Humanity Is Thoughtlessly Wasting An Essential, Non-Renewable Resource: Helium
There's a natural resource found beneath Earth's surface that's been building up for hundreds of millions of years. It plays a pivotal role in some of society's most important scientific and medical applications, from MRI machines to superconductivity to particle accelerators to the creation of the strongest magnetic fields on Earth. There is no known substitute for this unique resource; it's truly irreplaceable.
There is no good way to synthesize this essential ingredient in any sort of substantial quantity, either. We have only what has naturally built up over our planet's natural geologic history. The resource in question? The lightest inert gas found in nature: helium. Instead of mining, storing, and distributing it for these much-needed medical and scientific uses, we're squandering it on balloons and squeaky voices. Here's why that wastefulness must end.