Perhaps it would be a nice idea for James to revisit this topic around ten years on and see how far we've come in relation to the concepts shown here throughout the 2010s.
A great idea though might i suggest a shorter interval. also the guy flying the kites did not mention that you have to pull up the weight of the wire and subtract this from the total!
I was thinking the same thing. It'd be really cool to see him do a modern version of this episode. Even if it were only a 15 minute long RUclips video, I'd enjoy seeing how far technology has come put into perspective by James May.
I watched this way back in 2008 and stumbled upon it again. It is just as interesting today as it was, the first time I watched it. Nostalgia hit hard.
Seeing James May look so young makes me feel very old.... I know I'm only 25, but every day I'm older than I've ever been, and have less life left than ever before.
I mean, it's just a high school student project making that thing out of some spare/junk parts, honestly surprising that they presented that thing to show their 'expertise'...
I like how out of the space elevator concept they act as if the most difficult thing was the design of the carriage. Once we get the carriage perfected, we will worry about incidentals like how to get the anchor into geosynchrous orbit, how to build a super strong, super-light, unbreakable cable 200,000 miles long and send it into space, small things like that. No doubt it will all work itself out, right?
@@BaldHeadedManc yeah, material science is an area that receives a huge amount of research and attention, its not going to "work itself out" its going to be figured out by the millions of scientist whos job it is to literally work it out
I didn't hear them mention what the "most difficult" part was at any point. At the start of their segment they very nerd-ily replied to James' rhetorical statement about how simple the device was by basically explaining that they have degrees in astrophysics, but without actually saying so (probably because James wanted to reveal that at the end of the segment himself). They were then simply excited and pleased when their machine did what it was supposed to do on the first try (not something that usually happens, even when testing a simple scaled down prototype of a project). At no point did they say that what was shown was all it would take to win the competition, or for their idea to work. You gotta remember, all of those men have basically worked for NASA for over a decade, they aren't stupid. I live in Maryland probably around where I believe that segment was filmed because James said they all worked for aerospace contractors with NASA, and they are at least 3 around here. My dad has spent his entire adult life working for aerospace companies here that always have a contract for something or or other with NASA, so they are basically no different from the direct NASA employees. My dad started out working for Raytheon, but after a few years switched over to SSAI. You have to have a Masters Degree in your field (usually Astrophysics) in order to work for those kinds of companies, and if you have worked at one for more than a decade, you clearly know your stuff and probably either have a PhD, or are smart enough to get one.
I love the reference to Fawlty Towers. Anybody else catch it? Anyway, James is a class act. I feel privileged for having been his classmate at comprehensive school. We were in English, French and German classes together and maybe more. It was a long time ago, so my memory may be clouded.
Yep i got IT .. I laughed We watch All Fawlty tower's On DR.DK under fiktion .. Halløj på bade hotellet (danish copy past) Greetings From Denmark 🇩 🇰 🇩🇰 🤘 🖖 🇩🇰
Jeremy and James are (were) both very enthusiastic about Hydrogen Fuel cells in the past. Shame that batteries/hybrids have taken hold for now as I don't see it as a long term fix myself.
Crazy that he went up to touch the edge of the atmosphere.. I was a firefighter and had the hardest time of getting comfortable with confined spaces and seeing him battle in that space suit, I felt every panic stricken breath.. As well as fear of heights.
That last idea, getting petrol from CO2, H2O and sunlight, tells at least part of the story. It's not just a technological challenge, it's an economical challenge. If something becomes economical, it will be picked up because, sadly, it's all about whether someone can make money from it. That's the reason solar is now beginning to pick up: it has become cheaper because of high demand from countries like Germany, and scaled-up production in China. A different perspective might be the realisation that we are living on this one planet, there is no spare, and we cannot survive without it. We are dependent on our planet in so many ways, so it is basic survival to take care of it.
Being able to "make money from it" is on a direct function of whether or not it uses more energy than it makes. It's not some nebulous implication of greed... ....and wasn't net energy production the entire point here?
I mean if it's not economical, but we force it anyway, how is having a million megawatts of fossil plants running..all just to power a co2+H2o plant that eats up that million MW, just to produce only a half a million...supposed to help anything? Especially the earth man?! That's so wasteful. I can't believe I even have to lay this out for people.
