First Principles Podcast

The Norfolk train derailment that took place in East Palestine, Ohio was one of the worst environmental disasters to happen on the mainland of the USA. The strange thing about the story is that the vinyl chloride being carried in one of the rail cars, was burned on purpose. The question this, why would they do that? They claim they had no choice because the temperature in the rail car was concerning. However, I seek to uncover the claims, as always, from first principles.  Watch the video version of this podcast on the YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/FYYstLhXmEk  Subscribe to the First Principles YouTube Channel: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P  Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples   

The Dutch farmers protests had been heating up over the past summer. What are the origins of the protests? Are there technological solutions that exist to solve the issues? What is the bigger picture and the ties to the world economic forum? First Principles Podcast attempts to answer all these questions. Watch the video version of this podcast on our YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/8AMW800gJoA Subscribe to the First Principles YouTube Channel: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P  Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples  FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Support this channel by donating with PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/f1rstprinciples    

In this episode, we discuss Carbon Collective, which purports to be an investment firm focused on climate conscious 'green' investments. We review their practices and portfolio, and point out some MAJOR flaws. Green Investment is a buzzword and if you are not careful, you could potentially be giving away your money to a bunch of snake oil salesmen! Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples  Subscribe to the First Principles YouTube Channel: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P  FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com

ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance scoring. These are criteria that corporations must follow in order to demonstrate compliance with meta profit initiatives. But, do ESGs really do what they set out to do? Or are they just another regulatory burden and game put in place for companies to have to navigate, further creating division between the giant corporations and smaller businesses?   FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples  Subscribe to the First Principles YouTube Channel: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P   

Climate Trace is the new brain child of Al Gore. It purports to use satellite data, amongst other technologies like Artificial Intelligence to track and locate CO2 pollution sources.  There are several flaws with their methodology. In this episode, we unpack some of these flaws and the dangers posed.    FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples  Subscribe to the First Principles YouTube Channel: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P 

Nuclear energy resulted from the culmination of countless small discoveries made by various scientists from all over the world. It is an amazing human achievement yet it is much maligned and discredited by environmental activists. Is there merit to their criticism? Well, our findings showed that nuclear energy is even more effective in terms of safety and CO2 emissions, than some forms of 'green' energy.  Support this podcast at: FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples 

Sustainability is definitely a buzzword. Whether it's corporations or governments, everyone wants to claim they are doing things in a 'sustainable' manner. But what does sustainable actually mean? There is no real definition, hence it can be easily manipulated. We took a crack at defining what Sustainability truly encompasses. We really did some inward thinking and came to some interesting conclusions that we are excited to share. If you find value in these insights, please share with a friend that may benefit as well. As always, Break down, from the ground up.   Support this podcast at: FirstPrinciplePodcast.com 

David Suzuki is a prominent Canadian environmentalist. He recently got himself in some hot water after his comments about oil pipelines and their link to climate change. Critics stated he was advocating for eco-terrorism by casually implying pipelines might start blowing up.  Was the criticism justified? +++ Support this show at: www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com/ Donate at: paypal.me/f1rstprinciples  Connect on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod  https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples

Global leaders recently gathered for COP26 to discuss the future of climate change and how countries would take actions to 'save the planet'. Ironically, they jetted in with their private planes to make rules for the rest of the population, that they likely will not abide by (because after all they're special and have important things to do, and you simply do not). What were the results of the talks? You might be surprised at some of the findings. We go into detail on this subject in this episode of the podcast. Support this show at www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Reach out on social media: https://www.instagram.com/f1rstprinciplespod  https://www.twitter.com/f1rstprinciples  

Electric vehicles show a lot of promise towards a sustainable future (whatever that means). Nonetheless, they are not without cost. In this episode, we explore some of the environmental costs associated with lithium and other components of electric vehicles.   Support this podcast at www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com

Global greening is one of the interesting developments of climate change that was unexpected by most. It's the premise that with increased CO2 concentration in the atmosphere, trees and plant life will benefit, thrive, and generate greater yield. This seems logical as plants consume CO2 as their primary energy source. This idea is however is not being discussed by mainstream media. Even worse, when it is mentioned, the premise is often demonized.  What's the big deal? Perhaps it's an unfortunate consequence that runs counter to a narrative of complete doom and gloom that is the climate catastrophe. We explore the concept further on this episode of the podcast.  FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com

The IPCC recently released another report documenting the status of climate change. This has led to continual media hysteria with respect to a climate crisis. Though we do not deny the existence of climate change, the crisis narrative seems to be over played. As the old saying goes, however, any good crisis is an opportunity. 'An opportunity for what?' you may ask.   Perhaps "The Great Reset" provides some clues... FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com

Hydrogen is the most abundant molecule in the universe. It can be used for a multitude of applications, including energy storage and transportation.    In this episode, we analyze the potential use for Hydrogen in the current economy and environment.    Support this podcast at www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com

A lot of doom and gloom surrounds environmentalists due to a supposed impending climate catastrophe. We hope to change this outlook by analyzing some of the positive elements of recent climate developments and technological innovations. Technological revolutions have led to globally declining poverty at unprecedented rates. It can be argued that there is a correlation between an increase in wealth and a proclivity for environmental concern. Thus, we can hypothesize that the more mental energy we have dedicated towards solving environmental issues, the higher the likelihood that we solve the problem.  Let's be rationally optimistic for the future. We need practical and pragmatic solutions to these problems, which will benefit by dedicating more minds to solving them. 

