Why Nuclear? Why Thorium?

Why Nuclear?  This is the question I will answer, and I hope that it will be convincing for you.

Check this out:  A piece of thorium (an element) the size of this rock, shown next to a pencil and a stack of 20 nickels, can provide all your energy needs for your entire lifetime.

That's right, all the energy for your entire lifetime; transportation, domestic heating and cooling, domestic hot water, lighting and electricity from a piece of thorium the size of this rock.  Compare that with the truckloads and truckloads and truckloads of coal, oil and gas you will need for a lifetime using current energy technologies.

By the way, thorium is a fairly abundant element, as common as lead and it can be burned in a molten salt reactor.

How is this possible? Physics and Chemistry!  The combustion of fossil fuels (coal, oil, & natural gas) releases chemical energy from the electrons of the carbon and hydrogen atoms in the fuel when it combines with oxygen from the atmosphere.  This energy is measured in electron volts per reaction and has served humanity pretty well and will continue to for some time.

However, when certain heavy elements are split (fissioned) in a nuclear reactor, energy from the nucleus is released, and it is measured in millions of electron volts per reaction - millions of times more energy is released per pound as compared with burning fossil fuels.  This is why a small amount of thorium, that I can hold in my hand, can provide energy for my entire lifetime.

And, just to be clear, I am not saying it is magic, or won’t require capital investment, development, public support, etc. It will require all of these.