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Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another data point. California pistachios consume about 500–600 billion gallons of water per year.
I've always found this a weird comparison. There is no more important use of water than providing food. I love tech and earn my living from it, but the importance of food cannot be overstated.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another data point. California pistachios consume about 500–600 billion gallons of water per year.
I've always found this a weird comparison. There is no more important use of water than providing food. I love tech and earn my living from it, but the importance of food cannot be overstated.
The entire environmental argument against data centers is largely bullshit. Sure, they shouldn’t be powered by gas or coal. And the local effects are significant. But the macro environmental effects are minor and the local effects can be resolved with the most trivial regulations.
According to new data quietly published this week, energy use by AI datacentres in the UK could cause the emission of up to 123m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) – about as much as generated by 2.7 million people – over the next 10 years.
That latest figure replaces a previous estimate – since deleted – that claimed emissions would reach a maximum of 0.142m tonnes of CO₂ in a single year.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another data point. California pistachios consume about 500–600 billion gallons of water per year.
I've always found this a weird comparison. There is no more important use of water than providing food. I love tech and earn my living from it, but the importance of food cannot be overstated.
You could also argue that Amazon data centers are crucial commercial infrastructure that used for a lot of logistics necessary to move food around.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another data point. California pistachios consume about 500–600 billion gallons of water per year.
I've always found this a weird comparison. There is no more important use of water than providing food. I love tech and earn my living from it, but the importance of food cannot be overstated.
Saying "if it's edible then it doesn't matter how much water it uses, it's justified" isn't a good position to take.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another data point. California pistachios consume about 500–600 billion gallons of water per year.
I've always found this a weird comparison. There is no more important use of water than providing food. I love tech and earn my living from it, but the importance of food cannot be overstated.
This water usage argument against data centers is so specious I almost think it's spread as a deliberate talking point by DC proponents. Power consumption and effect on electricity infrastructure is so, so, so much more consequential and dangerous. It alone is way more than enough on which to base a very solid anti-DC campaign. The water argument weakens the whole anti-DC position by being so refutable. EDIT: with pr…
Personally, I find it ironic to see people going on and on about data centers on platforms like Threads, Reddit, and X. It's like, do you know where your data is going when you press that button?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another data point. California pistachios consume about 500–600 billion gallons of water per year.
I've always found this a weird comparison. There is no more important use of water than providing food. I love tech and earn my living from it, but the importance of food cannot be overstated.
I spoke to someone who owns data centers recently. He said that in hot climates, they run closed-loop to preserve water, so the actual water use is virtually nothing. In Chicago (where we have no water shortage), they consume water—but it just evaporates and re-enters the water cycle.