Topic: Coal Power

A comparison of steam power and petroleum reveals that the oil industry historically suppressed steam technology due to its high efficiency and fuel flexibility. Kenneth Price notes that the Titanic consumed approximately 600 tons of coal per day, which at 1908 prices allowed for the transport of passengers across the Atlantic for roughly one dollar each. The discussion posits that the safety and low cost of coal-fired steamships posed a direct threat to the emerging oil monopoly.

The hosts discuss the economic reasons why advanced energy technologies might be withheld from the public, noting that "free energy" would be cataclysmic to the current global economy. They speculate that the military and elite classes may already be using technology two generations ahead of the public. Kyle expresses frustration that society continues to burn coal and pay utility bills while compact nuclear power has been functional in naval vessels since the 1950s.