Throughout history, different periods of civilization have been defined by the common use of certain metals such as the Bronze Age and Iron Age. It got me thinking about what metal could define our current civilization, and the answer is the Copper Age.

A brief history of the copper age

During the 19th century, Michael Faraday, a self-taught inventor, made several significant electrical discoveries. Among them were the electric motor, transformer, and other inventions that fascinated engineers worldwide. These discoveries ultimately led to the development of the electrical grid. Copper was the primary metal used to conduct electricity. During the time of Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, and George Westinghouse, many research and development laboratories were studying electricity. They aimed to define it, determine the most effective method of transmission (either Alternating Current or Direct Current), and establish which one would become the standard. Once it was proven that Alternating Current was a cost-effective means of transporting electricity long distances, many laboratories stopped further research. They focused instead on improving the efficiencies of the electrical grid.

It’s been over 141 years now, and we’re still stuck in the Copper Age. The electrical grid in the United States, which was designed way back in 1882, is an eyesore that litters the streets and highways for millions of miles. You can see black cables suspended high above the streets, connecting telephone poles to one another. During hot summer days, you can hear large grey can-shaped transformers “humming” along. There are electric stations and substations in every city, forming an entire infrastructure that’s old, tired, and increasingly stressed as populations increase and more electrical gadgets integrate into our daily lives. 

As more and more electrical devices become a part of our daily routine, it’s important to consider our dependence on electricity and what would happen in the event of a power grid failure. Have you ever imagined life without electricity? This idea has troubled me since I gave myself an electric shock at the age of twelve. However, it also sparked my curiosity and fascination with the science behind electricity.

Despite years of studying electricity, my personal experiences have shown me that we have only scratched the surface of understanding efficient energy methods. Michael Faraday’s research revealed that light, electricity, and magnetism were deeply interconnected, but this was not fully understood at the time. The potential applications of electricity were overshadowed by its commercial value, leading to many industries profiting from Faraday’s discoveries. Despite this, Faraday chose not to patent his findings, remaining dedicated to the pursuit of scientific knowledge for the betterment of humanity as a whole.

A Type one civilization is defined as a civilization converting sunlight for ALL of its energy needs, from illuminating our homes, temperature control, washing and drying our clothes to growing food and preparing it. Utilizing light as our energy source contains no by-products contributing to greenhouse gases. Light truly is an infinite amount of the cleanest energy available for millennia. 

Solar panels were never meant to be the end game

Our comprehension of light is crucial for the effectiveness of light-based applications. Solar panels currently have an efficiency rate ranging from 18% to 23%, despite decades of research since the initial exploration of solar cell efficiency in 1954. There is still much to learn about light and its properties.

There is still much we have yet to uncover about light. Over the course of twelve years, I’ve dedicated my life to advancing solar power technologies. I’ve spent about 100,000 hours on research and development, most of which was rarely funded. Despite this, I wouldn’t trade it for anything, as it has given me a profound understanding of light. When I first began this endeavor, I met a man who worked for a skunkworks program at a major military contractor. On his first day, the principal engineer told the team, “Leave everything you learned about energy generation outside this program. Question every equation, every measurement device, and the laws of physics.” This was a valuable lesson for me – to never accept information without questioning it.

I have found that, when sharing my own hands-on experiences with engineers, presenting research results that go beyond theoretical limitations can elicit emotional responses such as fear, anger, and pride. In some cases, individuals may even react with anger as if their way of life is being threatened. From what I understand, the educational processes used to teach sciences are intertwined with one’s ego in a way that any information challenging the status quo may be seen as a personal attack on one’s beliefs. I can only imagine the difficulty Galileo faced in having to recant his discoveries and being condemned to live in his house.

The genius of the innovation is not enough to convey an alternate, more advanced scientific discovery; one must craft a narrative of equal genius so as not to offend an individual’s beliefs or introduce any feelings of educational betrayal.

Example:

In the spirit of Michael Faraday, I offer you an opportunity to learn about an undiscovered phenomenon of light. 

Please invest in the following inexpensive items.

1. An 8″ x 12″ reading magnifying optic (full page magnifiers) from an online store.
2. A radiometer with a black plastic base (a clear glass bulb containing four horizontally opposed suspended squares painted black on one side and white on the other.) This is a desktop conversation piece about the squares spinning in direct sunlight.
3. A smartphone to video document the experiment. (have a friend record the experiment).

Mystery of Light Experiment

1. Place the radiometer on an outside table on a sunny day.
2. Hold the 8″ x 12″ Fresnel magnifying lens and focus the small bright spot on the spinning squares. Practice on the ground first to familiarize the distance needed to create a bright spot. (caution the bright spot heats the focused area very quickly and could cause wood to smoke, pavement is best).
3. With a little practice aligning the focal point onto the spinning squares, you will observe the spin rate of the radiometer increases dramatically.

Conclusion: You now have personal experience that applying concentrated light to the radiometer blades increases its speed and torque.

Phenomenon? We could call it light-induced torque. Envision, we design a radiometer ten times its size and connect the black and white squares to a vertical axle with circular opposing magnets at its base.

This is because spinning squares are inside the large glass-sealed container, so we must magnetically couple the light-induced torque to an external axle outside the glass.

Applications? Based on continued research, development, and refinement, we can build a fan that moves air with light: continued refinement and increased size to turn an air conditioning compressor on a roof.

Let’s add concentrated fiber optic coupling arrays from outside, route the fiber optic cables inside to our light-induced torque engine, and power a dishwasher and washing machine with light.

When you conduct this experiment, your brilliant mind will discover other applications for light-induced torque that could have real-world applications.

It sure beats the original radiometer design as a desktop conversation piece, much like electricity was “a novelty” in the 18th century.

This is one example of why light illuminates our path to a Type One civilization.