Sustainable Energy - Without The Hot Air Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
Addressing the sustainable energy crisis in an objective manner, this enlightening book analyzes the relevant numbers and organizes a plan for change on both a personal level and an international scale—for Europe, the United States, and the world. In case study format, this informative reference answers questions surrounding nuclear energy, the potential of sustainable fossil fuels, and the possibilities of sharing renewable power with foreign countries. While underlining the difficulty of minimizing consumption, the tone remains positive as it debunks misinformation and clearly explains the calculations of expenditure per person to encourage people to make individual changes that will benefit the world at large.
Series: Without the Hot Air
Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: UIT Cambridge Ltd.; 1 edition (February 20, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0954452933
ISBN-13: 978-0954452933
Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 0.8 x 8.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (84 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #56,771 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #21 in Books > Business & Money > Industries > Energy & Mining > Oil & Energy #55 in Books > Engineering & Transportation > Engineering > Energy Production & Extraction #87 in Books > Business & Money > Economics > Environmental Economics
Prof MacKay's starting point is that there is a great deal of vague flummery talked about energy production and consumption. It is easy to make vague claims of "huge" potential green sources or to obsess over what turn out to be very minor energy savings. His goal in this book is to have a hard-nosed discussion of real numbers, so that there can be a more sensible discussion of options. He avoids making explicit recommendations, but his one continual plea is that we create a plan that "adds up" rather than merely reflecting wishful thinking. The world currently consumes enormous quantities of fossil fuel, so any viable alternative plan also has to deal with very large numbers, either as savings or as alternate sources.MacKay writes in a very readable and entertaining style. But he is also very careful to explain his numbers and to build his scenarios from the ground up. I found his analyses convincing and stimulating. Sometimes more detailed or more mathematical analysis is pushed off to supplementary appendices, but those are also well worth reading.I learned many things. One key factor I hadn't appreciated was the enormous land areas required for renewable sources, such as wind, solar, biofuel, or geothermal to make a substantial difference. For example, MacKay calculates that it would probably require 10% of the UK's surface to be dedicated to wind farms in order to make a significant contribution to the UK's current energy needs. Even larger areas are required to generate meaningful quantities of biofuel. If an area the size of Africa were dedicated to growing biofuel, that might only replace a third of current world oil needs. But MacKay also points out there may be places where building vast energy farms makes sense.
Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride (Caldecott Honor Book) Low Energy Low Carbon Architecture: Recent Advances & Future Directions (Sustainable Energy Developments) The Renewable Energy Handbook: A Guide to Rural Energy Independence, Off-Grid and Sustainable Living Trucking Air Imports & Exports Freight Forwarding Style: WHAT IT TAKES TO PROVIDE TRUCKING FOR THE FREIGHT FORWARDER INDUSTRY FOR AIR EXPORT AND AIR IMPORTS Hot Sauce!: Techniques for Making Signature Hot Sauces, with 32 Recipes to Get You Started; Includes 60 Recipes for Using Your Hot Sauces The Snazzy Jazzy Nutcracker: Hot, Hot, Hot in 1929! Hot Hot Hot Renewable Energy Made Easy: Free Energy from Solar, Wind, Hydropower, and Other Alternative Energy Sources Re-engineering for Sustainable Industrial Production: Proceedings of the OE/IFIP/IEEE International Conference on Integrated and Sustainable ... in Information and Communication Technology) Prefabulous and Sustainable: Building and Customizing an Affordable, Energy-Efficient Home Construction Materials, Methods and Techniques: Building for a Sustainable Future (Go Green with Renewable Energy Resources) The Passivhaus Handbook: A Practical Guide to Constructing and Retrofitting Buildings for Ultra-Low Energy Performance (Sustainable Building) Green from the Ground Up: Sustainable, Healthy, and Energy-Efficient Home Construction (Builder's Guide) Prefabulous World: Energy-Efficient and Sustainable Homes Around the Globe Audubon House: Building the Environmentally Responsible, Energy-Efficient Office (Wiley Series in Sustainable Design) Renewable Energy: Power for a Sustainable Future, Second Edition Energy Systems and Sustainability: Power for a Sustainable Future The Complete Air Fryer Cookbook: Amazingly Easy Recipes to Fry, Bake, Grill, and Roast with Your Air Fryer Modern Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (Modern Refridgeration and Air Conditioning)
