Ben Eidelson
@ben8128.bsky.social
Just trying to be helpful. Climate Papa. Stepchange Founder & GP. Ex-Stripe, Ex-Google product person. Recovering founder. climatepapa.com
The grid is "the coolest industrial story in the history of the universe." - @nathanielbullard.com There are lots of things we need to improve on. Yet, it's worth marveling at what was built in 140 years. It's an insane accomplishment (and mess) technically, economically, and regulatoraly.
The intro teaser of our 4 hour magnum opus on the complete history of data centers. For the full episode pop over to: www.stepchange.show/p/data-cente...
Everyone’s talking about the explosion in data center energy use. But the real shock isn’t how high it’s going. It’s the quiet miracle of how flat energy use stayed while the internet grew exponentially.
This very cool pod @stepchange.bsky.social just does one giant, deeply researched episode every six months or so. This time around it's a subject dear to all our hearts: data centers! Take four hours (!) & learn the crucial context you need to understand today's debates:
Data Centers: The Hidden Backbone of Our Modern World
Uncover the physical reality of our digital world--from mainframes to the AI boom.
stepchange.show
Today on Volts: a few weeks ago I was a guest on the Climate Papa podcast, hosted by @ben8128.bsky.social. We talked about my history, how the climate beat has changed, the crucial importance of the grid & urban land use, & the danger of the tech-bro mentality seeping into cleantech. It was fun!
Me, on the Climate Papa podcast
I talk a bunch about my career, the evolution of the climate fight, distributed energy and political power, and more.
volts.wtf
Coal has shaped our modern world more than any other source of energy.
Poor material living conditions have been such a persistent and pervasive reality that, for much of human history, it was unimaginable that they could ever be different. Poverty did not change and so it was easy to believe that poverty was unchangeable.
Happy Thanksgiving! Finally learned what led to this holiday: www.npr.org/2024/11/21/1...
The Mother of Thanksgiving : Throughline
The Thanksgiving story most of us hear is about friendship and unity. And that's what Sarah Josepha Hale had on her mind when she sat down to write a letter to President Lincoln in 1863, deep into the Civil War. Hale had already spent years campaigning for a national day of thanksgiving, using her platform as editor of one the country's most widely-read magazines and writing elected officials to argue that Americans urgently needed a national story. But she'd gotten nowhere – until now.Five days after reading her letter, Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday. At the time, no one was talking about Pilgrims and Native Americans. But that too would change.Today on the show: a Thanksgiving story you may not have heard, how it happened, and what it leaves out.
npr.org
