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A comment on The Gentle Singularity. Parent comment
A watt needs a time unit to be converted to joules because a watt is a measure of power, while a joule is a measure of energy.
Think of it like speed and distance:
A watt is a RATE of energy use, just like speed (e.g., miles per hour) is a RATE of travel.
A joule is a total amount of energy, just like distance (e.g., miles) is a total amount of travel.
If you're traveling 60 mph but you don't specify for how long... You won't know how far you went, how much gas you used, etc.
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A watt needs a time unit to be converted to joules because a watt is a measure of power, while a joule is a measure of energy.
Think of it like speed and distance:
A watt is a RATE of energy use, just like speed (e.g., miles per hour) is a RATE of travel.
A joule is a total amount of energy, just like distance (e.g., miles) is a total amount of travel.
If you're traveling 60 mph but you don't specify for how long... You won't know how far you went, how much gas you used, etc.