Nonsense with cj little and Jeff Parker

Data vs. Dairy: Uncovering the Secret Water Hogs of the Modern World

May 21, 2026·32 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

(0:00) Pre-Show(1:45) The Hidden Water Cost of the Things We Consume(3:00) The Kernels Are Thirsty(7:30) 40k Gallons of Joe(9:32) Pools of Evaporation(12:48) That’s a Thirsty Burger(15:02) The Back Nine(17:42) Delicious Chocolate(19:25) One Gallon per Nut(21:43) Rice, Rice, Water(25:30) cj’s recommendation: Bottled Life: Nestle's Business with Water (2012)(28:15) Jeff’s Recommendation: The Grapes of Wrath (1940)The numbers sound big and scary: U.S. data centers consume roughly 228 billion gallons of water annually. But how does that stack up against the things we actually eat, drink, and use? This episode the guys normalize the data center debate with some shocking agricultural realities that will make you want to swap your pizza slice for a beer just to conserve resources. Simple evaporation makes our uncovered swimming pools equal to a data center's worth of water.  Worse, a single grain crop claims up to a third of all global freshwater withdrawals.  A third!Download, subscribe, and try not to think about "night soil" while you listen!Send us a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠voice message⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!Nonsense is available ⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠.

Podzilla Summary coming soon

Sign up to get notified when the full AI-powered summary is ready.

Get Free Summaries →

Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.

Listen to This Episode

Get summaries like this every morning.

Free AI-powered recaps of Nonsense with cj little and Jeff Parker and your other favorite podcasts, delivered to your inbox.

Get Free Summaries →

Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.