Category: World

The U.S. Department of Energy on Tuesday announced a breakthrough in nuclear fusion, a method of producing clean energy, that has many people hopeful for the future.

The achievement was reached by scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. 

Nuclear fusion may be a new concept to many, but scientists have been working on it since the 1940s. However, they have faced a tough challenge: how to produce more energy than it takes to create it. It almost seemed like an insurmountable challenge.

Until today.

What is nuclear fusion?

Nuclear fusion is a process where two lighter elements combine to make a heavier element. 

It’s the same process that powers our sun, where protons of hydrogen atoms collide violently and at incredibly high temperatures at the core, fusing together to produce a helium atom.

Here on Earth, nuclear fusion is produced by fusing the elements deuterium and tritium. Deuterium is quite plentiful and can be found in water, but is most abundant in our oceans. Tritium, on the other hand, is less plentiful and is primarily found in our atmosphere, a result of cosmic radiation. Tritium is also made in nuclear explosions and is a byproduct from nuclear reactors.

The sun’s massive gravitational force allows it to fuse hydrogen atoms, but to create fusion on Earth, scientists need to apply extremely high pressures and temperatures that are roughly 100 million degrees Celsius, or 10 times hotter than the sun’s core.

While there are different ways to try to produce nuclear fusion, scientists at the California lab used 192 lasers focused on the inner wall of a cylinder that contained a small capsule (about the size of a BB) of fusion fuel: deuterium and tritium. 

That generated X-rays from the wall that struck the capsule, squeezing the fuel. It stayed hot, dense and round enough for long enough that it ignited, producing more energy than the lasers used. 

While the energy produced was small — about three megajoules, or enough to power a light bulb — it marks a historic first in nuclear fusion energy because the lasers used just over two megajoules to fire into the target.

However, it’s important to note that 300 megajoules of traditional energy — often referred to as “from the wall” energy — were needed to produce all the materials used in the experiment, according to Marv Adams, deputy administrator for Defense Programs at the Nuclear Security and National Nuclear Security Administration.

How is it different from nuclear power we already use?

When most people think about nuclear energy, they likely think about the nuclear reactors we have today. But those reactors operate using nuclear fission. 

Fission is the exact opposite of fusion, which forces atoms together. Instead, nuclear reactors generate energy by separating heavy atoms.

As well, fusion produces clean energy. Unlike nuclear reactors, the process doesn’t result in byproducts like the spent rods found in nuclear power plants.

With nuclear fusion, there is also no chance of a nuclear meltdown as there is with fission, and nuclear fusion cannot be used to make nuclear weapons.

The International Atomic Energy Agency explains that while hydrogen bombs do use fusion reactions, a second fission bomb is needed to detonate it. 

Why is nuclear fusion important?

Earth is facing a climate crisis caused by centuries of burning fossil fuels. As a result, there will be an increase in floods, droughts, rising sea levels and more. We are already seeing this happening, and the more the planet warms, the worse these disasters will become.

The planet has warmed by roughly 1.2 C, but if we are to limit that to 1.5 C by the end of the century, which is the ambitious goal set at the 2015 Paris climate accord, it could mean fewer climate-related disasters. So, scientists and engineers have been trying to develop cost-effective, clean energy. 

That’s where fusion comes in. 

It produces no harmful carbon dioxide or methane emissions and is highly efficient.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, “Fusion could generate four times more energy per kilogram of fuel than fission (used in nuclear power plants) and nearly four million times more energy than burning oil or coal.” 

“It moves us closer to the possibility of zero carbon abundant fusion energy powering our society,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm at Tuesday’s announcement.

When will we use fusion as an energy source?

While this is an historic first, it doesn’t mean that we’re ready to produce energy on a large scale yet. 

“There are very significant hurdles, not just in the science, but in technology,” said Kim Budil, director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, Calif. 

“This is one igniting capsule, one time and to realize commercial fusion energy, you have to … produce many, many fusion ignition events per minute and you have to have a robust system of drivers to enable that,” said Budil. 

She explained that though it wouldn’t take quite as long as scientists used to estimate, it will be least a few decades before the underlying technologies are developed enough to build a nuclear fusion power plant.

It’s also important to remember that the U.S. isn’t the only country working on nuclear fusion. 

In France, there is the collaborative International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, a massive nuclear fusion reactor weighing 23,000 tonnes and standing nearly 30 metres tall, which is set to begin operations in roughly a decade. 

In Canada, there are also private companies like General Fusion, based out of British Columbia, among others. There are also private enterprises working on fusion in China, the United Kingdom and Germany.

Miss something this week? Don’t panic. CBC’s Marketplace rounds up the consumer and health news you need.

Ontario’s real estate regulator isn’t protecting homebuyers or sellers, according to a new report

We go undercover to investigate mortgage brokers and real estate agents perpetrating mortgage fraud for a fee, securing commissions by submitting fake documents for approval.

A new report from Ontario’s auditor general examined the effectiveness of the province’s real estate regulator and found it’s not protecting consumers the way it should be.

