrs. Even 5 minutes is actually rly long. This is a reason why the grid is rly big. Power plants can be built in areas with few people but transmit energy all over the country.