In a world captured by AI tech bros and their cheerleaders, what we really need are the scientists working diligently on simple solutions that make our world work that little bit better.
It might seem like a very small thing, but it really sparked my imagination to learn on a recent visit to the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (Ista) that some of its scientists have turned to the human heart and circulatory system to find a solution to the energy lost by liquid swirling through pipes.
I travelled to Vienna at the invitation of Dublin City University for the collaborative initiative “Media for Future”, which aims to connect journalists and scientists to strengthen communication on the climate crisis.
Reporters and academics from Egypt, Germany, Iceland, Ireland and Portugal came together to learn about glacial melt, land use change, the impact of clouds on global heating and how the world is sleepwalking into catastrophe at faster speeds than ever previously imagined.
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Much of that, you have no doubt heard before.
But not in a million years, did I ever think I would be so taken with work on pipes. Bear with me, until I explain.
How many pipes run through your house in terms of heating, bathrooms, the kitchen and even the garden hose? There’d be tens of millions throughout the country and not just in our homes, if we totalled them all up.
Then there’s the pipes used in industrial applications, from our world-beating breweries and bars to dairies, fuel businesses, drinking-water production and wastewater treatment, while they are also prevalent in vehicles.
Apparently, no matter how smooth the inside of a hose, the water swirls. But this tiny movement means 10 per cent more energy is needed to push the liquid through said pipe than if it didn’t.
[ Data centre electricity demand could exceed entire power usage of RepublicOpens in new window ]
Pipes are present in just about every part of life and any reduction in the amount of energy needed to push liquids through them could be a huge win across the board.
The human circulatory system has solved this problem and at Ista, scientists are developing ways to mimic its energy-saving pulsing techniques within man-made pipes.
Rather than sucking up 23 per cent of electricity from the national grid and hoovering up almost a billion litres of drinking water in 2025, like Ireland’s data centres, this one scientific advance could actually reduce energy use, bills and climate-harming emissions for everyone.
We need more of these simple solutions to the problems we face – not more energy-hungry AI looming large over humanity with threats of massive job losses and extinction.
As far as I can see, AI’s coup-like takeover of the internet has done very little by way of progressing humanity and finding solutions to the biggest problems of our time.
Surely something that powerful should be used to transform, improve and save lives, solve the climate crisis and progress society, but that’s not what’s really happening, is it?
In a recent United Nations report Ireland was cited as a “cautionary tale” about the environmental impact of runaway AI-growth.
An Oireachtas committee heard in September how data centres designed for AI each demand more electricity than is needed to power 100,000 homes. Meanwhile, proposed rules to allow them to provide their own electricity are expected to increase fossil fuel use.
I have never seen a breakdown of just how much of Ireland’s data centre capacity is used for AI, nevermind meaningful versus trivial things. It would be good to know, given the breakneck speed at which our Government seems to be pushing them forward regardless of their energy and water use, and the ensuing summer hosepipe bans.
Nor do they appear to be creating that many jobs, with tech giants shedding workers by the hundreds, citing AI.
Outside Silicon Valley’s grip on the Irish Government, however, scientists are still working hard on simple solutions that will move humanity forward in meaningful ways.
Dr Harald Wilkoszewski of Ista says they are trying something new, where staff are free to work across multiple disciplines rather than being pigeonholed into faculties. He says the number of research grants they are awarded are proof they must be doing something right.
I’m just grateful we still have scientists both at home and abroad who are still moving the dial on issues that may appear small but have the potential to become much bigger – even if they involve hosepipes.
Shauna Corr is an investigative journalist and UCD Earth Institute journalist in residence.
