graphene

[miriam_e]

I think in the future much of our electronics might be carbon-based rather than silicon-based. Graphene -- a single layer of carbon atoms in a flat hexagonal sheet -- has a lot of fascinating properties. It turns out that two layers of graphene where one layer is rotated 1.1 degrees with respect to another becomes a superconductor (conducts electricity without resistance). Unfortunately this double layer of graphene has to be cooled to about –271° Celsius to show this effect. It has another interesting trick too: apply an electric field and it turns into an insulator. That is, it can be a switch. (See https://www.sciencenews.org/article/give-double-layer-graphene-twist-and-it-superconducts )

Graphene is also much stronger than steel, is flexible, and can be made at very low energy. At normal temperatures graphene is about 40% better conductor of electricity than copper, yet far lighter. The raw material (carbon) is one of the most common on Earth, and if we made carbon-based things out of thin air, like plants do, building their structures from carbon dioxide, we might help counter greenhouse gas build-up.

The biggest drawback is that we don't yet know how to routinely construct arbitrarily large flawless sheets of it. But you can bet we will solve it.

A prediction from me: I think cables made from long graphene tubes (also called bucky tubes) wound together will be used to make the space elevator, which will bring extremely cheap space travel to everyone.

Comments

[greylock]

I'm suspicious about graphene.
But, maybe.

wound together will be used to make the space elevator
There's nowhere to go.
I'm of the "space elevators are bad" thinking.
Then they break, or snap.... sheesh.

[greylock]

Sorry, hit send because death!

I like to remain optimistic about graphine (and we can make synthetic graphite from methane and iron ore - check out the Hazer Process - which suggests a pathway for CO2 emissions and scrap metal to make graphine in the longer term) but I have been promised the future before.

[miriam_e]

Yeah, I'm a little suspicious of graphene too, but for unrelated reasons. Soot contains lots of bucky balls and bucky tubes. I've often wondered it is is those that cause smoke to be carcinogenic. Bucky balls and bucky tubes are basically graphene that isn't in a flat sheet.

"There's nowhere to go."

Of course there is. Once we escape the really steep part of the Earth's gravity well we can mine the asteroids. It is easier and cleaner to process materials in space where we can use concentrated solar heat 24/7 at Lagrange points then cheaply deliver the refined materials anywhere on Earth via gliders. This eliminates mining on Earth, and later I expect it will eliminate most manufacturing. Clean-room technology is easy out there too.

We could even adjust Earth's climate to counter global warming. Dropping ice over the Sahara, for instance would increase cloud cover and rain there.

You can expect space elevators to be made with massive redundancies and failsafes. I think they will turn out to be many, many times safer than perching atop a huge explosive to reach space. And of course they will be millions of times cheaper to run. They shouldn't even require fuel as the electric difference at different altitudes can be used to power it.

I hadn't heard of the Hazer Process and had to look it up. Very cool! Thank you for the pointer. Nice that a byproduct could potentially be so useful.

Robert Murray Smith has been researching cheap, powerful, environmentally safe batteries using graphene for some years now and has finally got one in production:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRi0onpAZIM

I've been following his work since 2012. In 2016 he bought an electric scooter and replaced its lead-acid battery with a paper and graphene battery he made. It was much smaller and lighter and outperformed the lead-acid one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P266pdT71tI

He's about to try a similar experiment with a small electric car.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhH-XoGjE7E

[greylock]

We could even adjust Earth's climate to counter global warming.

As suspicious as I am of space elevators, I am really, really, really suspicious of geoengineering.

Robert Murray Smith seems awesome. As much as I think humanity dying off would be idea, people like him give me hope.

The Guardian had an article about an article this week about a hydrogen battery (Uni Melb) that seemed promising.

[miriam_e]

Sorry for the late reply. Yeah, I'm skeptical of geoengineering climate too, though mostly for the standard ideas of putting a particulate layer high in the atmosphere to reduce sunlight in order to counter global warming. That is potentially so dangerous it could go wrong in terrible ways, quite apart from giving greenhouse gas polluters a rationale for continuing, so that we then end up addicted to the process. And you know what happens when an addict has to go without their drug for a while because of circumstances... say, a smoker who has to take a long flight (terrible temper), or an alcoholic who is unable get alcohol for a day (death through convulsions). In the case of such a sunshield failing for some reason we would be suddenly roasted, worldwide. And that's ignoring the risk of too much creating a mini-ice-age.

So, yes. Most talk of geoengineering climate I find quite disturbing.

However I have to say that the idea of dropping small chunks of ice onto the Sahara appeals to me. They could be sized so that they never reach the ground, but melt and evaporate in the atmosphere, to create rainclouds. It might also reverse the gradual loss of hydrogen from Earth into space. Our planet is gradually drying out -- not as fast as Mars did, without a strong magnetic shield to protect its atmosphere -- but it is, very, very slowly.

[greylock]

Eh, late replies? Dreamwidth is so dead "ain't no thang", as the kids would say, if they weren't texting with emojis.

