Problems, Predicaments, and Technology

A new book is now available from Springer by author Alice Friedemann titled Life After Fossil Fuels - A Reality Check on Alternative Energy. The really great thing about this book is the fact that it explains so much about not only how society is powered today, what products are made from this energy, and what the future will look like, but also precisely WHY alternative energy from technological devices will fall way short of the mark with regard to powering society once fossil fuels become impossible to extract because the net energy they provide is equal to the amount of energy required to extract them (making them an energy sink rather than an energy source). Alice J. Friedemann is the creator of energyskeptic.com . Ms. Friedemann is perhaps best known for her book When Trucks Stop Running – Energy and the Future of Transportation published by Springer, and Peak Soil , which was edited by David Pimentel at Cornell, Tad Patzek at U.C. Berkeley, and Walter Youngquist (author of G

(SPECIAL NOTE: This article was originally written in January, 2020)  “It is the part of a great mind to despise wrongs done to it; the most contemptuous form of revenge is not to deem one’s adversary worth taking vengeance upon. Many have taken small injuries much more seriously to heart than they need, by revenging them: that man is great and noble who like a large wild animal hears unmoved the tiny curs that bark at him.” ~ Seneca Over the years, I have tackled several different ideas that I have seen emerging in many places regarding what I will call "romantic ideas" based upon false beliefs and ignorance. Occasionally, I am surprised by indignant outbursts by people I would never suspect of having the wool pulled over their eyes. Of course, the reason they are often so indignant is because they are simply suffering from grief (and anger and denial in this case), as we all are here. Either way, I want to make it clear that everyone is entitled to their own opinions as I

PREFACE For those who may have stumbled upon this link before reading other entries of my blog, a good place to start instead (so one can understand the context) might be my first entry here . For those wishing to make quicker work of getting acquainted with the details explaining more about the conditions surrounding this particular article with less overall reading, this entry is rather dense with links to supporting material.  What Will We Miss the Most? As time moves forward and we begin to slow down from the constant rush, rush, rush of industrial civilization, what will we miss the most? Will we wake up and begin remembering what we "forgot?" Think back to your own childhood. What did you enjoy the most? Were times "slower" and were there days you could spend outside exploring all over for hours or just chilling and reading books? Could you spend hours listening to the radio, hanging out in a tree house or on the beach at the lake?  Believe it or not, except

  The Koocanusa Bridge is the only bridge connecting the east and west sides of Lake Koocanusa in Montana and is Montana's highest (215 feet above the river) and longest bridge. A bridge too far? What will be the consequences of energy and resource decline on the healthcare industry? Will medicines be affected? Unfortunately, energy affects every one of us in very distinct ways. While these questions are very important ones indeed, energy and resource decline will affect far more than just the healthcare industry. It  will affect parts of our daily lives in almost every way imaginable. Agriculture and food and water security will be one important area of concern. Another area of great concern will be climate change and collapse , as collapse will reduce the level of energy available to deal with the increasing incidences of extreme weather events and natural disasters caused by climate change. Think about a piece of infrastructure - ANY infrastructure - how did that piece of i

  Energy and Resource  Decline and  "Renewable" Links Assessing Global Long-Term EROI of Gas: A Net-Energy Perspective on the Energy Transition Philippines lifts ban on new open-pit mines The world is burning the most coal ever to keep the lights on The destructive impact of hydropower plants on jaguars and tiger habitats New report maps mining impacts of the energy transition in the Americas Why the oil industry's pivot to carbon capture and storage, while it keeps on drilling, isn't a solution We can't afford to just build greener; we must build less This Amazon dam is supposed to provide clean energy, but it's destroying livelihoods and unique species What Europe's exceptionally low winds mean for the future energy grid Mining firm, eco-activists battle over unique Chile archipelago Climate change threatens hydropower energy security in the Amazon basin Lack of power grids sealed fate for early electric cars Rooftop solar increases electricity use, rais