Many countries have proposed a Carbon Tax as a means to combat climate change. The principle behind it is that carbon emissions pose an externality to people's health and as such need to priced into the cost of goods. Theoretically, this would encourage people to buy goods that have a lower carbon content, as that would be reflected in a lower price. So whether you are producing steel, oil, gasoline, lumber, mining, etc. regardless of your industry, if you are generating carbon emissions, you need to pay a price on them.   One very popular and outspoken proponent of a carbon tax is Elon Musk. In this episode, we discuss comments Elon recently made about the efficacy of a carbon tax, and his perspective as a billionaire concerned about the planet. We also discuss carbon tax more broadly, in terms of its origins, intended use and implementation, and how the resulting effects will be felt by everyday individuals.    

In this episode we discuss various methods of energy storage for application to a large scale electrical grid.    We cover well known technologies such as battery storage, as well as less prominent forms such as thermal and gravity storage.   With increased incorporation of renewable energies such as wind and solar into the electrical power grid, it is more important now than ever before to consider how we will store energy for when the sun don't shine and the wind don't blow. 

In this episode, we look at a case study that tries to assess the feasibility of powering the Ontario electrical grid with 100% renewable energy, supplemented by battery storage.   With growing integration of renewable energy systems into the mainstream grid, it is crucial to ensure the transition is done such that we do not compromise people's access to electricity. That means, blackouts due to insufficient electrical availability from renewable sources is simply unacceptable.   Western standards have come to the point that we expect instant electricity at the flick of a switch, often forgetting that this is a luxury not afforded to many in the world.   This a subtle game of energy supply and demand that is constantly being played. Changing the rules of the game will lead to unintended negative consequences, as we saw with the power outages in Texas.    This is a challenging and complex subject in which models are often used. We hope to understand and break down these models, as always, from first principles.         

What would an electrical grid powered by solar and wind energy look like? We tried to analyze this problem from a simplistic model, using some basic back-of-the-envelope calculations.   Mainly, we coarsely estimated the land foot print required, if all of Canada's and USA's power were supplied by wind or solar energy.    Of course, the story is not so simple because we can't have the full conversation on sustainability of these technologies, without mentioning energy storage in some form, which we briefly allude to as well.    We also looked at the policy implications associated with any technology and how they impact their application. A great solution executed poorly is no solution at all, hence the coining of the term "unreliables" when some refer to solar and wind power.     This ultimately leads to a comparison of some of the positive and negative aspects of renewable energies, fossil fuels, and nuclear energy. No country has the same make-up of energy and that was evident when we looked at the cost of electricity in China, Germany, Canada, and Kenya in relation to the different forms of energy used to power their respective grids.    Listen for full analysis because some of the answers to the questions above may surprise you!    

Environmental discussions related to global warming and climate change are becoming more frequent.    This was true in the Vice Presidential debate that took place between Kamala Harris and Mike Pence, where global warming, wildfires, forest management, renewable energy, and many such subjects were discussed.   These are complex systems, and of course, politicians on the debate stage have only a few minutes to try to communicate these incredibly delicate subjects. This is unfair to the general public because it does not demonstrate true value to the issues at hand.   We tried to analyze these segments of the debate to see the full picture and understand the issues from first principles.  

The Green New Deal (also known as House Resolution 109) was proposed as a means of addressing carbon emissions and climate change in the United States.    First Principles Podcast tries to take a fair and balanced analysis of the positive and negative aspects of the GND.    We like some of the principles of higher standards of pollutant emissions, however, find the resolution lacks focus and tries to address too many issues.

Planet of the Humans was a documentary recently released by Jeff Gibbs and Michael Moore. It depicts a very gloom future for humanity as a result of our extensive over consumption of resources in an unsustainable manner.  We took a look at the claims made in this piece of art so as to understand whether there is scientific merit or whether we are being fed another doom and gloom narrative. Watch the VIDEO version of this episode on YouTube: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P   Connect with us on our site: www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com   @f1rstPrinciples

The eco anxiety phenomenon has recently been increasingly discussed. We wanted to weigh in on the discussion and talk about our own experiences with the matter and how we have dealt with our own form of eco anxiety. Connect with us at: www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com   Subscribe to our YouTube and watch the video version of this podcast: https://cutt.ly/YouTube1P   Twitter: @f1rstprinciples  

We tried to give an honest analysis of the Greta Thunberg speech at the UN and highlighted some things we liked and the things we did not like. On the one hand we admire the courage Greta has to speak in on a global stage, but on the other hand we believe the politicians dishonestly used the teenager to virtue signal to their base. For more in depth written analysis, visit our website www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Connect on twitter @f1rstprinciples   

We looked at the environmental impact of a vegan based diet and one that used crickets for its caloric intake. So if you are strange like us and ever wondered how many crickets you would need in order to sustain yourself, check out this episode and find out! The parameters of analysis chosen as they pertain to environmental impact were the land requirement, CO2 generation, water consumption, and Energy consumption, where available.  For a detailed written analysis of the subject, visit our website www.FirstPrinciplesPodcast.com Connect on twitter @f1rstprinciples        

The carnivore diet has gained much popularity for its health benefits. We were, however, more curious about the environmental cost of a diet that relied explicitly on meat. What we discovered was that there was a large difference on your net environmental impact when the primary source of meat was beef vs. chicken. First Principles Podcast What is the environmental impact of the carnivore diet?

Peak oil theory states that global production of oil must exist as a bell curve distribution. Opponents argue that empirical data does not match this theory as production has deviated significantly. Which side is right? Is peak oil just a myth, or do we need to start thinking about post-oil? We dive into these questions on episode 1 of First Principles Podcast.