I feel like I've read about the iceburg/Sahara idea, and it might be okay (can see no downside, and while not a scientist I can see it working to stop the expansion w/out too many issues, transportation aside) aside from the fact the polar caps seem to be melting and braking aster than anyone expected.

(Unrelated, but I have just spent an ungodly amount on ERB books. I have no real idea why, his characters are thin - if not offensive - and the fact the Man's Love keeps getting captured - but there's something about the pulps I love, and since you sent me all those Mars/Venuus books, I wanted to mention that fact. I dig the pulps, well rationed)

[miriam_e]

heheheh :) I think the kids who'd say "ain't no thang" are probably almost as old as we are.

There is a possible problem I've thought of with dropping ice on the Sahara. Water vapor is a greenhouse gas, though when it forms clouds it has a cooling effect (reflects light back out to space and shades the ground). So if the ice didn't end up forming clouds it could exacerbate the problem...

I think I know why you are drawn into the Edgar Rice Burroughs books. He originally wrote most of them as serials in newspapers, so they had to hold people's attention. This taught him to become a master at doing that. I love the way he can pull the reader into a story. Compare with the way most writers have peaks and lulls in their stories. His stories are like trance music: high energy the whole way through. I'm surprised more haven't been turned into TV series. They are really perfect for that... although modern audiences might be too sophisticated for some of his characters.

On a related note, did you see the movie, "John Carter"? It kept a lot of the look and feel, but changed the story enormously. I feel it was nevertheless a very good adaptation, though, given the aforementioned problems of satisfying a modern audience.

An aside: I've always been tempted to write "adaption" instead of "adaptation". The extra syllable makes no sense. We don't say "adaptate". More logical is "adopt/adoption". That's one thing I'm with the Yanks on -- rationalising English spelling (though I don't like the way they replace "s" with "z" at the drop of a hat). Dropping the "u" in many words makes the lives of so many kids much easier (color, armor, favor, etc.). I'm fortunate to be an effortless speller, but I've always felt sorry for those who are sabotaged by our absurdly illogical language.

[greylock]

So if the ice didn't end up forming clouds it could exacerbate the problem

Cloud seeding! OBVIOUSLY!


I think I know why you are drawn into the Edgar Rice Burroughs books. He originally wrote most of them as serials in newspapers, so they had to hold people's attention.

I don't think so. I mean, I can see why you'd say that, but in his case, nope. I tried of this "catch and release' plots.
I like the fact the books are short, and the ideas are big, and the characters are simple, and there's no nuance or modern concerns (which makes them idea train reading), and there's no strict structure: the ideas are just chucked at the wall.

I'm surprised more haven't been turned into TV series. They are really perfect for that... although modern audiences might be too sophisticated for some of his characters.

(Probably like you) I grew up with the B&W Tarzan and the McClure movies (and these are probably my gateway drug: I own them all on DVD), and I've looked at the modern versions (saw the last Tarzan), and I don't think younger people can as easily imagine the world of ERB as we can, so why I can almost believe a Tarzan can exist, and Opar can exist, the "kids" look at Tarzan (et al) and see the evil White Man and a world where everything is connected. And they know Mars is lifeless (you and I probably knew this, but caught the edge of the canal thing) and the Voyager dream.

Personally, I've struggled with the Doc EE Smith Lensman books. Got two in, lost interest. Not sure what that says about me, other than I prefer swashbuckling and mighty thews to planet-throwing supercops.

On a related note, did you see the movie, "John Carter"?

I did. I loved it. Got the DVD. And books on why it failed as movie.

An aside: I've always been tempted to write "adaption" instead of "adaptation".

Me too.
Always.
Constantly.
It's a verbal tick I cultivate.

[miriam_e]

there's no strict structure

Yep, that would come from having to write it as a newspaper serial. I like that aspect too. Life doesn't have structure. I try to do something like that in my novels. I don't like the standard intro-climax-resolution format.

the books are short, and the ideas are big, and the characters are simple

Yeah, I'm a bit of a fan of pure escapist stories too. Difficult, perhaps impossible to write nowadays.

Yep, same movie and TV influences I think. :)
I spent my teens insatiably devouring science fiction books/magazines and science.

And I'm right there with you on the Lensman series. I've tried and failed to read the series a number of times. Never been sure why. Had always attributed it to lack of science and crappy science, but the John Carter of Mars books should fall afoul of that, yet don't. And Edwin Arnold's 1905 novel "Gulliver of Mars", which inspired Burroughs' John Carter of Mars series, had the protagonist get to Mars on a magic carpet, yet I seem to recall enjoying that (must try reading it again someday to see if I still do).

Incidentally, "Gulliver of Mars" is available as a free ebook at Project Gutenberg (http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/604) and free audiobook at LibriVox (https://librivox.org/gulliver-of-mars-by-edwin-l-arnold/). Audiobooks are good for driving, or walking, or gardening, or housework. Many of the Edgar Rice Burroughs books are available on LibriVox too. I listened to the "John Carter of Mars" series a few years ago. That was fun and quite a different experience than reading the books myself.

