Grand Transitions

Grand Transitions
Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Total Pages : 385
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780190060688
ISBN-13 : 0190060689
Rating : 4/5 (689 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Grand Transitions by : Vaclav Smil

Download or read book Grand Transitions written by Vaclav Smil and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2021-02-12 with total page 385 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From one of the world's leading experts on the history of energy, a rigorous examination of the transitions that structure our modern world--and the environmental reckoning that will mark its success or failure. What makes the modern world work? The answer to this deceptively simple question lies in four "grand transitions" of civilization--in populations, agriculture, energy, and economics--which have transformed the way we live. Societies that have undergone all four transitions emerge into an era of radically different population dynamics, food surpluses (and waste), abundant energy use, and expanding economic opportunities. Simultaneously, in other parts of the world, hundreds of millions remain largely untouched by these developments. Through erudite storytelling, Vaclav Smil investigates the fascinating and complex interactions of these transitions. He argues that the moral imperative to share modernity's benefits has become more acute with increasing economic inequality, but addressing this imbalance would make it exceedingly difficult to implement the changes necessary for the long-term preservation of the environment. Thus, managing the fifth transition--environmental changes from natural-resource depletion, biodiversity loss, and global warming--will determine the success or eventual failure of the grand transitions that have made the world we live in today.


Grand Transitions Related Books

Grand Transitions
Language: en
Pages: 385
Authors: Vaclav Smil
Categories: Business & Economics
Type: BOOK - Published: 2021-02-12 - Publisher: Oxford University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

From one of the world's leading experts on the history of energy, a rigorous examination of the transitions that structure our modern world--and the environment
Choosing Earth
Language: en
Pages:
Authors: Duane Elgin
Categories:
Type: BOOK - Published: 2020-05-30 - Publisher:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A scenario for the next half-century (2020 - 2070) that explores climate disruption, a world systems crisis, a great fall for humanity, a time of great sorrow,
The Great Transition: Shifting from Fossil Fuels to Solar and Wind Energy
Language: en
Pages: 247
Authors: Lester R. Brown
Categories: Nature
Type: BOOK - Published: 2015-04-20 - Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The great energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy is under way. As oil insecurity deepens, the extraction risks of fossil fuels rise,
Half-Earth Socialism
Language: en
Pages: 241
Authors: Troy Vettese
Categories: Political Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2024-04-23 - Publisher: Verso Books

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"Empowers readers to write their own recipes for a future in peril: an exercise in democracy few books have dared to undertake." –Andreas Malm, author of How
Tipping Point for Planet Earth
Language: en
Pages: 273
Authors: Anthony D. Barnosky
Categories: Nature
Type: BOOK - Published: 2016-04-26 - Publisher: Macmillan

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Four people are born every second of every day. Conservative estimates suggest that there will be 10 billion people on Earth by 2050. That is billions more than