Overview
This is the homepage of Planetforlife, a family of websites devoted to
aspects of the coming world energy crisis and the concept of peak oil. You are invited to
visit them all, in any order.
The "world energy crisis"
and "peak oil" have become common topics of conversation.
That was not the case in 2004 when this website was first
uploaded.
Energy prices
have increased greatly during the past year--maybe the crisis has
started already. Major oil companies have placed prominent ads explaining
the situation. To pick only one of many possible examples, the November
2005 Chevron ad
states "One thing is clear: the era of easy oil is
over." The April 2006 ad states "Russia, Iran and Qatar have 58%
of the world's natural gas reserves. The U.S. has 3%."
People in the modern world
depend on the availability of economical and abundant energy. The United States
is especially vulnerable to an energy shortage because we use so much and because North America has only a small fraction
of the world's oil and natural gas. Most of the world's oil and natural gas
are
found near the Persian Gulf, on the other side of the Earth.
Everyone
realizes that oil and gas are finite resources which will become scarce
and expensive some
day. There will be a transition to sustainable energy sources. The only question is when and
how--and how orderly.
The new era of expensive energy will be very difficult for everyone on
Earth but it will be
even more difficult if it is not anticipated.
It is of utmost importance that the public and especially policymakers understand the
coming world energy crisis and the underlying
science.
If there is a group that can be characterized as unaware of
the energy crisis, it is politicians in the United States. No
potential presidential candidate has mentioned it. Yet the
energy crisis is going to shape events for decades to
come.
Google can search this site. Try searching for
"Limbaugh" or "Greenspan."
The Science of the World Energy Crisis
Scientific thinking requires two things: undamped curiosity and a strong desire not to be
fooled. There is a widespread belief that scientific thinking is not useful for everyday
practical things or that it is only for elites. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Planetforlife will try to
explain the science of the world energy crisis with objectivity, conciseness, and detachment.
Physics, chemistry and geology provide the framework for the
explanations. Any solution to the energy crisis must consider politics, ethics
and much else but any solution that does not get the science
right will fail.
Planetforlife welcomes skepticism because skepticism leads to examination of the facts and that leads to understanding.
Personal
Comments, suggestions and encouragement are welcome. I will try to reply
to all questions. I would very much like to know about errors in facts,
errors in logic and broken links. Click the icon or e-mail me at:
jack@planetforlife.com
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