Bøger af Vaclav Smil

With one famous equation, E=mc2, Einstein proved all matter can be described as energy. It is everywhere and it is everything. In this newly updated and engaging introduction, renowned scientist Vaclav Smil explores energy in all its facets from the inner workings of the human body to what we eat, the car we drive and the race for more efficient and eco-friendly fuels. Energy: A Beginner's Guide highlights the importance of energy in both past and present societies, by shedding light on the science behind global warming and efforts to prevent it, and by revealing how our daily decisions affect energy consumption. Whether you're looking for dinner table conversation or to further your own understanding, this book will amaze and inform, uncovering the truths and exposing the myths behind one of the most important concepts in our universe.

A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society throughout history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel-driven civilization.

World acclaimed scientist Vaclav Smil reveals everything there is to know about nature's most sought-after resourcePacked with fascinating facts and insight, this book will fuel dinner party debate, and provide readers with the science and politics behind the world's most controversial resource. Without oil, there would be no globalisation, no plastic, little transport, and a global political landscape that few would recognise. It is the lifeblood of the modern world, and humanity's dependence upon it looks set to continue for decades to come. In this captivating book, the author of the acclaimed Energy: A Beginner's Guide, Vaclav Smil, explains all matters related to the ';black stuff', from its discovery in the earth, right through to the political maelstrom that surrounds it today.

"Vaclav Smil lleva cincuenta aänos estudiando las posibilidades que tenemos a nuestro alcance para garantizar el futuro energâetico de nuestro planeta. Debido a la complejidad de las interacciones que mueven el mundo, la atomizaciâon del conocimiento y la volatilidad de la informaciâon es muy difâicil anticipar con exactitud quâe ocurrirâa. Por eso es necesario ceänirse a los datos y a los lâimites que nos ofrece la ciencia, asâi como poner la atenciâon en los escenarios mâas cercanos y menos idealistas para encarar los retos actuales de manera eficaz. Asâi pues, este libro aborda temas tan importantes como la improbable y difâicil tarea de descarbonizar el planeta, en parte por la estrecha relaciâon entre la producciâon de alimentos y los combustibles fâosiles, pero tambiâen destapa realidades incâomodas, como la dependencia de las economâias modernas respecto de la alta producciâon de amonâiaco, metal, cemento y plâastico. Ademâas, examina de quâe forma el calentamiento global puede afectar a nuestras necesidades bâasicas para sobrevivir y anima a reevaluar los riesgos que hemos subestimado o exagerado a lo largo de los aänos para aprender a vivir mâas y mejor. Câomo funciona el mundo es literalmente un libro sobre câomo funciona el mundo. Por su estructura y clarividencia, sirve como una guâia interdisciplinaria que evita a toda costa dar eco a las posturas extremas y propone una respuesta objetiva, cientâifica y razonada a todos los titulares que nos generan ansiedad: la crisis climâatica, la crisis energâetica, la crisis de materias primas, la globalizaciâon y el futuro de nuestra civilizaciâon. El resultado es un poderoso ensayo que combina los mâas recientes descubrimientos cientâificos y el trabajo de quien ha investigado a lo largo de medio siglo los retos energâeticos a los que nos enfrentamos" --

From the New York Times-bestselling author, a new volume on the history of human ingenuity-and its attendant breakthroughs and busts.The world is never finished catching up with Vaclav Smil. In his latest and perhaps most readable book, Invention and Innovation, the prolific author-a favorite of Bill Gates-pens an insightful and fact-filled jaunt through the history of human invention. Impatient with the hype that so often accompanies innovation, Smil offers in this book a clear-eyed corrective to the overpromises that accompany everything from new cures for diseases to AI. He reminds us that even after we go quite far along the invention-development-application trajectory, we may never get anything real to deploy. Or worse, even after we have succeeded by introducing an invention, its future may be marked by underperformance, disappointment, demise, or outright harm.Drawing on his vast breadth of scientific and historical knowledge, Smil explains the difference between invention and innovation, and looks not only at inventions that failed to dominate as promised (such as the airship, nuclear fission, and supersonic flight), but also at those that turned disastrous (leaded gasoline, DDT, and chlorofluorocarbons). And finally, most importantly, he offers a "e;wish list"e; of inventions that we most urgently need to confront the staggering challenges of the twenty-first century.Filled with engaging examples and pragmatic approaches, this book is a sobering account of the folly that so often attends human ingenuity-and how we can, and must, better align our expectations with reality.