@@kennethschultz6465 Carbon dioxide (CO2) is an essential component of photosynthesis (also called carbon assimilation). Photosynthesis is a chemical process that uses light energy to convert CO2 and water into sugars in green plants. These sugars are then used for growth within the plant, through respiration. The difference between the rate of photosynthesis and the rate of respiration is the basis for dry-matter accumulation (growth) in the plant. In greenhouse production the aim of all growers is to increase dry-matter content and economically optimize crop yield. CO2 increases productivity through improved plant growth and vigour. Some ways in which productivity is increased by CO2 include earlier flowering, higher fruit yields, reduced bud abortion in roses, improved stem strength and flower size. Growers should regard CO2 as a nutrient. Most crops show that for any given level of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), increasing the CO2 level to 1,000 ppm will increase the photosynthesis by about 50% over ambient CO2 levels. The level to which the CO2 concentration should be raised depends on the crop, light intensity, temperature, ventilation, stage of the crop growth and the economics of the crop. For most crops the saturation point will be reached at about 1,000-1,300 ppm under ideal circumstances. A lower level (800-1,000 ppm) is recommended for raising seedlings (tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers) as well as for lettuce production. Even lower levels (500-800 ppm) are recommended for African violets and some Gerbera varieties. Increased CO2 levels will shorten the growing period (5%-10%), improve crop quality and yield, as well as, increase leaf size and leaf thickness. The increase in yield of tomato, cucumber and pepper crops is a result of increased numbers and faster flowering per plant.
It isn't just whether "someone can make some money on it", it is that we can't do it if someone is going to have to _spend_ a ton of money on it without any return. Why would they? Government-subsidized $50 a gallon fuel replacement? Why not? then the taxpayers are paying for it. If you want someone to invent a billion dollars into it, then they are going to want their money back and a profit out of it. Even if a government funds it, it will have to be cheap enough to be useful, and the money should be paid back by the people actually using it. Which is effectively the Evil Capitalist System we are using now. there is no such thing as "free lunch". Not sure why you think that is "sad". What, we should use super expensive, inefficient processes because in your mind it is free money and doesn't cost anyone anything as long as it is your money being spent by the government, instead of by yourself?
I would say most of history's inventions. Where else would they be put together? That is the sot of place where people build things. Science happens in labs, building and inventing happens in sheds. That is the purpose of structures like that, that is why they have big doors and open spaces and tall ceilings, etc.
Richard William Pearse (3 December 1877 - 29 July 1953) was a New Zealand farmer and inventor who performed pioneering aviation experiments. Witnesses interviewed many years afterward claimed that Pearse flew and landed a powered heavier-than-air machine on 31 March 1903, nine months before the Wright brothers flew.
The only way to properly and truly harnessed the wind it's to go up where the wind always blows the jet streams but how exactly do you build a power plant that high above the surface of the earth?
DEAR Sir!! IT is commenly known That App 300m Up wind change direktion!! So What happends with wind flow In you put 350m windturbine Up??? Somthing get disrupted !! Like the jet stream !! Will get mixed and disrupted By turbulent air This is quit logic!!
Right in the middle of the group of bikers is Ross Noble. You can tell as is the same jacket he wore while filming his lap of the track on top gear and in the 'behind the scenes' filming with Jeremy while Ross was stood in the background.
Can I just point out that the pink limo at 0:08 was most likely later destroyed in a game of car battleship by James May? How many stretch pink Lincolns can there possibly be?
17:30 imagine that dude in the blue jumper waiting your table at a restaurant "so you see this salt here? This is Indian creek salt, and this pepper here? This is pepper from the depths of eternal damnnation itself, somebody without the culinary background like us may miss that"
@29:00 or there abouts. the trouble with tidal power is that it is NOT a renewable energy resource. Everytime that you use a tidal power plant you slow the Earth's rotation down as you turn the rotational kinetic energy into electricity. This means that the more that you use then, the longer each day will become. They can tell when they are using the Tidal powerplants in France just by measuring the Earth's rotation rate. I admit that it would take all of the world using tidal for a million years or so to increase the length of a day by one hours, but it is still not renewable.
If we had known about the consequences of fossil-fuel burning at the beginning of the industrial revolution (that in less than 300 years, humans will have precipitated a climate catastrophe and countless premature deaths from respiritory diseases, slaughtered millions of their fellows in pursuit of the control of energy sources - need I go on?), do you not think that we might have settled for a 4% slowing of the earth's rotation in exchange for a clean, sustainable natural environment (thereby, incidentally, giving 4% more time for generating electricity from solar power)?
47:14 Ah, that's where George Sips went. Years ago, our neighbours had the family name Sips. Fun fact, they had a Volvo that included not only the Side Impact Protection System, but also a sticker on the back screen showing SIPS. You could call that electromagnets control system of the tokomak a SIPS, couldn't you?
