E2: The Untold History of Nuclear Energy

“Nuclear fission is a miracle technology, and we've had it for 80 years. But we don't live in an energy abundant world. Because progress takes more than miracles.” Almost exactly 50 years ago, nuclear fission and large scale reactors were on track to deliver abundant, cheap energy to the globe. But instead, nuclear power declined even faster than it had scaled, becoming a pariah of the energy industry and relegated to a footnote. What actually happened? And how do we prevent it from happening again? 

The rise and fall of nuclear power in the 20th century are even more complicated and weirder than you might think – and yet the themes of global economic systems in flux, misinformation and pseudoscience, the complicated relationship between government and business, and the wide gaps between technological innovation and putting that innovation into practice will all feel familiar.  

From nuclear’s origins in small reactors for submarines and planes after WWII to its rapid scaling into gigawatt-scale reactors in the 60s and 70s; from President Eisenhower’s calls for “atoms for peace” to the pressures of the original “decels”, the degrowth anti-nuclear environmental movement; from regulatory boosterism to regulatory overreach, the story of nuclear is one of extremes. And there’s much to learn about pushing nuclear forward in the 21st century. 

Thank you to this episode’s guests: Emmet Penney, Rod Adams, Nick Touran, James Krellenstein, Bret Kugelmass, Alex Epstein, and Mark Nelson. 

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Two narratives of nuclear energy

(05:50) Nuclear’s early history and rise

(11:34) The start of the fall

(19:44) Five key factors that led to nuclear's decline

(20:09) Factor #1: the AEC

(25:32) Factor #2: good old-fashioned economics

(29:35) Factor #3: regulation

(41:33) Factor #4: the environmentalists

(49:13) Factor #5: the nuclear disasters

(53:00) Recap of the historical lessons

This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at [email protected].

Credits: Nancy Xu produced this season of Age of Miracles. Audio editor: Justin Golden. Video editor: Jake Salyers. Executive producers: Amelia Salyers, Packy McCormick, and Erik Torenberg.