Dear Colleagues:

On December 13, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced “fusion ignition,” an “energy breakthrough” that received massive publicity.

It was “a long-awaited milestone in reproducing the power of the sun in a laboratory” as well as, according to White House Science Adviser Arati Prebhakar, a sign of possible progress “to the possibilities for clean energy.” Fusion looks like an ideal source of clean energy because it would not need to be intermittent, unlike the two most prominent forms of less dangerous energy (wind and solar). Yet December’s milestone was “long-awaited” because scientists have been seeking ways to control and use fusion reactions at least since the 1950s, with extremely limited success. The big news was that researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory for the first time ever created a reaction that produced more energy than was used to start the reaction. But this reaction only created 50% more energy than was put into it, and lasted less than one 100-trillionth of a second.

So how big a story is this, really – and does it really suggest nuclear fusion could become a major source of energy? The title of this program is a bit ironic because we have seen not a race but a very, very slow slog. Yet it might be appropriate now, as a race to master fusion before global warming has catastrophic consequences. Cue the Professors Taylor.

Phil and Cyrus Taylor are leading theoretical physicists and among the most distinguished members of our faculty. They have observed decades of both hope and very little success. They join us to clarify what has been achieved, all that is yet to do, and the reasons for both hope and caution.

In-Person and Virtual Attendance

In order to make it easy for people to protect themselves and still participate, the meetings are accessible on Zoom. Participants can register for each meeting in the same way they did for the past two years. The link is posted below.

We now have new technology in the Dampeer Room that should make it easier for participants on Zoom to hear the discussion in the room and allow less worry about echoes within the room.

The discussion begins at 12:30 p.m., but the room should be open no later than Noon. We try to have beverages and refreshments set up soon after that. Participants should be able to sign on to Zoom also by Noon. But please remember not much will be happening online until the talk begins at 12:30 pm. Please also remember to show identification when entering Kelvin Smith Library.

Zoom participants should speak up when asked for questions or comments, or submit thoughts through Zoom’s chat function. Please keep yourself muted until you are choosing to speak.

Each week we will send out this newsletter with information about the topic. It will also include a link to register (for free) for the discussion. When you register, you will automatically receive from the Zoom system the link to join the meeting. If you do not get the newsletter, you should also be able to get the information each Monday by checking http://fridaylunch.case.edu/ Then if you choose you can use the contact form on that website to request the registration link.

This week’s Zoom link for registration is:

https://cwru.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAofu-prD4pGtZmsD6F-kL1WKuTJKtjA2rq

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Please e-mail padg@case.edu if you have questions about how the Zoom version of the Friday Lunch will work or any other suggestions. Or call at 216 368-2426 and we’ll try to get back to you. We are very pleased to be partnering this semester with the Siegal Lifelong Learning Program to share information about the discussions.

Best wishes for safety and security for you and yours,

Joe White
Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy and Director, Center for Policy Studies

About Our Guests

Phil Taylor has received essentially every honor the university could offer a member of the faculty, including appointment as a Distinguished University Professor and the Frank and Dorothy Humel Hovorka award for exceptional achievements in teaching, research and scholarly service. His research on the theoretical physics of condensed matter has led to having four physical phenomena and models named for him. He has mentored more than 50 doctoral and postdoctoral students, worked with colleagues across the university to develop an interdisciplinary seminar on Energy and Society, and with his wife Sara been a longtime pioneer of environmentally responsible living in Ohio, and been a leading advocate within the Physics community for activism on climate change.

Cyrus Taylor’s research focuses on both theoretical and experimental high-energy physics. That has included long-term collaborations at both Fermilab and CERN. He helped found and direct CWRU’s Physics Entrepreneurship Program and Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Programs. He was a longtime leader on faculty committees before serving as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences for 12 years. Returning to undergraduate teaching, he soon won the Wittke Award for his work in the classroom. Professor Taylor has also been an ultra-long-distance runner, an activity that perhaps was especially good training for the rigors of academic administration.

* Kelvin Smith Library requires all entrants to show identification when entering the building, unless they have a university i.d. that they can magnetically scan. We are sorry if that seems like a hassle, but it has been Library policy for a while in response to security concerns. Please do not complain to the library staff at the entrance, who are just doing their jobs.

Schedule of Friday Lunch Upcoming Topics and Speakers:

Note: We are still working to create the schedule for the semester. In addition to the programs listed below, a few others are nearly arranged. Please contact me at joseph.white@case.edu to suggest other topics – especially if you can suggest speakers!

February 10: Muslim Communities in the West. With Maysan Haydar Ph.D., Assistant Professor of History and Fellow with the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

February 17: How Can (and Do) Nurses Influence Heath Policy? With Rebecca Patton, DNP, RN, CNOR, FAAN, Lucy Jo Atkinson Perioperative Nursing Professor and Past President, American Nurses Association.

February 24: Environmental and Social Corporate Governance. With Victor B. Flatt, J.D., Visiting Professor and Burke Environmental Law Center Distinguished Visiting Fellow, CWRU School of Law; Dwight Olds Chair in Law and Faculty Co-Director, Environment, Energy and Natural Resources (EENR) Center, University of Houston Law Center.

March 3: TBD

March 10: TBD

March 17: Spring Break

March 24: TBD

March 31: TBD

April 7: TBD

April 14: TBD

April 21: TBD

April 28: TBD