The elevator is the easy part. The hard part of a space elevator is a rope that's light enough but with a large enough tensile strength that it can be 22,000 miles long without snapping under its own weight. Carbon nanofibers are the only hope I've heard of but only tiny amounts of them have been produced. There's also no mention of possible controlled fusion.
Biggest issue about the space elevator for me is that you need something to tie that rope to. A satellite orbiting the earth on a geostationary orbit yes, but when you pull the rope, the satellite's going to come down. So it's going to need thrust to keep itself on the orbit and for that you need lots of energy. I guess solar would be obvious but I don't think you could support much weight with that. Possibly not even the weight of the rope. The problem is that lifting mass to space always requires a certain amount of energy. A solar-powered winch is not hard to make but it is nothing without a rope tied to something that's not going to come down when you pull the rope. Essentially you would need to be able to make a solar powered rocket capable of making it into space by itself to power the space elevator thing purely on solar power.
a few years back I was flying over the Flinders Ranges (Australia) when the geiger counter went wild. The geologist said "see that hill below?.. there's enough uranium in there to power the entire planet for 2,000 years on current technology.. and there are many such hills". And that my friends is where we are headed to be realistic
the Geiger counter is quite easy to go wires, even a banana may trigger it, so the Geiger counter would certainly detect the radioactivity from uranium, even raw one
Agreed, agreed completely. There's just one thing that really bothers me, the places we choose to build power plants. Nuclear plants should not be built within 100 miles of the coast, or a fault, its putting them at unnecessary risk, and power lines can transport the energy to where its needed.
Wow. The space elevator sparked recall from 1978 or 79. Starting out in med field as an RT aide in a midwest hospital. For some forgotton reason I once visited one of the RTs at his modest home, a total mad scientist but "hampered" by a young family, job and real life. Built a working proto of the bimetallic sphere-in-twisting-mag-field model device and blew me away. Had some power feedback thingie that made it self-sustaining after triggering. Was going to revolutionize the world and I was half-convinced I'd have a "Yeah, I MET Einstein" type story. Guess not but appreciate the recall and ... HOLY WTF, I remember his name. GOOGLE!
Yea, I'd say using 2-4 tethers. Prefer 4 would b best. However with a solid connection on a end that is in motion creates a lot of red flags. Be using up quite a bit of fuel or solar energy to keep it taught. Yes it's up in no gravity but while connected that something that is will create tension 2 the station.
super... the new ideas on using energy available on earth. The fusion concept and the box to contain the energy and manage it...!!! remided me of the millienium falcon and how it was whizzing through the empire...they figured out how to contain and manage the fusion not fission! the mirrors creating fuel...but after all we should stop burning hydrocarbons- correct james? thank you very much James, God bless you!!! we have power to hope !!! :-))
The heliostats produce enough power for a small town. Too bad they take up about as much space as a small town. In terms of watts generated per surface area (m²), those things are pretty inefficient. A big power plant isn't as clean, but it can produce power in the megawatt range while taking up about as much space. Solar panels on the other hand can be installed on otherwise unused roofs and generate power right where its needed, reducing the need for centralized power grids.
Can I show this to the United Nation? They appeared to be lack of energy within the grasp. I loved the idea of tidal/wave energy, seems far more promising than ever.
Love James May shows, the remark about councils running street lights full power made me think he really hates owls... The constant hooting would drive you insane
Ceramic Nano Tint with its Infrered blocking technology, would certainly help those in that bubble of the vehicle. Some sort of ventilation wouldn't go a miss. Granted, I have not seen a more recent representation as of late.
Fusion energy at this time is less then 3% efficient. The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), itself at the theoretical highest efficiency will only be 60%. It will take a bit more research and time to improve on this. It is fascinating though.
55:53 "Wow. It's a Counter Rotating Ring Receiver Reactor and Recuperation. This is going to solve the world's energy problem. What does it make?" *camera pans to wall full of toilet seats*
8:40 11 megawatts will power 6000 homes at 1833w or enough to run one medium size microwave oven (typical 65% efficiency) and possibly 1-2 lights but only when the *sun is bright* - LMAO Nuclear power has always been the answer and still is, but not when the building of those facilities is won by the *lowest bidder!*
Those "space elevator" guys really knew how to sound like tinkering idiots. They're working on the relatively easy stuff. Show me the material that can take all the mass of itself, the counterweight and the payload (and don't forget weathering effects). We can worry about skateboard bearings later on...