[greylock]

I like that aspect too. Life doesn't have structure.

Terry Goodkind (who I suspect you've wisely skipped) does something similar with his books (or did), and while they're fantasy bricks, each 800-pager just rolls immediately into the next. It's the only modern version I can think of.

And I'm right there with you on the Lensman series. I've tried and failed to read the series a number of times. Never been sure why.

I ground to a halt after book two (Triplanetary and Lensman I think). I think there's just something stodgy about Doc Smith's writing. I see similar ticks to the likes of old Asimov/Clark and the like (I imagine every character is smoking a pipe), but somehow something like Foundation zips along where Lensman doesn't. I recently picked up an Edmond Hamilton book called 'Captain Future & The Space Emperor' and I'll be curious to see if it suffers the same.

I'll have to look into Gulliver of Mars! I'm not sure I've heard of it before.

[miriam_e]

I have very little patience for fantasy. It always feels like a bit of a cheat. Problems are manufactured without logic and solutions are invented without regard to logic.

I have 21 of Edmond Hamilton's works, though not that one. I'm sure I've read some of his books and short stories, but don't remember. He certainly was no shrinking violet when it came to giving his stories grand names. :)

Project Gutenberg has 6 of his tales for free download.
http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/h#a26787

I didn't realise Leigh Brackett was his wife. I do have the one book they collaborated on though, "Stark and the Star Kings".

Biographies I've read say he's considered one of the original creators of Space Opera, but unlike EE Doc Smith, he managed to adapt to the modern world.

[greylock]

I have very little patience for fantasy. It always feels like a bit of a cheat.

I'd like to use the Clarke quote here!

I didn't really read fantasy until I hit 13 (before that tended to SF), but I someone moved from Wydham to Eddings, and then ended up playing D&D, which ended up with a few years reading the (then emerging) D&D novels (and then horror like King and Koontz) before I swung back.

I "regret" spending so much time down the tie-in fiction cul de sac (and parts of the fantasy avenue), but we are creatures of our time, and we make decisions at the time.

(I do regret reading Jordan and Goodkind, but that's a different story).

I didn't realise Leigh Brackett was his wife. I do have the one book they collaborated on though, "Stark and the Star Kings".

That one might be in the book I procured (The Gollanz Gateway Ombibus), listed as "The Star King". And somewhere I have the Star Wolves trilogy. Of course, I buy books faster than I can read them. I'll get to them or die first.

What little I've read of that (mostly pre-war) era suggest the SF/Fantasy/Horror divide was less obvious then, and it's one of the reasons I chase older stuff (although it's something I have come to realise)

[miriam_e]

Nope, "The Star Kings" is another novel, by him alone.

"Stark and the Star Kings", at least the Baen Books edition I have, is actually a small collection containing:
"Stark and the Star Kings" by Brackett and Hamilton
"Enchantress of Venus" by Brackett
"Lake of the Gone Forever" by Brackett
"Child of the Sun" by Brackett
"Retreat to the Stars" by Brackett
"The Jewel of Bas" by Brackett
The first two are novels and the others short stories, I think.

It and much more is found by a search on Baen Books' website:
http://www.baen.com/catalogsearch/result/index/?dir=desc&order=relevance&p=1&q=edmond+hamilton

Unfortunately I think they're all ebooks. I don't know if they have any in print on paper at the moment. I'm not sure how you'd check. Baen do print paper books, but I only ever buy ebooks nowadays.

I have the "Starwolf" trilogy too. Haven't read it yet.

Yeah, I get books a lot faster than I can read them too. Project Gutenberg lets me be way too greedy. :) I figure one day I might be laid up in bed for an extended period and I'll be able to read my way through a large part of my backlog. Or I'll die with much of it unread.

[greylock]

Interesting. I just completed Brackett's Sea-Kings of Mars (no pun intended, but I found her style a little dry and it took me 10 years), and she seems to have a thing for characters called Stark (Eric John Stark, Hugh Starke), who I keep mixing up with CL Moore's Northwest Smith.

It seems as if Stark and the Star Kings puts Stark into the Star Kings series, so I guess I'll track it down someday, although Stark wasn't that compelling, but a copy of Tarzan in space (a savage, civilized, albeit on Mercury).

Baen Books is someone I tend to avoid because of the garish covers (although, I recently purchased "The Worlds of ERB", and it's sitting in a TVR pile with books I'll avoid reading on the train.

Yeah, I get books a lot faster than I can read them too. Project Gutenberg lets me be way too greedy. :)

One of the main reasons I don't have an e-reader is because I would get ALL THE BOOKS. Money and space at least act to limit what I own, and I'm still hit by choice paralysis when I go to pick up the next book.

[miriam_e]

and I'm still hit by choice paralysis when I go to pick up the next book

I'm right there with you on that.
It is weird. I have thousands of amazing books, yet I become paralysed when it comes time to choose the next one to read. Humans! We're crazy.