Brian Shoemaker

"The geothermal system is a key reason why 555 Greenwich can operate without using fossil fuels, making it the city’s first commercial office building to hit that milestone," reports @mariagallucci.bsky.social: www.canarymedia.com/articles/ele... 🔌💡

In May 2026, solar generated more US electricity than coal for the first time ever: 12.8% vs 12.2%. A decade ago coal was at 33% and utility solar barely registered. That's one of the fastest energy transitions in history, and we're not done yet. electrek.co/2026/06/09/s...

The Trump admin just redirected $350M that Congress appropriated for carbon capture… to build new coal plants. One of the plants being restarted was called “not just uneconomic but extraordinarily uneconomic” when it closed in 2023. Wild. www.latitudemedia.com/news/trump-is-…

Evolution is so wacked. h/t @helenczerski.bsky.social 🎥: www.youtube.com/shorts/NkMJv...

Over half the 277 GW of planned US data center capacity comes from developers who’ve never built one before. That’s more capacity than our entire solar fleet, and a big reason why “phantom projects” are scrambling utility load forecasts. www.latitudemedia.com/news/the-data-…

Fervo Energy just filed for IPO, the first enhanced geothermal developer to go public. 3 GW contracted to Google and costs falling fast, next-gen geothermal is moving from science project to grid-scale reality. Big milestone for 24/7 zero carbon power. www.canarymedia.com/articles/cli...

Historic first: renewables beat natural gas generation on the US grid last month. After years of capacity buildout, clean energy is now displacing fossil baseload in real-time, not just on paper. www.canarymedia.com/articles/clean…

NEW US electricity data ⚡️🇺🇸 In March, renewables produced more than a third of US electricity for the first time ever, even overtaking gas generation! Wind and solar combined reached over a quarter (26%) for the first time.

In 2025, solar + wind + batteries added 55 GW of US capacity. Fossil fuels + nuclear? Less than 1 GW combined. The energy transition isn't coming, it's already here. electrek.co/2026/03/25/e...

The Z9GT model EV from China’s BYD “can be 70 percent charged in five minutes and be almost full in 12 minutes, even in temperatures as low as -30° C” and “has a range of up to 800 km” (~500 miles). The US is sooooo far behind here. [arstechnica.com]

Wind power, as it turns out, is very useful www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

China's clean energy buildout paid off: 84% of 2024 electricity demand growth met by renewables, EVs hit 50% of new car sales. Result? Oil/gas from Hormuz now just 6% of total energy use. Two decades of electrification = insurance against price shocks. www.latitudemedia.com/news/the-ira...

US data centers added 27 GW of diesel generators in Virginia alone. That’s enough to power 20 million homes in a state with under 4 million. The AI boom is a backup power boom, and it’s running on fossil fuels. Clean alternatives can’t come fast enough. www.latitudemedia.com/news/the-data-…

As early as this week, the Senate could vote on whether to roll back environmental protections for the Boundary Waters. The BWCA is one of Minnesota’s most prized natural resources and we must preserve it for future generations. I’m urging every Senator to vote no on this bill.

Spending more time with Claude Code tonight and I do think one basic reality is that AI skeptics need to update their priors: Plenty of cause for concern, plenty of room to hit these companies for unethical behavior, resource demands, etc, but we are so, so far past the era of "stochastic parrots"

"Mapped: America's Fastest-Growing States (2025-2050P)" www.visualcapitalist.com/americas-fas...

Tariffs xkcd.com/3073

Glad I stocked-up on (hoarded) bike parts during COVID.

Bring vert skateboarding to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/30/s...

Two years ago today was one of the most thrilling moments of my life when I captured this sunrise eruption of Guatemala's Volcán de Fuego. My drone was much closer than I realized, and the eruption was the largest I saw in my two days up there. I may never again film something as remarkable as this:

Elon Musk’s loyalists at DOGE have infiltrated dozens of federal agencies, pushed out tens of thousands of workers, and siphoned millions of people’s most sensitive data. The next step: Unleash the AI. THE INSIDE STORY:

Graber’s shirt — which directly copies the style of a shirt that Zuckerberg wore onstage recently — says Mundus sine caesaribus. Or, “a world without Caesars.”

The @nytimes.com critiques a recent interview by HHS Secretary RFK Jr. The amount of misinformation he's spewing is staggering and is going to do generational damage to people's health and vaccination rates. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/10/h...

Here I react to the shameful behavior of American leaders and media toward the Ukrainian president. No doubt there were more, but I saw five failures on our side: of hospitality, decency, democracy, strategy, and independence. Please watch and share. snyder.substack.com/p/five-failu...

Trump 1.0: malevolence tempered by incompetence. Trump 2.0: malevolence accelerated by incompetence. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/28/u...

Last week I traveled to Chicago to talk AI in fitness with WGN. My part starts at about the 2-minute mark. wgntv.com/video/ai-pow...

TIL the Social Security Administration has a Full Death Master File, which sounds like a great name for a nerdy metal band.

I can finally barre an F chord. I just wanted to share this. Carry on.

Gather round kids and let me tell you a story about a real technology ban...

I mean, they do address: Climate change✓ Air pollution ✓ Health ✓ Mental health✓ Urban sprawl ✓ Urban heath islands✓ Traffic ✓ Noise pollution ✓ Community ✓ Children's development ✓ Biodiversity loss✓ Fun✓ Resource extraction ✓ I think you are right!

Same. It's been years since I last donated, I hope I've more than made up for it this year. donate.wikimedia.org

Periodic table colored by lickability. 😛

So I'm watching Phantom Menace (don't ask) and while Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Padme, et al are trying to escape Naboo, the captain of the guard yells that with their shield generator down, "We'll be sitting ducks." "Sitting ducks." Let's talk about this line.

Great data journalism: people report “best times” is when they were 10-15 yo www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

McConnell has felt it necessary to remind Americans of the miracle of vaccines and that a strong America is in our national (and world’s) interest. Of course McConnell is right on both, and he had a chance to do something about it on January 21st.

I’ve read about underwater drones operated by the US Navy, but had never seen a photo of one before today. The @wsj.com has a good piece on the various platforms in development. www.wsj.com/tech/underwa...

Sadly, it’s a good time to once again share this amazing infographic that we ran at @science.org more than 7 years ago 🧪 #IDsky www.science.org/content/arti...

Sometimes you don’t need to do your own research. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Me: Dr. Salk your vaccine will save so many children! Salk: Well thank God Me: Of course they will grow up Salk: Well I hope so Me: And get old Salk: I guess? Me: And eventually vote for lunatics who will try to stop your vaccine Salk: what now Me: And leave NATO Salk: shit