Understanding the Global Energy Crisis

Understanding the Global Energy Crisis
Author: Richard A. Simmons
Publisher: Purdue University Press
Total Pages: 345
Release: 2014-03-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1612493106

We are facing a global energy crisis caused by world population growth, an escalating increase in demand, and continued dependence on fossil-based fuels for generation. It is widely accepted that increases in greenhouse gas concentration levels, if not reversed, will result in major changes to world climate with consequential effects on our society and economy. This is just the kind of intractable problem that Purdue University's Global Policy Research Institute seeks to address in the Purdue Studies in Public Policy series by promoting the engagement between policy makers and experts in fields such as engineering and technology. Major steps forward in the development and use of technology are required. In order to achieve solutions of the required scale and magnitude within a limited timeline, it is essential that engineers be not only technologically-adept but also aware of the wider social and political issues that policy-makers face. Likewise, it is also imperative that policy makers liaise closely with the academic community in order to realize advances. This book is designed to bridge the gap between these two groups, with a particular emphasis on educating the socially-conscious engineers and technologists of the future. In this accessibly-written volume, central issues in global energy are discussed through interdisciplinary dialogue between experts from both North America and Europe. The first section provides an overview of the nature of the global energy crisis approached from historical, political, and sociocultural perspectives. In the second section, expert contributors outline the technology and policy issues facing the development of major conventional and renewable energy sources. The third and final section explores policy and technology challenges and opportunities in the distribution and consumption of energy, in sectors such as transportation and the built environment. The book's epilogue suggests some future scenarios in energy distribution and use.

The Energy Problem

The Energy Problem
Author: Richard S Stein
Publisher: World Scientific Publishing Company
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2011-03-22
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9813108118

Most scientists now believe that carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are rapidly increasing, and that emissions from the burning of fossil fuels is a principal cause. Thus, it is probable that this will affect the climate and lead to global warming.This book familiarizes the non-specialist with alternative sources of energy, pointing out their advantages and disadvantages. The appropriate principles of physics and chemistry involved in each alternative will be presented in an easily digestible manner. The book seeks to better inform the public about specific actions that need to be taken in order to better combat energy problems, and reduce climate change.

The Energy Crisis

The Energy Crisis
Author: David Lewis Feldman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 328
Release: 1996
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

The energy crisis of 1973-1974 was a pivotal event in twentieth-century American history. In the wake of the Vietnam War, it exposed the nation's economic vulnerability to foreign powers and precipitated an awareness of limits to the exploitation of natural resources. Further, it forced Americans and the American government in particular to think about the future of energy production and consumption in novel waysand made such thinking more imperative than ever. Twenty years later, questions about the energy crisis persist. What were the underlying causes of the crisis? What did we learn from it? How has it affected our current energy policies? Will another energy crisis occur in our future? In The Energy Crisis, David Lewis Feldman brings together a wide range of energy policy experts to address these questions and explore the appropriate role of governments and markets in ensuring a stable, economical, and sustainable energy supply. The authors locate the energy crisis in its historical context and find that, contrary to popular opinion, the Arab oil embargo was not responsible for the energy crisis. Rather, they contend, the crisis was caused by a series of short-sighted policy decisions meant to bring Americans cheaper energy and a cleaner environment. The contributors to The Energy Crisis conclude that the crisis was resolved by a combination of market forces and government intervention, and they offer perspectives on the need to sustain long-term interest in public/private partnerships in the face of short-term political and economic demands.

Climate Change And The Energy Problem: Physical Science And Economics Perspective

Climate Change And The Energy Problem: Physical Science And Economics Perspective
Author: David L Goodstein
Publisher: World Scientific Publishing Company
Total Pages: 102
Release: 2012-09-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9814407119

This important compendium deals with the primary world problems of global warming and the coming energy crisis. In alternating chapters, it lays out the nature of the two interrelated problems, and specifies the various economic considerations. Thus, it describes the coming shortfall of fossil fuel energy in detail and then presents the economic factors governing possible solutions.Written by two world renowned academics — a physicist who writes about the nature of the problem, and an economist who discusses various scenarios and solutions, this unique must-have book highlights the problem from the point of view of a scientist and an economist.