This man has had so many shows and all of them are amazingly enjoyable, stop hiding him from us!
Get amazon prime there all on there
I love how James May wears that same shirt on so many shows.
I love your smile
Why ?
I have the same one, incidentally purchased in the 20th century....
Tony E “from a fashion perspective” lmao what the fuck I’m pretty sure it’s just something you notice
@@AHC63AMG creeeep
I am pretty sure if i had James May as a science teacher i would have got a better grade because he actually makes learning enjoyable!
I love James, as a fan and so, but I believe that as a teacher he would be quite boring XD and not open to negotiations XD
I agree! James would be a fantastic teacher! So would Michael out of Vsauce
You don't get five weeks and 137 takes to get your lesson "just so" in school...
enjoyable but incorrect
bet if may was your teacher then ... you would have hate him as a schoolar.
it's not james may, it is your advanced age.
Perhaps it would be a nice idea for James to revisit this topic around ten years on and see how far we've come in relation to the concepts shown here throughout the 2010s.
A great idea though might i suggest a shorter interval. also the guy flying the kites did not mention that you have to pull up the weight of the wire and subtract this from the total!
I was thinking the same thing. It'd be really cool to see him do a modern version of this episode. Even if it were only a 15 minute long RUclips video, I'd enjoy seeing how far technology has come put into perspective by James May.
This Programme Is From 2000s
@@S500- Like saying May is under fifty feet. It's from 2008.
The Nuclear Fusion reaction has recently been in the news, they finally discovered how to make a reaction last, rather than dying after a few seconds.
I watched this way back in 2008 and stumbled upon it again. It is just as interesting today as it was, the first time I watched it. Nostalgia hit hard.
Seeing James May look so young makes me feel very old.... I know I'm only 25, but every day I'm older than I've ever been, and have less life left than ever before.
I'm 60 and Ill trade you for your 25 and feeling old 😉
@@geoffkburton lol well... I might take you up on that... assuming you're a millionaire, and that I'll also be receiving that in this deal 😂
So profound lol
I'm 47 going on 18, the key is to die young as late as possible.
SAAAAAME ! I miss so much the early 2000's era...
I love how May tells to scientists he doesn't like their ideas but behind their backs he explains why he believes their theories.
I love James May's shows outside of Top Gear/GT. Always very informative and hopeful.
As a wine drinker, I loved his France/California/British Wine programmes. Very entertaining and showed his humorous nature.
Seriously James you are educating so many people of all ages.. more please.. thanks
17:08 - The most discouraging "What's this?" I have ever heard! Cracked me up so much
I mean, it's just a high school student project making that thing out of some spare/junk parts, honestly surprising that they presented that thing to show their 'expertise'...
Lol true
The way those guys talk to him is so cringy too lol.
watching this in 2022, the man was almost spot on. Amazing.
Watching this in 2023, this is absolutely marveling
1:38 Look at the red sign in the background "Power might even help you beat your granny". hilariously perfect timing
this is amazing, and i love James May so much. this process is unbelievable
"born to be mild " 😂
😂👍🏼
That's my theme song
Loving how May tested the solar car on the Top Gear track.
I like how out of the space elevator concept they act as if the most difficult thing was the design of the carriage. Once we get the carriage perfected, we will worry about incidentals like how to get the anchor into geosynchrous orbit, how to build a super strong, super-light, unbreakable cable 200,000 miles long and send it into space, small things like that. No doubt it will all work itself out, right?
If you told people 150 years ago that one day they would be able to fly through the sky at 500+mph they'd have laughed. Pretty similar thing here.
@@BaldHeadedManc yeah, material science is an area that receives a huge amount of research and attention, its not going to "work itself out" its going to be figured out by the millions of scientist whos job it is to literally work it out
I didn't hear them mention what the "most difficult" part was at any point. At the start of their segment they very nerd-ily replied to James' rhetorical statement about how simple the device was by basically explaining that they have degrees in astrophysics, but without actually saying so (probably because James wanted to reveal that at the end of the segment himself). They were then simply excited and pleased when their machine did what it was supposed to do on the first try (not something that usually happens, even when testing a simple scaled down prototype of a project). At no point did they say that what was shown was all it would take to win the competition, or for their idea to work. You gotta remember, all of those men have basically worked for NASA for over a decade, they aren't stupid.