The audit looked into the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO), and raised concerns about the failure to track and analyze complaints, a lack of regular brokerage inspections, and the absence of any process to monitor if investigations are completed and whether appropriate action was taken, or any action at all.

The report also found that RECO has never conducted a routine on-site inspection at 27 per cent of registered brokerages. Twenty-five per cent had not had one in more than five years.

RECO was created in 1997 to administer and enforce Ontario’s Real Estate and Business Brokers Act. Its stated mission is “to promote a fair, safe and informed real estate market for consumers in Ontario through effective, innovative regulation of those who trade in real estate.”

In RECO’s overall response to the report, it said it is committed to delivering on its mandate and to sharing its progress in a transparent manner. The Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery added that some legislative updates around the regulation of real estate professionals are already planned and will come into force on April 1, 2023.

In case you missed it, Marketplace caught real estate agents facilitating mortgage fraud on hidden camera. You can watch the full investigation on CBC Gem. 

This family says Amazon shipped them a fake product, and wouldn’t refund them until a ‘correct’ item was returned

Family says Amazon shipped fake product, refuses refund until ‘correct’ item returned

Amazon refused a $690 refund for a Calgary family who received a fake product, with the e-commerce giant denying compensation until they return the real product — which was never received .

When Matthew Legault graduated from high school in June, his parents figured they’d recognize his hard work by buying the parts he needed to build his own personal computer.

They placed an order with Amazon and it arrived at their Calgary home quickly.

But when Matthew opened the graphics card — a $690 part — he discovered the plastic casing had been hollowed out and filled with a putty-like substance to give it weight.

“It was actually a bit of a shock,” he said. “Everything looked pretty official up to the point where I pulled it out and took a second look.”

The real shock came, though, when Matthew’s father tried to get a refund.

François Legault followed Amazon’s return instructions and sent the item back, expecting a refund.

Instead, Amazon said in an email there would be no refund until the “correct” item was shipped back.

On top of that, the Amazon rep said the returned, fake item had been thrown out, to protect other employees.

“It was absurd,” said François. “It’s just a piece of plastic so I doubt there’s any danger to their employees. And secondly … now they’ve destroyed the piece of evidence.”

It was only after CBC’s Go Public made inquiries that the company refunded François and apologized for taking almost five months to resolve the “unfortunate incident.”

Two women are suing Apple, saying AirTags helped their exes stalk them

Two women in San Francisco have filed a proposed class action against Apple. The women say AirTag devices have made it easier for former partners and other stalkers to track down victims.

One woman said her ex-boyfriend placed an AirTag in her car’s wheel well. He later posted a photo online of her new neighbourhood with the hashtag, “#airt2.0.”

The second woman said her estranged husband tracked her by putting an AirTag in their child’s backpack.

The AirTag devices start at $39, and are intended to be attached to keys, or slipped into wallets and luggage so users can find them when they’re lost.

But Apple has acknowledged that “bad actors” have tried misusing AirTags.

In February, Apple announced planned upgrades to make it easier to find the devices and warn users more quickly that unknown AirTags might be “travelling with them.”

Have you had an experience with Apple AirTags, or any other type of trackers?

Here’s how to cut costs this expensive holiday season

Inflation may be up, but so are the spirits of Canadians preparing for the festive season.

When it comes to food, Simon Somogyi, the Arrell chair in the Business of Food at Guelph University, says scale back on the large meal.

“What I’m hearing is more people are trying to cut back on excess,” he said. “Rather than cooking a massive turkey, it’s a slightly smaller turkey; rather than having five different types of sides, [have] three.”

Somogyi suggests planning your meal before you shop to avoid cooking too much food. “There might be some leftovers, but the leftovers aren’t going to go to waste.”

If you’re a baker, cookies may not be the cost-effective option they once were. Flour and butter have soared in price this year by more than 20 per cent, while eggs and sugar prices have also climbed.

Christmas trees are more expensive this year, and so are many of the gifts that might go under them.

While clothing and jewelry cost only slightly more than they did 12 months ago, toys and games will set you back nearly seven per cent more compared to last year.

But you’re in luck if you’re in the market for a tech gadget. Prices for tablets, smartphones, and smartwatches are down nearly 13 per cent from 2021.

Higher prices have some Canadians rethinking their gift purchases. Marianne Allaert of London, Ont., says she’ll be buying smaller gifts and gift cards for her family members this year.

“My parents are elderly, they rarely go to restaurants, so I thought, ‘OK, I’m going to get a couple restaurant gift cards,'” she said. “So it’s an outing, an adventure, as opposed to giving them a thing when, you know, they’re elderly, they live in a house with too many things.”

What else is going on?

There’s been another interest rate hike
But this time, the Bank of Canada says the 4.25 per cent rate may stick around for a while.

Tuning into Shark Week? Think critically, says new study
The study warns about fear mongering language used to talk about endangered species, even though shark attacks are rare.

Better tips may mean faster delivery when ordering from apps
Couriers can see your tip before they accept your order, and can decline if they don’t think it’s worth the trip.

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Multiple explosions have been reported in the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol in southern Ukraine, in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and in annexed Crimea – including at a Russian military barracks.

