I’ve just finished reading Dune by Frank Herbert for about the tenth time. The world building of this novel is wide and deep, and is filled with such rich detail that something new is likely to be found with each reading. My purpose here is not to offer a review, as plenty have been written in the past six decades.
Instead, I offer a novelty that occurred on this reading.
Most of this story unfolds on a planet called Arrakis, the entirety of which is a vast, arid desert. A harsh environment which exhibits extremes of temperature. The planet almost entirely lacks precipitation, making water an exceedingly precious resource.
The terrain is dominated by massive sand dunes that are whipped up into dangerous sandstorms that can strip flesh from bone.
The population of Arrakis includes the Fremen, a fiercely independent and resilient people who have adapted to the severe conditions of the planet.
Of note, that despite their nomadic and seemingly pre-industrial nature, to survive in this punishing environment the Fremen have developed sophisticated technologies.
In particular, they have developed the ability to reclaim water from the body. The Fremen have designed and manufactured suits that cover the entire body, that are designed to minimize water loss.
The materials from which this ‘stillsuit’ is constructed is not described in this book. However, other technologies developed by these desert dwellers are described as constructed from natural materials such as palm wood and other native plants, natural stone and ceramics. The Fremen seem to typically manufacture technologies from the local materials to be found in the desert.
Cinematic renderings of this world tend to characterise the stillsuit as leathery and potentially also constructed from local materials, despite its sophistication. Perhaps these leathery materials are even sourced from the vast sandworms that inhabit the desert, much like the harvesting of the worms teeth to manufacture the sacred crysknife.
The Fremen seem to build sophisticated technologies using local materials.
This got me wondering.
Despite the deprivations suffered by the Fremen, that has transformed them into a resilient and independent people, there is one resource that they do not lack at all. In fact, this is a resource that they possess in abundance.
Energy.
The sun beats down like a hammer upon this vast desert’s anvil. Winds tear across the face of the planet with such power that it can destroy large machinery. There is so much energy boiling around the Fremen one wonders how they might capture and exploit this bounty.
How would the Fremen construct sustainable technologies? Is there anything in this hypothetical approach that we could learn? What general ground rules could we adopt, with which to make some assumptions about Fremen technologies?
For an example, we could draw some assumptions by considering the design of the sietch, the communal living space that serves as a sanctuary and fortress for the Fremen. The term sietch refers to both the community of Fremen who live together and the physical structure in which they reside.
These sietches are designed to be concealed from outsiders, so blend into the desert environment to protect the inhabitants from hostile forces and the extreme conditions.
A sietch is typically carved into rock formations or nestled within mountain ranges to provide natural protection and insulation. The construction is primarily subterranean, which helps maintain a more stable internal temperature in the face of harsh climate extremes. The design emphasizes minimal environmental impact and maximum efficiency in water conservation.
The sietch incorporates caches that hold the community’s collected and recycled water. These water reserves are central to the survival of the sietch, are protected fervently and are supplemented by a technology called a windtrap.
The windtrap is a crucial piece of technology designed to capture and condense moisture from the air. A system that channels air into a cooling chamber where the temperature differential causes moisture in the air to condense. This design exploits the natural temperature variations between day and night in the desert, or between sun-exposed and shaded areas. The condensed water droplets collect and are then funnelled into underground reservoirs or catch basins.
The physical structure of a windtrap can vary in size and complexity, from small, individual installations serving a single household, to large-scale systems integrated into the architecture of Fremen sietches. These larger windtraps are often constructed as part of the natural landscape, such as within rock formations or cliffs, to maximize their efficiency and concealment from outsiders.
Fremen technologies are therefore well adapted to the desert. Fremen technologies must not only be resilient to the harsh environment, but must also work in harmony with that environment. Fremen technologies must be constructed from local materials using local skills, and must endure for a very long time. Generations, if possible.
Wind power for the sietch.
The energy most accessible to some rudimentary technology is delivered by the wind. Should the Fremen wish to gather this power, how might they achieve this?
An example can be found in Nashtifan, Iran. The Nashtifan windmills are ancient, and are believed to be among the oldest in the world, with origins that can be traced back to around 1000AD. These windmills are made from natural materials such as wood and clay, and feature vertical-axis designs.