I live in Maryland probably around where I believe that segment was filmed because James said they all worked for aerospace contractors with NASA, and they are at least 3 around here. My dad has spent his entire adult life working for aerospace companies here that always have a contract for something or or other with NASA, so they are basically no different from the direct NASA employees. My dad started out working for Raytheon, but after a few years switched over to SSAI. You have to have a Masters Degree in your field (usually Astrophysics) in order to work for those kinds of companies, and if you have worked at one for more than a decade, you clearly know your stuff and probably either have a PhD, or are smart enough to get one.
200000 miles? Geosynchronous orbit is achieved at 35,786 km (22,236 mi) miles above the equator.
@@moogle68they couldnt figure out a toaster from 70s worked
"Its not a dumb kite this is a smart kite" gotta be one my favorite sentences
All the rockety stuff . So good to have a science buff explaining whats what
I love the reference to Fawlty Towers. Anybody else catch it? Anyway, James is a class act. I feel privileged for having been his classmate at comprehensive school. We were in English, French and German classes together and maybe more. It was a long time ago, so my memory may be clouded.
Yep i got IT ..
I laughed
We watch All Fawlty tower's
On DR.DK under fiktion .. Halløj på bade hotellet (danish copy past)
Greetings From Denmark 🇩 🇰 🇩🇰 🤘 🖖 🇩🇰
who else noticed that he's on the Top Gear Test track? BBC just saved money this way I guess
It's bought and paid for, why would they rent another place when they already have one?
You think Jeremy and Richard were watching from the sidelines?
@@superswag9861 they were I saw it XD
@@superswag9861
lol They wee probably recording their own shows at the same time. just on the other side of the field
That's your take from all this? Sorry to hear that's awful
Born to be mild 🤣🤣🤣
Takes a James May to say that
James is the best. Definitely most likable out of HAMMOOOOOND! and CLARKSOOOOOON!
Jeremy and James are (were) both very enthusiastic about Hydrogen Fuel cells in the past. Shame that batteries/hybrids have taken hold for now as I don't see it as a long term fix myself.
You could tell how scared James actually was when he glanced over the railing of the solar farms tower.
Crazy that he went up to touch the edge of the atmosphere.. I was a firefighter and had the hardest time of getting comfortable with confined spaces and seeing him battle in that space suit, I felt every panic stricken breath.. As well as fear of heights.
@@KENNETHCARNIE Weirdly enough I'm more comfortable at heights if I'm cooped up on a ladder in a shaft, rather than open spaces like the outdoors.
How can you not like this ?!?
It would be fun to see an update of this episode
200 years into future and they will be laughing at these videos as we do now when we watch the early attempts to fly.
I don't think anyone is laughing at the Wright brothers today
Well, let's hope so.
@@MM-vs2et But there were other people who did some crazy things. Which is quite funny though. It is on youtube check it out.
All humans will be dead in 200 years
I love Mr James May
Probably the slowest lap around the ex-Top Gear Dunsfold track to date... :P
Can I get a side car for my blade
Slowest lap was done by hearse remodeled into an ambulance car.
Also done by James Captain Slow May
"How is the snake related to the duck?" would be a great QI question.
Not since Fry left.
I love the way he says mary-land lol
As opposed to marry-land?
@@ERROR204. the name of the state is spelled with 1 R so in this context...yes
Nice to see they uploaded this with the power of the the sun in the shade.
That last idea, getting petrol from CO2, H2O and sunlight, tells at least part of the story. It's not just a technological challenge, it's an economical challenge. If something becomes economical, it will be picked up because, sadly, it's all about whether someone can make money from it. That's the reason solar is now beginning to pick up: it has become cheaper because of high demand from countries like Germany, and scaled-up production in China. A different perspective might be the realisation that we are living on this one planet, there is no spare, and we cannot survive without it. We are dependent on our planet in so many ways, so it is basic survival to take care of it.
At some point
The CO2 Will be
In shortage
Being able to "make money from it" is on a direct function of whether or not it uses more energy than it makes. It's not some nebulous implication of greed...
....and wasn't net energy production the entire point here?
I mean if it's not economical, but we force it anyway, how is having a million megawatts of fossil plants running..all just to power a co2+H2o plant that eats up that million MW, just to produce only a half a million...supposed to help anything? Especially the earth man?! That's so wasteful.
I can't believe I even have to lay this out for people.