The explosions in Melitopol came amid reports from officials on both sides that Ukraine had launched a missile attack on the city on Saturday, while Russian state media said 20 missiles hit the Donetsk People’s Republic on Sunday morning.

Separately, reports also emerged of multiple explosions in Russian-annexed Crimea, including at a military barracks in Sovietske.

Melitopol’s Moscow-installed administrators said four missiles hit the city, killing two and injuring 10, while Melitopol’s mayor reported several explosions, including at a church occupied by Russian forces.

However, Ukrainian officials have not commented on the explosions in Crimea or in the Donetsk People’s Republic and CNN is unable to verify the cause of the blasts or the extent of the damage.

Melitopol, in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Oblast, has been under Russian occupation since early March.

Yevgeny Balitsky, Russia’s acting governor of Zaporizhzhia, said the missile attack on Melitopol had “completely destroyed” a recreation center where “people, civilians, and [military] base personnel were having dinner on Saturday night.”

The strikes were acknowledged by Ivan Fedorov, Ukraine’s former administrator of Melitopol city, who said they had targeted Russian military bases.

Federov last month said Russia had turned Melitopol into “one giant military base.”

“The Russian military is settling in local houses they seized, schools and kindergartens. Military equipment is stationed in residential areas,” Federov said in November.

The Melitopol mayor Ivan Fedorov said there had been several explosions, including at the Melitopol Christian Church, “which the occupiers seized several months ago and turned into their hideout.”

Fedorov, who is not in Melitopol, said there were dead and wounded among the Russian forces there.

Meanwhile, Russian officials said Sunday morning that Ukrainian missiles had hit several apartment buildings in the Donetsk People’s Republic and that some landed near the Opera and Ballet Theater and the Kalinin Hospital.

Alexei Kulemzin, head of the Russian-backed city administration, said Ukraine launched 20 Grad missiles around 5:54 a.m. local time Sunday in the direction of the Voroshilovsky and Kalininsky districts.

Kulemzin said Ukraine also shelled the city’s Kyivskiy district late Saturday night around 11:03 p.m. local time.

The Ukrainian military has not yet confirmed or commented on the attack.

Donetsk has been held by Russian-backed separatists since 2014.

Ukraine’s southern Dnipropetrovsk region was also shelled overnight with Grad and heavy artillery, Valentyn Reznichenko, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, said on Telegram Sunday. There were no casualties, he said.

The communities of Nikopol, Chervonohryhorivka and Marhanets were hit, Reznichenko said, adding that more than 50 shells were fired. The Nikopol district, in the Dnipropetrovsk region, sits across the river from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

In the community of Chervonohryhorivka, gas pipelines and power lines were damaged, along with 15 houses, several outbuildings and cars, he said. Three villages were left without electricity and water, he said, adding that emergency crews have already started repair work.

The attack on Melitopol came amid social media footage and reports of several blasts in the Crimean city of Simferopol at around 9 p.m. local time on Saturday.

There were also reports of explosions in Sevastopol, the headquarters of the Russian Black Sea fleet; at a Russian military barracks in Sovietske; and in Hvardiiske, Dzhankoi and Nyzhniohirskyi

The blasts come after Moscow ramped up its missile attacks on Ukraine last week, following Russian claims that Kyiv was behind recent drone hits on military airfields deep inside its territory.

There are conflicting accounts surrounding the explosions in Crimea.

The unofficial Crimean media portal “Krymskyi veter” said an explosion at a Russian military barracks in Sovietske had set the barracks on fire and there were dead and wounded.

However, a pro-Russian Crimean channel claimed that the fire at the barracks had been caused by “careless handling of fire.”

“Two people died. Now all the servicemen, about two hundred people, are accommodated in another premises,” it said.

Sergey Aksenov, the Russian-appointed head of Crimea, said on Telegram: “The air defense system worked over Simferopol. All services are working as usual.

Mikhail Razvozhaev, governor of Sevastopol, said the explosions were due to firing exercises.

The news comes amid reports that 1.5 million people in the Odesa region of Ukraine have been left without power following strikes by Iranian-made drones.

“In total, Russian terrorists used 15 Shahed drones against Odesa,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said during his daily address on Saturday.

He said “Ukrainian sky defenders” had shot down 10 of the 15 drones, but the damage was still “critical” and he suggested it will take a few days to restore electricity supply in the region.

“Only critical infrastructure is connected and to the extent where it is possible to supply electricity,” he said.

Ukraine has been facing a wide assault on its critical infrastructure and power sources since early October. This has left millions across the country facing power cuts amid freezing winter temperatures.

“In general, both emergency and stabilization power outages continue in various regions,” Zelensky said. “The power system is now, to put it mildly, very far from a normal state.”

Odesa was already among the worst affected regions following Russia’s previous attacks on critical infrastructure.

“This is the true attitude of Russia towards Odesa, towards Odesa residents – deliberate bullying, deliberate attempt to bring disaster to the city,” Zelensky added.

Ukraine on Saturday received “a new support package from Norway in the amount of $100 million” that will be used “precisely for the restoration of our energy system after these Russian strikes,” Zelensky added.