A "meticulously researched" (The New York Times Book Review)
examination of energy transitions over time and an exploration of
the current challenges presented by global warming, a surging world
population, and renewable energy--from Pulitzer Prize- and National Book
Award-winning author Richard Rhodes.
People have lived and died, businesses have prospered and failed, and
nations have risen to world power and declined, all over energy
challenges. Through an unforgettable cast of characters, Pulitzer
Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal
and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear
power, and renewable energy. "Entertaining and informative...a powerful
look at the importance of science" (NPR.org), Rhodes looks back on five
centuries of progress, through such influential figures as Queen
Elizabeth I, King James I, Benjamin Franklin, Herman Melville, John D.
Rockefeller, and Henry Ford.
In his "magisterial history...a tour de force of popular science"
(Kirkus Reviews, starred review), Rhodes shows how breakthroughs in
energy production occurred; from animal and waterpower to the steam
engine, from internal-combustion to the electric motor. He looks at the
current energy landscape, with a focus on how wind energy is competing
for dominance with cast supplies of coal and natural gas. He also
addresses the specter of global warming, and a population hurtling
towards ten billion by 2100.
Human beings have confronted the problem of how to draw energy from raw
material since the beginning of time. Each invention, each discovery,
each adaptation brought further challenges, and through such
transformations, we arrived at where we are today. "A beautifully
written, often inspiring saga of ingenuity and progress...Energy
brings facts, context, and clarity to a key, often contentious subject"
(Booklist, starred review).
