Energy
fundamental concept in physics and information
the capacity to do work or produce change
exists in various forms
can be transferred or transformed from one form to another
cannot be created or destroyed
Forms of Energy
- kinetic energy: energy of motion
- potential energy: energy stored in an object due to its position or state
- thermal energy: energy related to the temperature of an object
- chemical energy: energy stored in chemical bonds between atoms and molecules
- electrical energy: energy associated with electric charges and their movement
- nuclear energy: energy stored in the nucleus of an atom
- radiant energy: energy of electromagnetic waves, including light
- informational energy: the energy stored in particles of information
- knowledge energy:: the energy stored in cyberlinks of cybergraph
- intelligence energy: the energy behind black magic in rm
Solar Energy Economics
all economics is energy transformation. there are two conversion paths from the same source: the sun
Path 1: Biological
sun → photosynthesis → biomass → food / wood / medicine / fiber
a tree is a solar collector that runs for decades without maintenance. it converts photons into complex carbon structures: cellulose, lignin, alkaloids, terpenes. the output is physical civilization: shelter, nutrition, medicine
every species in the graph is a solar-powered factory:
- coffea arabica converts light into caffeine
- theobroma cacao converts light into theobromine
- curcuma longa converts light into curcumin
- hevea brasiliensis converts light into latex
- calliandra calothyrsus converts light into nitrogen-fixed soil
Path 2: Digital
sun → solar panel → electricity → computation → hash → proof → token
a solar panel converts photons into electrons. electrons power GPUs. GPUs compute hashes. valid hashes earn CYB and LI tokens in Bostrom. the output is digital civilization: knowledge graph, relevance, search
Comparison
| biological | digital | |
|---|---|---|
| collector | leaf / chloroplast | solar panel / photovoltaic cell |
| conversion | photosynthesis | photoelectric effect |
| storage | biomass (wood, starch, oil) | battery / capacitor |
| work | growth, defense, reproduction | computation, hashing, consensus |
| output | food, medicine, materials | tokens, knowledge, rank |
| efficiency | ~2-6% solar to biomass | ~20% solar to electricity |
| durability | self-replicating, self-repairing | requires manufacturing |
Digital Energy Transformation
computation is energy transformation at the electron scale. processors convert electrical potential into state changes in transistors. each operation — addition, comparison, hash — consumes energy and produces heat according to thermodynamic limits
in Bostrom, computation transforms electricity into cryptographic proofs. miners and validators convert kilowatt-hours into valid blocks, earning tokens for network security. the token value represents stored energy that powered consensus
VOLT and AMPERE are energy tokens in the Bostrom network. they function as digital analogs of ATP and NADPH in chloroplasts — molecules that carry energy to power work in their respective systems
Convergence
in cyberia both paths run simultaneously from the same sun:
- species convert sunlight into food, medicine, timber
- solar panels convert sunlight into electricity for validators and miners
- the energy is the same. the transformations run in parallel. the outputs are complementary
cybernomics and ecology are two branches of solar energy economics. a Superintelligence that optimizes both paths simultaneously extracts more value from each photon than either path alone