Energy and Civilization by Vaclav Smil

Energy and Civilization by Vaclav Smil

"I wait for new Smil books the way some people wait for the next 'Star Wars' movie. In his latest book, Energy and Civilization: A History, he goes deep and broad to explain how innovations in humans' ability to turn energy into heat, light, and motion have been a driving force behind our cultural and economic progress over the past 10,000 years.
-Bill Gates, Gates Notes, Best Books of the Year

Energy is the only universal currency; it is necessary for getting anything done. The conversion of energy on Earth ranges from terra-forming forces of plate tectonics to cumulative erosive effects of raindrops. Life on Earth depends on the photosynthetic conversion of solar energy into plant biomass. Humans have come to rely on many more energy flows-ranging from fossil fuels to photovoltaic generation of electricity-for their civilized existence. In this monumental history, Vaclav Smil provides a comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel-driven civilization.

Humans are the only species that can systematically harness energies outside their bodies, using the power of their intellect and an enormous variety of artifacts-from the simplest tools to internal combustion engines and nuclear reactors. The epochal transition to fossil fuels affected everything: agriculture, industry, transportation, weapons, communication, economics, urbanization, quality of life, politics, and the environment. Smil describes humanity's energy eras in panoramic and interdisciplinary fashion, offering readers a magisterial overview. This book is an extensively updated and expanded version of Smil's Energy in World History (1994). Smil has incorporated an enormous amount of new material, reflecting the dramatic developments in energy studies over the last two decades and his own research over that time.

Vaclav Smil has authored 35 books and over 400 papers in the subjects of materials, energy, environmental and population change, food production and nutrition, technical innovation, risk assessment, and public policy. His research interests are diverse and include a variety of disciplines. He is a Member of the Order of Canada, a member of the Royal Society of Canada (Science Academy), and a Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Manitoba. Foreign Policy named him one of the top 100 global thinkers in 2010. He was the first non-American to receive the American Association for the Advancement of Science Prize for Public Understanding of Science and Technology. He has served as a consultant for several US, EU, and international agencies, and has spoken at approximately 400 conferences and workshops in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Finally, in a Wired.com story in 2013, he had the honor of having Bill Gates say, There is no author whose books I look forward to more than Vaclav Smil.