Are you a NIMBY?
It's an acronym I was not familiar with until recently: NIMBY -- Not In My Back Yard.
Last year I was visiting a vineyard in southern England. Yes, the South of England temperature spectrum is warming to support serious grape growing.
During the tour of the estate we were shown extensive vineyards, beautifully manicured, creating an impressive spectacle. The cellars were excavated below ground, and some small buildings offered tasting sessions and appropriate nibbles of food to enhance the visitor experience. The "farm" had recently added a bottling plant on-site.
This is where NIMBY entered the conversation. Houses around the estate had objected to the planning application for the building, on the basis it would spoil the view, scenery, and general countryside ambience.
The tour-guide pointed out: these are the same people who sit on their patio in the evening sipping on fine wines, enjoying the lifestyle.
Cell Towers
Later I reflected on this new found phrase, applying it to Cell Towers too.
People often complain about a lack of a mobile phone service -- especially in rural areas. They promulgate about how important it is to them; the need to access the phone data services and calling features. In can be a lifeline. I completely understand all of that.
However, these same people are the first to object when a proposal for a new mast is due to invade their village. Please, someone educate them on how a mobile service works. They can not have one without the other.
Data Centre Growth
And now to the current obsession... Data Centre construction.
In the news, on a near-daily basis, is talk of the need for new, massive, data centres around the world. They are required to feed our technology compulsion.
Picking one in my area of Southern Scotland ..... plans are being presented for a massive data centre, apparently the largest in the world! It will replace a decommissioned nuclear power station.
The NIMBYs are all over this one. My initial thought is to consider its location, and what it is replacing. Of course, there are many other arguments against data centres. The two obvious ones are the vast power required to run these, and the water required to cool them.
In this example, I guess if we can cool a nuclear power station we can cool a few million microchips. I don't know the numbers, but Scotland is not short of water!
The power argument is a whole other ball game; for me at least. In a world where we are asked to be mindful of our power consumption, this data centre will apparently require 1000MW of power; the most power-hungry data centre in the world (currently).
Overall, Scotland has 27 proposals for data centres working through the system!
The inconsistency in real life
A few days ago I am sitting with a bunch of friends; we are discussing a topic and speculating on some content. Someone whips out their mobile phone, fires up the AI assistant and speaks into the mic with a query. In the blink of an eye, a simulated voice proclaims the answer.
I asked my friend if he understood the irony of this? I had to explain further... He is anti wind turbines, anti data centres, and all for protecting our environment. But, like a true NIMBY he expected to access the knowledge he needed without fuss, delay, or impacting on him at that moment.
Education
We need to educate the NIMBYs. If they expect access to all the toys, there is a price, and it is often harsh.
I don't have a solution on how the boffins deliver all that we need, while protecting our planet. I simply think we need to educate people that AI (or whatever) is a beast, requiring significant resource to serve!
Where are you on this emotive topic?