What a Liter of Seawater Could Power

Researchers estimate that a liter of seawater contains as much potential fusion energy as the chemical energy in 350 liters of gasoline. Once we harness this virtually inexhaustible source, it will be easier to spend a million kilowatt-hours on a task than to require a single person to work for one hour.

With access to such enormous energy reserves, people could not only heat their homes but also warm rivers and lakes, insulate soil, and even change the climates of entire countries. They could melt mountains instead of blasting or crushing them. In that scenario, humanity would become an almost unstoppable force.