@@kennethschultz6465 Carbon dioxide (CO2) is an essential component of photosynthesis (also called carbon assimilation). Photosynthesis is a chemical process that uses light energy to convert CO2 and water into sugars in green plants. These sugars are then used for growth within the plant, through respiration. The difference between the rate of photosynthesis and the rate of respiration is the basis for dry-matter accumulation (growth) in the plant. In greenhouse production the aim of all growers is to increase dry-matter content and economically optimize crop yield. CO2 increases productivity through improved plant growth and vigour. Some ways in which productivity is increased by CO2 include earlier flowering, higher fruit yields, reduced bud abortion in roses, improved stem strength and flower size. Growers should regard CO2 as a nutrient. Most crops show that for any given level of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), increasing the CO2 level to 1,000 ppm will increase the photosynthesis by about 50% over ambient CO2 levels. The level to which the CO2 concentration should be raised depends on the crop, light intensity, temperature, ventilation, stage of the crop growth and the economics of the crop. For most crops the saturation point will be reached at about 1,000-1,300 ppm under ideal circumstances. A lower level (800-1,000 ppm) is recommended for raising seedlings (tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers) as well as for lettuce production. Even lower levels (500-800 ppm) are recommended for African violets and some Gerbera varieties. Increased CO2 levels will shorten the growing period (5%-10%), improve crop quality and yield, as well as, increase leaf size and leaf thickness. The increase in yield of tomato, cucumber and pepper crops is a result of increased numbers and faster flowering per plant.
It isn't just whether "someone can make some money on it", it is that we can't do it if someone is going to have to _spend_ a ton of money on it without any return. Why would they? Government-subsidized $50 a gallon fuel replacement? Why not? then the taxpayers are paying for it. If you want someone to invent a billion dollars into it, then they are going to want their money back and a profit out of it. Even if a government funds it, it will have to be cheap enough to be useful, and the money should be paid back by the people actually using it. Which is effectively the Evil Capitalist System we are using now. there is no such thing as "free lunch". Not sure why you think that is "sad". What, we should use super expensive, inefficient processes because in your mind it is free money and doesn't cost anyone anything as long as it is your money being spent by the government, instead of by yourself?
Apparently this show can cure your insomnia
No one gonna talk about how close that car was to the hangar doors at 2:27 ?!?!
"Make helium", do you know how awesome that IS?! It's the greatest byproduct ever. I seriously can't believe It!
Mr May is only too well aware of the fact that some of history's greatest inventions were put together in a shed !
I would say most of history's inventions. Where else would they be put together? That is the sot of place where people build things. Science happens in labs, building and inventing happens in sheds. That is the purpose of structures like that, that is why they have big doors and open spaces and tall ceilings, etc.
Excellent video.
Educational without being too condescending.
Nicely judged.
Luv and Peace.
My legs were shaking from watching you climbing the tower as well.
The glittering, sunny west end, of Guilford. AKA the Top Gear test track.
I thought he was going to show how much power we get from the sun, by driving it just on moon light.
The amount of lux on the full moon light is very low.
@@zootallure8913 yes but my 48 x 250 monokrystallinsk
Still produse 278 watt at full moon light
Enough to chardge every phone and labtop!!
That’s still the power of the sun.
"...or in Napoleon..." Excellent.
James May is a true gent
they always use really good music whenever james may or jeremy clarkson are doing a show of any kind
"welcome to the 21st century"
says captain slow
Slow n steady wins the race
Mr slowly as the Italians sat
Maybe "Mr.Fast"
James is actually the most sensible and intelligent of the three
@@TheEthalon Which isn't saying much. 😅
Anyone have an update on the tidal turbine?
Richard William Pearse (3 December 1877 - 29 July 1953) was a New Zealand farmer and inventor who performed pioneering aviation experiments. Witnesses interviewed many years afterward claimed that Pearse flew and landed a powered heavier-than-air machine on 31 March 1903, nine months before the Wright brothers flew.
RIP Wubbo he was a great man
A tranquil voice.
I really thought when he said they are "led by Bert"... he was going to follow it up with "and Ernie." :p
2:28 I used to have an herbal vaporizer that I called "the spaceship" that looked almost exactly like this vehicle. Seriously, almost identical. Lol
Perfect.
Mr.slows voice.
good nigth.
im really going to sleep its 12 in the evening
The only way to properly and truly harnessed the wind it's to go up where the wind always blows the jet streams but how exactly do you build a power plant that high above the surface of the earth?
DEAR Sir!!
IT is commenly known
That App 300m Up wind change direktion!!
So What happends with wind flow
In you put 350m windturbine Up???
Somthing get disrupted !!
Like the jet stream !! Will get mixed and disrupted
By turbulent air
This is quit logic!!
