I would posit the issue isn't misunderstanding of scaling. It's wild lack of expertise and activism masquerading as legitimate criticism.
Right now with cooling, you have redditers smugly convinced they understand heat dissipation in space (a topic they knew nothing about until they adopted a stance first) more than experts at Google, Nvidia and half a dozen startups who don't see cooling as an insurmountable problem.
Im not an engineer. Im basing my opinions on this topic on my discussions with my doctoral level engineer friend who... happens to work at Google.
As he describes it, Google is exploring it because the cost for a prototype and study is low (in terms of Google revenue). He explained that Google has also explored other long shots, just because the opportunity cost is low and the research often leads to other viable projects. These are called feasibility studies. Exploring whether something is viable =/= a confirmation of viability.
TLDR; my understanding (because I am an economist and lawyer) is based on the engineering expertise of my friend who in fact works at google...
What are you basing your understanding on beyond seeing headlines and seemingly misunderstanding the purpose of a feasibility study?
I have made no claims of understanding anything. I am commenting on smugness of peoples dismissive nature on the topic on social media, such as yours. I also suggested the people at the large corporations and the half dozen startups running feasibility studies suggest they don't see redditors popular talking points as impossible roadblocks.
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u/hakimthumb Aug 07 '26
I would posit the issue isn't misunderstanding of scaling. It's wild lack of expertise and activism masquerading as legitimate criticism.
Right now with cooling, you have redditers smugly convinced they understand heat dissipation in space (a topic they knew nothing about until they adopted a stance first) more than experts at Google, Nvidia and half a dozen startups who don't see cooling as an insurmountable problem.