The Energy Crisis

The Energy Crisis
Author: Lawrence Rocks
Publisher:
Total Pages: 214
Release: 1972
Genre: Political Science
ISBN:

Discusses the power shortage facing America in the next two decades and proposes an energy program designed to safeguard against the exhaustion of natural resources.

Energy and Civilization

Energy and Civilization
Author: Vaclav Smil
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 564
Release: 2018-11-13
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0262536161

A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society throughout history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel–driven civilization. "I wait for new Smil books the way some people wait for the next 'Star Wars' movie. In his latest book, Energy and Civilization: A History, he goes deep and broad to explain how innovations in humans' ability to turn energy into heat, light, and motion have been a driving force behind our cultural and economic progress over the past 10,000 years. —Bill Gates, Gates Notes, Best Books of the Year Energy is the only universal currency; it is necessary for getting anything done. The conversion of energy on Earth ranges from terra-forming forces of plate tectonics to cumulative erosive effects of raindrops. Life on Earth depends on the photosynthetic conversion of solar energy into plant biomass. Humans have come to rely on many more energy flows—ranging from fossil fuels to photovoltaic generation of electricity—for their civilized existence. In this monumental history, Vaclav Smil provides a comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel–driven civilization. Humans are the only species that can systematically harness energies outside their bodies, using the power of their intellect and an enormous variety of artifacts—from the simplest tools to internal combustion engines and nuclear reactors. The epochal transition to fossil fuels affected everything: agriculture, industry, transportation, weapons, communication, economics, urbanization, quality of life, politics, and the environment. Smil describes humanity's energy eras in panoramic and interdisciplinary fashion, offering readers a magisterial overview. This book is an extensively updated and expanded version of Smil's Energy in World History (1994). Smil has incorporated an enormous amount of new material, reflecting the dramatic developments in energy studies over the last two decades and his own research over that time.

How to Avoid a Climate Disaster

How to Avoid a Climate Disaster
Author: Bill Gates
Publisher: Vintage
Total Pages: 201
Release: 2021-02-16
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0385546149

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • In this urgent, authoritative book, Bill Gates sets out a wide-ranging, practical—and accessible—plan for how the world can get to zero greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid a climate catastrophe. Bill Gates has spent a decade investigating the causes and effects of climate change. With the help of experts in the fields of physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, political science, and finance, he has focused on what must be done in order to stop the planet's slide to certain environmental disaster. In this book, he not only explains why we need to work toward net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases, but also details what we need to do to achieve this profoundly important goal. He gives us a clear-eyed description of the challenges we face. Drawing on his understanding of innovation and what it takes to get new ideas into the market, he describes the areas in which technology is already helping to reduce emissions, where and how the current technology can be made to function more effectively, where breakthrough technologies are needed, and who is working on these essential innovations. Finally, he lays out a concrete, practical plan for achieving the goal of zero emissions—suggesting not only policies that governments should adopt, but what we as individuals can do to keep our government, our employers, and ourselves accountable in this crucial enterprise. As Bill Gates makes clear, achieving zero emissions will not be simple or easy to do, but if we follow the plan he sets out here, it is a goal firmly within our reach.

The Energy Problem

The Energy Problem
Author: Richard S. Stein
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2011
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9814340316

This title familiarizes the non-specialist with alternative sources of energy, pointing out their advantages and disadvantages. The appropriate principles of physics and chemistry involved in each alternative is presented in an easily digestible manner.

Economic Aspects of the Energy Crisis

Economic Aspects of the Energy Crisis
Author: Harry Ward Richardson
Publisher:
Total Pages: 266
Release: 1975
Genre: Energy policy
ISBN:

Monograph on energy economics in the USA - covers power supply and power consumption trends and projections, theory of exhaustible resources, energy conservation and environmental protection implications, describes energy sources (coal, natural gas, nuclear energy, etc.), Explains the role of OPEC in determining petroleum prices, and explores energy policy considerations. Bibliography pp. 215 to 224 and statistical tables.