Now that is Entertaining, thank you James !
5:04 the first Gas-Powered Solar car is just mind-boggling.
Right in the middle of the group of bikers is Ross Noble.
You can tell as is the same jacket he wore while filming his lap of the track on top gear and in the 'behind the scenes' filming with Jeremy while Ross was stood in the background.
Can I just point out that the pink limo at 0:08 was most likely later destroyed in a game of car battleship by James May? How many stretch pink Lincolns can there possibly be?
The first thing i heard when i turned on my laptop was James May saying: "Between my legs."
The reassuring throb, you mean...
....”lets start by looking into the sun” 👌🙈🤫
17:30 imagine that dude in the blue jumper waiting your table at a restaurant "so you see this salt here? This is Indian creek salt, and this pepper here? This is pepper from the depths of eternal damnnation itself, somebody without the culinary background like us may miss that"
What Kind of shirt is that? i need one.. Rugby shirt?
@29:00 or there abouts. the trouble with tidal power is that it is NOT a renewable energy resource. Everytime that you use a tidal power plant you slow the Earth's rotation down as you turn the rotational kinetic energy into electricity. This means that the more that you use then, the longer each day will become. They can tell when they are using the Tidal powerplants in France just by measuring the Earth's rotation rate. I admit that it would take all of the world using tidal for a million years or so to increase the length of a day by one hours, but it is still not renewable.
If we had known about the consequences of fossil-fuel burning at the beginning of the industrial revolution (that in less than 300 years, humans will have precipitated a climate catastrophe and countless premature deaths from respiritory diseases, slaughtered millions of their fellows in pursuit of the control of energy sources - need I go on?), do you not think that we might have settled for a 4% slowing of the earth's rotation in exchange for a clean, sustainable natural environment (thereby, incidentally, giving 4% more time for generating electricity from solar power)?
47:14 Ah, that's where George Sips went. Years ago, our neighbours had the family name Sips. Fun fact, they had a Volvo that included not only the Side Impact Protection System, but also a sticker on the back screen showing SIPS. You could call that electromagnets control system of the tokomak a SIPS, couldn't you?
The elevator is the easy part. The hard part of a space elevator is a rope that's light enough but with a large enough tensile strength that it can be 22,000 miles long without snapping under its own weight. Carbon nanofibers are the only hope I've heard of but only tiny amounts of them have been produced. There's also no mention of possible controlled fusion.
Biggest issue about the space elevator for me is that you need something to tie that rope to. A satellite orbiting the earth on a geostationary orbit yes, but when you pull the rope, the satellite's going to come down. So it's going to need thrust to keep itself on the orbit and for that you need lots of energy. I guess solar would be obvious but I don't think you could support much weight with that. Possibly not even the weight of the rope.
The problem is that lifting mass to space always requires a certain amount of energy. A solar-powered winch is not hard to make but it is nothing without a rope tied to something that's not going to come down when you pull the rope. Essentially you would need to be able to make a solar powered rocket capable of making it into space by itself to power the space elevator thing purely on solar power.
3:27 we all know thats the Top Gear Test Track
oh wow he drove by my house and area lanham maryland !!!
a few years back I was flying over the Flinders Ranges (Australia) when the geiger counter went wild. The geologist said "see that hill below?.. there's enough uranium in there to power the entire planet for 2,000 years on current technology.. and there are many such hills". And that my friends is where we are headed to be realistic
the Geiger counter is quite easy to go wires, even a banana may trigger it, so the Geiger counter would certainly detect the radioactivity from uranium, even raw one
You can also use uranium from sea water which is more expensive but good for some 20000 years.
Not if you have a digital one and only measure gamma-radiation.
Agreed, agreed completely. There's just one thing that really bothers me, the places we choose to build power plants. Nuclear plants should not be built within 100 miles of the coast, or a fault, its putting them at unnecessary risk, and power lines can transport the energy to where its needed.
The Original T-Paine But don't they build them near coasts to help keep them cool with the water supply? I could be wrong :D
I like it that they do the first segment (solar powered car) on the Dunsfold Aerodrome.
51:45 I spent a minute thinking he was the wealthy underwriter to the venture, then I realized it was his name...!
Wow. The space elevator sparked recall from 1978 or 79. Starting out in med field as an RT aide in a midwest hospital. For some forgotton reason I once visited one of the RTs at his modest home, a total mad scientist but "hampered" by a young family, job and real life. Built a working proto of the bimetallic sphere-in-twisting-mag-field model device and blew me away. Had some power feedback thingie that made it self-sustaining after triggering. Was going to revolutionize the world and I was half-convinced I'd have a "Yeah, I MET Einstein" type story. Guess not but appreciate the recall and ... HOLY WTF, I remember his name. GOOGLE!
exactly @21:00 thats when i knew i had to smash that like button. god i love james may.
