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== '''[[Politics]]''' ==
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==Footnotes==
'''Politics''' is about living together in communities. Its subject-matter includes the consideration of such  philosophical issues  as the extent to which individual conduct should be made subordinate to the will of the community,  and that of the proper rôle of the [[state]] as an expression of the will of the community. It also includes the consideration of such practical issues as the formulation and enforcement of rules governing the relations between the individual and the [[state]]. It encompasses the  sociological influences upon the resolution of those issues in various communities, including the collective beliefs (or[[ideology| ideologies]]) that are held by  their members. At the operational level, it includes prescriptive issues  such as the conditions governing the legitimacy of [[government]]; the extent to which collective decision-making should be determined by [[ethics|ethical]] considerations rather than by its intended consequences; and the consideration that should be given to the welfare of foreign nationals. The descriptive content of politics includes the taxonomy of political systems, of  institutional arrangements for the conduct of [[government]], and of the institutions governing the conduct of [[international relations]]. It also includes  accounts of the observed conduct of politicians in seeking to gain the approval of the community, and in their policy-making  and executive activities when in office.
 
===Etymology===
The word politics comes from the Greek word Πολιτικά (politika), which was itself derived from πόλις (polis), "city". It was first used  to mean the art of living in a city, but it subsequently acquired the broader interpretation of the art of being a citizen. That broader interpretation was implicit in the use of the word "cosmopolitan" to denote a citizen of the cosmos by the [[Cynics]] of the 4th century BCE. Later derivations included the terms "politic", "policy" and "police", and "polity" (a word used by some academics to refer to particular forms of governmental organisation). The term politics itself has also been used colloquially to describe  (slightly discreditable) social conduct, as in "office politics" and, when extended to form a verb, in "politicking".
 
''[[Politics|.... (read more)]]''
 
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Latest revision as of 10:19, 11 September 2020

After decades of failure to slow the rising global consumption of coal, oil and gas,[1] many countries have proceeded as of 2024 to reconsider nuclear power in order to lower the demand for fossil fuels.[2] Wind and solar power alone, without large-scale storage for these intermittent sources, are unlikely to meet the world's needs for reliable energy.[3][4][5] See Figures 1 and 2 on the magnitude of the world energy challenge.

Nuclear power plants that use nuclear reactors to create electricity could provide the abundant, zero-carbon, dispatchable[6] energy needed for a low-carbon future, but not by simply building more of what we already have. New innovative designs for nuclear reactors are needed to avoid the problems of the past.

(CC) Image: Geoff Russell
Fig.1 Electricity consumption may soon double, mostly from coal-fired power plants in the developing world.[7]

Issues Confronting the Nuclear Industry

New reactor designers have sought to address issues that have prevented the acceptance of nuclear power, including safety, waste management, weapons proliferation, and cost. This article will summarize the questions that have been raised and the criteria that have been established for evaluating these designs. Answers to these questions will be provided by the designers of these reactors in the articles on their designs. Further debate will be provided in the Discussion and the Debate Guide pages of those articles.

Footnotes
  1. ↑ Global Energy Growth by Our World In Data
  2. ↑ Public figures who have reconsidered their stance on nuclear power are listed on the External Links tab of this article.
  3. ↑ Pumped storage is currently the most economical way to store electricity, but it requires a large reservoir on a nearby hill or in an abandoned mine. Li-ion battery systems at $500 per KWh are not practical for utility-scale storage. See Energy Storage for a summary of other alternatives.
  4. ↑ Utilities that include wind and solar power in their grid must have non-intermittent generating capacity (typically fossil fuels) to handle maximum demand for several days. They can save on fuel, but the cost of the plant is the same with or without intermittent sources.
  5. ↑ Mark Jacobson believes that long-distance transmission lines can provide an alternative to costly storage. See the bibliography for more on this proposal and the critique by Christopher Clack.
  6. ↑ "Load following" is the term used by utilities, and is important when there is a lot of wind and solar on the grid. Some reactors are not able to do this.
  7. ↑ Fig.1.3 in Devanney "Why Nuclear Power has been a Flop"

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