--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We're a society that demands electricity…" description: "\"We're a society that demands electricity 24/7. This is very difficult with sun and wind.\" — Vaclav Smil" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e46/vaclav-smil-11559_demands_we-re-a-society-that-demands-electricity_1374736.jpg" --- # We're a society that demands electricity 24/7. This is… ![“We're a society that demands electricity 24/7. This is very difficult with sun and wind.” quote by Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e46/vaclav-smil-11559_demands_we-re-a-society-that-demands-electricity_1374736.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e46/vaclav-smil-11559_demands_we-re-a-society-that-demands-electricity_1374736.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e46/vaclav-smil-11559_demands_we-re-a-society-that-demands-electricity_1374736.jpg) > “We're a society that demands electricity 24/7. This is very difficult with sun and wind.” [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern society’s constant electricity demand clashes with the intermittent nature of renewable sources like sun and wind. **In simple terms:** Electricity demand conflicts with renewable limits. Key Takeaway Plan for flexible, reliable energy. Themes energy society renewables Mood concerned optimistic Type technical policy When to use this quote - grid planning - policy making - urban development - home energy systems Key Concepts sustainability infrastructure Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance reliability with sustainability? - What innovations can smooth renewable variability? A Different Perspective Transition requires storage and backup solutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Demands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demands/) [Demands Electricity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demands-electricity-4744158/) [Difficult Sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-sun-844856/) [Electricity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/electricity/) [Electricity 24](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/electricity-24-4744159/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) [Society Demands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society-demands-1172140/) [Sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sun/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) ## Related quotes > [I've given myself 18 to 24 months for Haiti to have electricity 24 hours around the clock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jovenel-moise/i-ve-given-myself-18-to-24-months-for-haiti-to-have-electricity-24/) [Jovenel Moise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jovenel-moise/) > [Our society demands that women be treated equally and that we not discriminate against them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/our-society-demands-that-women-be-treated-equally-and-that-we-not/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [What is possible in the Cavendish Laboratory may not be too difficult in the sun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-eddington/what-is-possible-in-the-cavendish-laboratory-may-not-be-too-difficult/) [Arthur Eddington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-eddington/) > [Because power corrupts, society's demands for moral authority and character increase as the importance of the position increases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/because-power-corrupts-society-s-demands-for-moral-authority-and/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [The finest clothing made is a person's own skin, but, of course, society demands something more than this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-finest-clothing-made-is-a-person-s-own-skin-but-of-course-society/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [No matter what happens, nothing can prevent the historical process by which society demands freedom and democracy,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/no-matter-what-happens-nothing-can-prevent-the-historical-process-by/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Certainly if the fundamental problem of society is that demands are infinite and resources are always limited, politics, not economics is the master science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-crick/certainly-if-the-fundamental-problem-of-society-is-that-demands-are/) [Bernard Crick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-crick/) > [Society demands conformity at the expense of individual liberty. 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In such a society, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/in-a-society-that-almost-demands-life-at-double-time-speed-and/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [I live in a province where we have the cheapest electricity in North America - indeed, in the Western world - but all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/i-live-in-a-province-where-we-have-the-cheapest-electricity-in-north/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [When you talk in terms of electricity, renewable is very important. Hydro in Manitoba. Hydro in Sweden. Wind in Denmark. Of course, those are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/when-you-talk-in-terms-of-electricity-renewable-is-very-important/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [The best are led to make greater demands upon themselves. As for those who succumb, they did not deserve to survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-best-are-led-to-make-greater-demands-upon-themselves-as-for-those/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Politics only makes the difficult challenge of marriage even harder, with the demands of the job and the public spotlight it casts on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/politics-only-makes-the-difficult-challenge-of-marriage-even-harder/) [Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/) ## More by Vaclav Smil > [Meat eaters don't like me because I call for moderation, and vegetarians don't like me because I say there's nothing wrong with eating meat.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/meat-eaters-don-t-like-me-because-i-call-for-moderation-and/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [America tends to assume Silicon Valley-style innovators can drive quick and transformative changes, but even Silicon Valley's would-be masters of the universe have discovered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/america-tends-to-assume-silicon-valley-style-innovators-can-drive/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [When you talk in terms of electricity, renewable is very important. Hydro in Manitoba. Hydro in Sweden. Wind in Denmark. Of course, those are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/when-you-talk-in-terms-of-electricity-renewable-is-very-important/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [...no matter how complex or affluent, human societies are nothing but subsystems of the biosphere, the Earth's thin veneer of life, which is ultimately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/no-matter-how-complex-or-affluent-human-societies-are-nothing-but/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [Energy use is merely a means to many rewarding ends: economic security, education, health.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/energy-use-is-merely-a-means-to-many-rewarding-ends-economic-security/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [In every society, manufacturing builds the lower middle class. 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When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/i-ve-read-about-80-books-a-year-for-the-past-50-years-i-come-from/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [“I wrote this book because I wanted to narrate the great, and a truly nation-building, story of US manufacturing—and because I believe that without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/i-wrote-this-book-because-i-wanted-to-narrate-the-great-and-a-truly/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [Apple! Boy, what a story. No taxes paid, everything made abroad—yet everyone worships them. This new iPhone, there’s nothing new in it. Just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/apple-boy-what-a-story-no-taxes-paid-everything-made-abroad-yet/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [A useful analogy is to see traditional societies as relying on instantaneous (or minimally delayed) and constantly replenished solar income, while modern civilization is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/a-useful-analogy-is-to-see-traditional-societies-as-relying-on/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [People shouldn't be living in certain places - on earthquake faults or on flood plains. But they do, and there are consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/people-shouldn-t-be-living-in-certain-places-on-earthquake-faults-or/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [Your past always leads to who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/your-past-always-leads-to-who-you-are/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) [Explore all 59 Vaclav Smil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) ## More Climate quotes > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [Windmills and solar cells are carbon-free sources of electricity. 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