Fusion finalist

A 35-year, €10 billion nuclear fusion reactor project has been won by France after an 18-month delay while the parties involved tried to broker a solution. Japan was second in line for the honor.

Essentially, the plan is to build a small star on Earth and use that to produce power, replacing fossil fuels and nuclear (or "nucular") fission, both of which contribute vast amounts of icky crap to our planet as waste material. The European Union, The U.S., Russia, Japan, South Korea and China are partners in the ambitious project.

One kilogram of fusion fuel produces the same energy as 10 million kilograms of fossil fuel, but the technology required to produce fusion -- including heating gas to temperatures exceeding 100 million Celsius -- are somewhat elusive, to put it mildly.