Earth's Copper Supply Inadequate For Development?

ScentCone writes "Pennies, pipes, untold miles of CAT5 - they tie up a lot of copper. Unlike abundant iron and aluminum, copper is relatively scarce. But it's vital to electricity generation/transmission, plumbing, and other uses central to a modern standard of living. Scientific American is providing a quick overview of the situation. They report the conclusion that there simply isn't enough available. Canada, Mexico and the US average 170kg of copper use per person, and the most generous estimates suggest that only 1.6 billion unused metric tons exist. More reclamation and use of fiber, wireless, and PVC helps - but won't be enough to cover the billions of people who don't yet live in highly wired/mechanized societies."

So...

[Daedala]

Is this Peak Copper?

Past peak copper

[Anonymous Coward]

I urge everyone to see Stephen Gaghan's: Copperica, about the global reach, power structures and conspiracy of the copper elite. People die everyday over Cat5e.

Time for a tech revolution

[levik]

Hamster computing, here we come!

Mr. President, we must not allow...

[Yahweh Doesn't Exist]

...a copper gap!

Asteroid Mining!

[ToastyKen]

This is what asteroid mining is for! :)

simple solution

[Khashishi]

use Gold.

oh wait...

Monster

[Bimo_Dude]

If this shortage is going to be as they say in the article, I could just see the ads for Monster Cable... "Our newest premium cable! New! Gold cable with copper connectors, just $199.99!"

Just use lead-lined clay, like the ancient Romans

[csoto]

It never hurt anybody...

I'd like to be the first

[Klowner]

To offer all the copper running into my house in exchange for fiber. That's right, I'm so dang benevolent I make myself sick!

You're welcome.

Re:So...

[ZaBu911]

That was a Cute joke.

Off Topic

[lonb]

Didn't Homer make Bart do that too? Oh wait, that was grease reclamation [snpp.com].

Re:I'd like to be the first

[Holi]

I'll take it all, Be really funny to see you try and plug a lamp into fiber.

I knew it...

[CptPicard]

that those minimal spanning tree algorithms I learned in university would come in handy!! :-)

Re:It's not going to matter anyway...

[JourneyExpertApe]

Pfft, who cares about that? By then, the world will be transformed into a primitive dystopia ruled by warlords because of global warming. Or rather, it would if we didn't get swallowed up by tsunamis and hurricanes just before being incinerated simultaneously by a huge meteorite and a terrorist's nuclear bomb in a couple years. Either way, we're all doomed.

Uh-huh

[commodoresloat]

Yeah right. You're linking to the mint. I suppose you believe NASA when they tell you they landed on the moon too. I know a government conspiracy when I see one; that's why I made myself this copper hat, exclusively out of pre-1971 pennies. It's made out of 150 pennies but it's worth at least four bucks!

Step into the wayback machine.

[Anonymous Coward]

"Spears, arrows, untold piles of sticks for cooking - they tie up a lot of wood. Unlike abundant dirt and water, dry dead wood is relatively scarce. But it's vital to heat genereation/transmission, cooking, and other uses central to a modern standard of living. Ugh the caveman is providing a quick overview of the situation. He reports the conclusion that there simply isn't enough available. That place over there, over there and the past that tree average 170 grunts of wood use per person, and the most generous estimates suggest that only 1.6 billion unused metric ubergrunts exist. More reclamation and use of grass, sunshine, and dragons breath helps - but won't be enough to cover the billions of people who don't yet live in highly sophisticated/modernized societies."

When the copper runs out we'll be whining about something else "going to run out".

Statue of Liberty

[mrm677]

Time to tear down the Statue of Liberty and melt it down for Cat5!

(Dear NSA: I'm only joking)

Predictable Results

[johnbr]

1. No Blood for Copper
2. Complaints about Obscene Copper Oligopoly profits
3. Calls for forced cessation of copper distribution, and the creation of a ministry of copper, who will deploy it in a strategic and intelligent manner, rather than all this free market crap
4. Calls for extensive government investment into research into alternative conductors
5. Bush is a shill for "Big Copper"
6. James Lovelock declares that the copper shortage will mean the end of civilization as we know it
7. Environmentalists everywhere tell people to 'go silver'.
8. Belkin, et. al. start producing high-end 'copper-plated' wires and connectors, instead of those passe 20th century 'gold' connectors
9. Pennies are replaced by casino chips, with embedded RFID
10. "All I want is a proper cup of coffee, made in a proper copper coffee pot" is re-released as an agnst-filled blues song.

Re:Indentured Childhood

[nytes]

You had gloves??? Some kids get all the luxuries.

I just had to learn to strip wire without cutting myself.

Re:Indentured Childhood

[Lost Penguin]

strip the wire?
we had to chew the insulation off, in the snow . . .

Re:Indentured Childhood

[Anonymous Coward]

up hill, from both ends!

Re:Pennies must go!

[The Spoonman]

While we're at it, get rid of the dollar bill.

Noooo! They did that in Canada, and now I have to give the strippers either loonies [wikipedia.org] or toonies [wikipedia.org]! I wanna slip paper into those g-strings, dammit! :)

Re:REAL Scarcity would mean HUGE price increases

[Anonymous Coward]

Dude, you are so full of it. What a slacker. I was thinking exactly the same thing you were, but a FULL 5 MINUTES before you.

You suck. (heh)

Re:Indentured Childhood

[Anonymous Coward]

chew the insulation off?
I had to eat the wire, go work in the field, and collect the deinsulated wire from the outhouse.

Re:Indentured Childhood

[mokiejovis]

Bloody luxury...

When I were a lad we used to get up 3 hours before we went to bed. We worked a 27 hour day and had to pay the refuse collector for working in his copper dump. We lived in a hole in the middle of the road and all we had to eat was a handful of copper wire. Every night our Dad used to come home and beat us until we were dead, then he'd dance on our graves.

But tell bloody kids that these days, and they don't believe you...

Re:Monster

[slashname3]

Hot damn! All those pennies I have been saving for years are going to be worth something. OH wait! They make those of zinc now don't they.

Never mind.

True

[Anonymous Coward]

"You can't even buy a cup of coffee anymore with a dollar bill."

It's true that you can't buy a cup of coffee at my company with a dollar. The coffee is 25 cents, and the machines only take quarters.

Re:Pennies must go!

[Anonymous Coward]

Because when the New Zealanders got rid of their smaller denominations of 1 & 2c, they threw them over their heads and yelled bork, bork, bork!

Re:Pennies must go!

[The Spoonman]

Ah, you never been to Canada. They don't stay on very long anyway. All nude, all alcohol, all smoking! Nekkid chicks the way they're supposed to be seen! LOL!

Re:Monster

[Basehart]

Why not use rubber, or glass connectors? Neither of those materials corrode.

Re:Monster

[tkw954]

...replaced by fiber (glass) for which we have an incredible abundance of raw material.

Oh great! How long before they come to strip-mine my beach?

Re:Monster

[Bing Tsher E]

No, you use glass tools, on a benchtop lined with cats-fur. It's the 'equal time' alternative to an anti-static work surface.

Re:Nitpic

[hamburger lady]

I'll never forget the expression on his smug ass face when I should him the outer valance band.

that has to be the nerdiest smackdown i've ever read. sheesh.