A Nobel laureate imagines the techonolgies that will allow us to harness alternative fuel sources and power society, despite the lack of carbon-based fuels, in an intriguing look at two centuries into the future.

With nearly all of the world's energy consumption dependent on non-renewable resources, Powering Our Future challenges consumers to support changes that will create sustainable energy in the future. The four biggest energy sources--oil, natural gas, coal, and uranium--currently power our earth. What would happen to our society if we experienced severe shortages of one or more of these resources? Such a glimpse into the future may become reality sooner than we think. Oil production is soon expected to begin a rapid descent, with natural gas in close pursuit. Powering Our Future is an educational tool that opens the door to a future fueled by sustainable, renewable energy. Consumers will learn: - How our world has become dependent on four nonrenewable resources. - How each resource impacts us politically, economically, and environmentally. - How renewable resources such as hydrogen, fuel cells, wind power, solar energy, hydropower, and more are waiting in the wings. - How the transition to renewable resources will take place, offering economically stable and environmentally safe choices. Powering Our Future is a solution-oriented guide that will empower you to make more informed choices as a voter, a contributor to a global economy, and a citizen of the earth.

Dr. Daniel B. Botkin objectively assesses the true prospects, limitations, costs, risks, dangers, and tradeoffs associated with every leading and emerging source of energy, including oil, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric, nuclear, wind, solar, ocean power, and biofuels. Next, Botkin addresses the energy distribution system, outlining how it currently works, identifying its inefficiencies, and reviewing options for improving it. Finally, Botkin turns to solutions, offering a realistic, scientifically and economically viable path to a sustainable, energy-independent future: one that can improve the quality of life for Americans and for people around the world. The Future of Fossil Fuels What can we realistically expect from oil, gas, and coal? Will Alternative Energy Sources Really Matter? Running the numbers on solar, wind, biofuels, and other renewables Must We All Wear Sweaters and Live in Caves? The right role for efficiency--and why energy minimalism isn’t the solution Where We Can Start--and What Will Happen if We Don’t No magic bullet, but there are sensible, realistic solutions

The Future of Power examines what it means to be forceful and effective in a world in which the traditional ideas of state power have been upended by technology, and rogue actors. Joseph S. Nye, Jr., a longtime analyst of power and a hands-on practitioner in government, delivers a new power narrative that considers the shifts, innovations, bold technologies, and new relationships that are defining the twenty-first century. He shows how power resources are adapting to the digital age and how smart power strategies must include more than a country's military strength. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, unsurpassed in military strength and ownership of world resources, the United States was indisputably the most powerful nation in the world. Today, China, Russia, India, and others are increasing their share of world power resources. Information once reserved for the government is now available for mass consumption. The Internet has literally put power at the fingertips of nonstate agents, allowing them to launch cyberattacks from their homes. The cyberage has created a new power frontier among states, ripe with opportunity for developing countries. To remain at the pinnacle of world power, the United States must adopt a strategy that designed for a global information age.

This book provides a concise but rigorous appraisal about the future of nuclear power and the presumed nuclear renaissance. It does so by assessing the technical, economic, environmental, political, and social risks related to all aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mills and mines to nuclear reactors and spent fuel storage facilities. In each case, the book argues that the costs of nuclear power significantly outweigh its benefits. It concludes by calling for investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency as a better path towards an affordable, secure, and socially acceptable future.The prospect of a global nuclear renaissance could change the way that energy is produced and used the world over. Sovacool takes a hard look at who would benefit — mostly energy companies and manufacturers — and who would suffer — mostly taxpayers, those living near nuclear facilities, and electricity customers. This book is a must-read for anyone even remotely concerned about a sustainable energy future, and also for those with a specific interest in modern nuclear power plants.

The future of clean energy is no longer about science and technology; it's all about access to finance. The fossil fuel industry has been subsidized for decades with tax breaks and government backing, while renewables have struggled to compete. But now clean energy is the safe bet for investors, as is argued in Renewable Energy Finance: Powering the Future, edited by Dr Charles Donovan, Principal Teaching Fellow at Imperial College Business School.With a foreword by Lord Brown and contributions from some of the world's leading experts in energy finance, this timely book documents how investors are spending over US$250 billion each year on new renewable energy projects and positioning themselves in a global investment market that will continue to expand at double-digit growth rates until 2020. It documents first-hand experiences of the challenges of balancing risk and return amid volatile market conditions and rapid shifts in government policy.Renewable Energy Finance provides an insider's perspective on renewable energy transactions, and insight into how countries like the US, India and China are responding to the global energy challenge. Drawing together contributions from senior executives and leading academics, Renewable Energy Finance serves an audience of readers craving intelligent, practical perspectives on the future of clean energy investment.

In their book Nicola Armaroli, Vincenzo Balzani and Nick Serpone uncover the background details associated with a transition to sustainable energy production that are routinely swept under the table in public discussions. They are not only concerned with the (alleged) advantages and disadvantages of any one energy generation technology from a technical viewpoint, but also with the ecological, economic, political and social consequences of an inevitable transition. In a highly readable manner aimed at an international audience, the authors introduce the often misused and sometimes abused term 'energy' and give a lucid account of the development of energy production from timber to nuclear energy and renewable energies. They compare various energy generation methods with respect to their efficiency and practicability for large-scale implementation and examine if, and how, these methods live up to the expectations and promises their proponents make. In addition, the authors juxtapose the political and economic prerequisites in different regions of the world that advance, or hinder, an energy turnaround. They round off their book by debunking the seventeen most popular myths often cited in discussions on energy issues. As a result, the authors provide ammunition for debate, underpin (and unsettle) opinions using facts, and challenge comfortable and popular chains of reasoning.

Electric power is essential for the lives and livelihoods of all Americans, and the need for electricity that is safe, clean, affordable, and reliable will only grow in the decades to come. At the request of Congress and the Department of Energy, the National Academies convened a committee of experts to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of the U.S. grid and how it how it might evolve in response to advances in new energy technologies, changes in demand, and future innovation. The Future of Electric Power in the United States presents an extensive set of policy and funding recommendations aimed at modernizing the U.S. electric system. The report addresses technology development, operations, grid architectures, and business practices, as well as ways to make the electricity system safe, secure, sustainable, equitable, and resilient.

Looks at the clash between gas/oil proponents and supports of alternative energies and offers a plan for the future that combines the best of both worlds.

China’s rise to power is one of the biggest questions in International Relations theory (IRT) and foreign policy circles. Although power has been a core concept of IRT for a long time, the faces and mechanisms of power as it relates to Chinese foreign policymaking has changed the contours of that debate. The rise of China and other powers across the global political arena sparks a new visibility for different kinds of encounters between states, particularly between China and other Global South states. These encounters are more visible to IR scholars because of the increasing influence that rising powers have in the international system. This book shows that foreign policy encounters between rising powers and Global South states do not necessarily exhibit the same logics, behaviors, or investment strategies of Euro-American hegemons. Instead, they have distinctive features that require new theoretical frameworks for analysis. Shaping the Future of Power probes the types of power mechanisms that build, diffuse, and project China’s power in Africa. One must take into account the processes of knowledge production, social capital formation, and skills transfers that Chinese foreign policy directs toward African states to fully understand China’s power-building mechanisms. The relational power framework requires these elements to capture both the material aspects and ideational people-centered aspects to power. By examining China’s investments in human resource development programs for Africa, the book reveals a vital, yet undertheorized, aspect of China’s foreign policy making.