Why is this under the category "gaming"?
because this is next level
Coz the world got totally MAD!
Jeremy DiPilato best answer ever
views.
You got played? I'll show myself out.
not The Tower of Power?? lol the Late Frank Zappa could have a claim for copyright there lol. brilliant vid James
I appreciate his visit to the Goddard Space Flight Center Visitor's Center (where the Delta is).
yeeeee about solving energy problem in future ......
"How is the snake related to the duck?" favorite scientific question.
both lay eggs
Aunt Buffy
Yea, I'd say using 2-4 tethers. Prefer 4 would b best. However with a solid connection on a end that is in motion creates a lot of red flags. Be using up quite a bit of fuel or solar energy to keep it taught. Yes it's up in no gravity but while connected that something that is will create tension 2 the station.
super... the new ideas on using energy available on earth. The fusion concept and the box to contain the energy and manage it...!!! remided me of the millienium falcon and how it was whizzing through the empire...they figured out how to contain and manage the fusion not fission!
the mirrors creating fuel...but after all we should stop burning hydrocarbons- correct james?
thank you very much James, God bless you!!!
we have power to hope !!! :-))
just saw this video today, better late than never. Thanks again James May!
The heliostats produce enough power for a small town. Too bad they take up about as much space as a small town. In terms of watts generated per surface area (m²), those things are pretty inefficient. A big power plant isn't as clean, but it can produce power in the megawatt range while taking up about as much space. Solar panels on the other hand can be installed on otherwise unused roofs and generate power right where its needed, reducing the need for centralized power grids.
All solar energy requires a large surface area. Is there a place where the houses don't have a need for the centralized power grid?
@oyinbo peppe I know this old comments, but remember when he said they make steam? You need water first
Can I show this to the United Nation? They appeared to be lack of energy within the grasp. I loved the idea of tidal/wave energy, seems far more promising than ever.
The Mind of James May: Use 101 Dalmatians song in a Futuristic Documentary.
26:00
Love James May shows, the remark about councils running street lights full power made me think he really hates owls...
The constant hooting would drive you insane
46:01 typical May.
it majes no sence , because the joke is said before the time you put it at.
it was his slipping
How many “James Mays” are there?
James, George Hamilton uses that helio tower as a tanning bed
Amazing video, best youtuber ever
It’s cuz it’s a bbc program. Then posted to RUclips.
What happened to the cr5 reactor? there seems to be nothing about it since 2009, did the oil industry kill them?
music on the background at 9:31?
Ceramic Nano Tint with its Infrered blocking technology, would certainly help those in that bubble of the vehicle. Some sort of ventilation wouldn't go a miss. Granted, I have not seen a more recent representation as of late.
Fusion energy at this time is less then 3% efficient. The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), itself at the theoretical highest efficiency will only be 60%. It will take a bit more research and time to improve on this. It is fascinating though.
Nuclear power will always be the cleanest and most efficient way of producing energy.
"You pillock."
55:53 "Wow. It's a Counter Rotating Ring Receiver Reactor and Recuperation. This is going to solve the world's energy problem. What does it make?"
*camera pans to wall full of toilet seats*
55:15 that's a potential WMD right there
James May: "Can we make the Americans look stupid?"
America: "I gotchu fam"
8:40 11 megawatts will power 6000 homes at 1833w or enough to run one medium size microwave oven (typical 65% efficiency) and possibly 1-2 lights but only when the *sun is bright* - LMAO
Nuclear power has always been the answer and still is, but not when the building of those facilities is won by the *lowest bidder!*
3:24 For those unaware, that's Top Gear's test track.
I give it 10 years until someone realises they can stick another mirror on top of the tower and make a horrific area exclusion weapon.
Those "space elevator" guys really knew how to sound like tinkering idiots. They're working on the relatively easy stuff. Show me the material that can take all the mass of itself, the counterweight and the payload (and don't forget weathering effects). We can worry about skateboard bearings later on...
Came here to say this.
Also, brags about the amount of education needed to use premade bearings
+Flimzes lol u can't be serious... Did you not figure out he was being sarcastic?
Ayman B. What makes you think he's being sarcastic?
you guys dont humor very well
"I am very smart"