The discovery of a massive amount of lithium under the Salton Sea could make the U.S. lithium independent. The metal is key for batteries in electric vehicles and solar panels. But the area is also a delicate ecosystem. We go to southern California to hear what hangs in the balance of the ballooning lithium industry, and also how we extract other crucial substances – such as sand, copper and iron– and turn them into semiconductors, circuitry and other products upon which the modern world depends.
Guests:
Ed Conway – economics and data editor of Sky News and columnist for the Times in London. He’s the author of “Material World, The Six Raw Materials that Shape Modern Civilization“.
Frank Ruiz – Audubon California Salton Sea Program Director.
Michael McKibben – Geologist, University of California, Riverside.
Featuring music by Dewey Dellay and Jun Miyake
You can get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
Big Picture Science is part of the Airwave Media podcast network. Please contact advertising@airwavemedia.com to inquire about advertising on Big Picture Science.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Skeptic Check: Do Your Own Research
Bare Bones (rebroadcast)
Make Space for Animals
Testing Your Metal
Into the Deep (rebroadcast)
What's a Few Degrees?
Mycology Education (rebroadcast)
Attack of the Mutants
Hubble and Beyond (rebroadcast)
Skeptic Check: Identifying UAPs
Talk the Walk (rebroadcast)
Skeptic Check: Shroom With a View (rebroadcast)
Suitable For Life?
Your Inner Tree
Dimming the Sun
Skeptic Check: Brain Gain (rebroadcast)
Radical Cosmology (rebroadcast)
Fuhgeddaboudit
Home Invasions (rebroadcast)
AI: Where Does It End? (rebroadcast)
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History
Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History: Addendum
Meditation Oasis
Philosophy Bites
Learn Spanish - Survival Guide