Each windmill consists of several vertical wooden blades that are covered in a fabric or reed matting. These blades are mounted on a central vertical shaft and arranged in a way that allows them to catch the wind from multiple directions. The wind’s force rotates the blades, which then turns the central shaft. This mechanical energy is used to power millstones or other equipment for grinding grain or pumping water.
Despite being centuries old, some of these windmills are still operational today, highlighting their durability and sustainability.
One might imagine the complex cave channels of the Fremen sietch windtrap incorporating such a mechanism to catch the powerful desert winds and drive vast rotors.
Clearly, the Fremen will struggle to find the wood required to construct a Nashtifan windmill. However, one wonders if the vast sandworms might offer the necessary structures?
Capturing this energy is only half of the solution. One must then store and exploit this power. How might the Fremen achieve this?
It might be tempting to simply assume that these vast rotors might drive some rudimentary electrical mechanism. However, this doesn’t seem a particularly Fremen approach. After all, in this novel, certain electrically powered mechanisms attract the great worms of the desert. Might a sietch eschew an electrical distribution system to avoid this outcome?
Furthermore, the sand and dust is pervasive on Arrakis, getting into every nook and cranny. One wonders just what sort of hell this desert dust may play upon the fine bearings, brushes and close tolerances of a large electrical generator.
Fortunately the Fremen sietch already contains precisely what we require to store energy. This wind energy could be stored by pumping the water in the sietch cache to a greater height to offer the potential of a hydroelectric dam.
To avoid an electrical system, this raised water could pressurise pneumatic lines carved into the rock and transmit power throughout the sietch. This seems a more elegant Fremen approach that would suffer little wear and tear in the desert environment.
A Fremen workshop might therefore be powered entirely by pneumatic pressure buried deep within the rocks of some remote desert outcrop.
Portable power for the desert.
Beyond the permanent safety of the rock carved sietch, the Fremen technologies seem to become highly portable. Almost everything is carried on the person.
Could the Fremen generate power whilst out in the desert? Where might we look for inspiration on how this might be constructed?
Consider the Fremen ‘thumper’ - a device used to attract the huge sandworms. A thumper is relatively simple in design. A long, stake-like object repeatedly strikes the ground. This action produces a rhythmic, deep vibration or pounding sound that penetrates the sand.
A thumper is powered by a spring that drives a clapper at one end. Once the catch is released, the thumper starts to pound repeatedly. Additionally, some thumpers are equipped with a candle that burns for about an hour. This offers a control mechanism. Once the candle has completely burned down, the catch is automatically released, causing the thumper to commence its pounding.
Does this thumper device offer any inspiration on how the Fremen might capture the wind whilst out in the desert? Lightweight. Articulated. Portable. Simply constructed.
A portable Fremen windmill might be small, lightweight, fabric covered than therefore foldable. In fact, perhaps such a device might be not unlike the windmill constructed by the green shed builds.
This device is designed to be cheap, uses few complex materials, is easily made by hand, and incorporates very large tolerances to endure this hand built nature. I’m not really sure how one might make that bearing endure sand. Feel free to offer suggestions in the comments.
Magnetic materials can be swung past coils wound by hand, to permit this insubstantial device to offer some electrical power. But what might the Fremen do with such power?
Considering the entire novel is set 20,000 years in the future, we might expect that the Fremen could find some use for this electrical power out in the deep desert. Navigation. Communication. Lighting. Sensors. The options are numerous. Suffice it to say, one may find oneself caught out in the desert without rescue for some time. A reliable source of power could come in handy.
However, in the novel the sandworms are driven into a frenzy by certain electrically powered devices. Perhaps this little windmill might merely offer an alternative means to attract the worm, and little else.
Does any of this idle daydream offer a model for how our own sustainable technologies might be constructed and employed? Rather than depend upon vast corporate windmills which we could never build ourselves, could a Fremen approach to sustainable technologies deliver power into our own hands?
That’s probably enough for now. In Part 2 I’ll tackle a slightly trickier prospect. How might the Fremen gather energy directly from the sun without recourse to the photovoltaic chip?