Der weltbekannte Wissenschaftler Vaclav Smil analysiert das kritische Thema der nachhaltigen Ressourcennutzung, das für Forschung und Politik von großem Interesse istIm Laufe der Zeit ist die moderne Welt von Materialströmen in ungeahntem Ausmaß abhängig geworden. Selbst die effizientesten Produktionsverfahren und ein größtmöglicher Recyclinganteil reichen möglicherweise nicht aus, um die Dematerialisierung so weit voranzutreiben, dass sie die zunehmende Nachfrage nach Materialien ausgleichen könnte, die aus dem anhaltenden Bevölkerungswachstum und steigenden Lebensstandards entsteht.In Materials and Dematerialization werden die wichtigsten Materialien der Geschichte betrachtet, von Holz und Stein über Metalle und Legierungen bis zu Kunststoffen und Silizium, mit einer Beschreibung ihrer Gewinnung bzw. Herstellung und der wichtigsten Anwendungen. In einer detaillierten Analyse werden die steigende Produktivität bei der Gewinnung und Verarbeitung, Synthese, Veredelung und Verteilung von Materialien sowie die Energiekosten und die Umweltauswirkungen des zunehmenden Materialverbrauchs untersucht. Gleichzeitig wird die Beziehung zwischen sozioökonomischer Entwicklung und Ressourcennutzung insbesondere in Bezug auf die wichtigsten Technologien und Innovationen betrachtet. Das Buch endet mit einem Ausblick auf die Zukunft. Erörtert werden dabei die Möglichkeiten der Dematerialisierung, eine mögliche Beschränkung von Materialien und eine aktualisierte Einschätzung des Materialbedarfs sowie die Prognosen für die nächsten Jahrzehnte.Nach dem großen Erfolg seiner Veröffentlichung von 2013 hat Vaclav Smil sein wegweisendes Werk nun gründlich überarbeitet. In der neuen Ausgabe werden die Fortschritte der letzten zehn Jahren herausgestellt, und auch die Statistiken und Literaturhinweise wurden auf den Stand von 2022 gebracht. Zudem enthält die aktualisierte Ausgabe neue Inhalte, die sich ausdrücklich damit befassen, welche Materialien für die globale Energiewende und die Lebensmittelsicherheit einer weiterhin wachsenden Weltbevölkerung erforderlich sind.

'There is no author whose books I look forward to more' Bill GatesThe New York Times bestselling author returns with a mind-opening exploration of how size defines life on Earth.Explaining the key processes shaping size in nature, society and technology, Smil busts myths around proportions - from bodies to paintings and the so-called golden ratio - tells us what Jonathan Swift got wrong in Gulliver's Travels - the giant Brobdingnagian's legs would buckle under their enormous weight - and dives headfirst into the most contentious issue in ergonomics: the size of aeroplane seats.It is no exaggeration to say this fascinating and wide-ranging tour de force will change the way you look at absolutely everything.

In 1982, Vaclav Smil turned upside down traditional perceptions of China as a green paradise in "The Bad Earth". Updating and expanding its basic arguments and perceptions, this volume is an inquiry into the fundamental factors, needs, prospects, and limits of modern Chinese society.

China's population of 1.3 billion people puts strain on her natural resources. This account of the environmental challenges that China faces examines China's energy resources, their uses, impacts and prospects, from the 1970s oil crisis to the present and analyses the question of how China can best produce enough food to feed its population.

Analyzing both social and environmental needs, this explores the problems associated with global management in the transition to a sustainable society and furthers our understanding of biospheric change.

This book provides a detailed, global examination of energy transitions, supplying a long-term historical perspective, an up-to-date assessment of recent and near-term advances in energy production technology and implementation, and an explanation of why efforts to limit global warming and to shift away from fossil fuels have been gradual.Based on the best international and national statistical sources, the second edition of Energy Transitions: Global and National Perspectives supplies an in-depth evaluation of how economies and nations around the world are striving to move away from traditional energy sources, the unfolding decarbonization process, and problems with intermittent energies and national transition plans. It supplies readers with a clear introduction to the basic properties of energy systems and key concepts of their appraisal, puts energy transition patterns in long-term historical perspective, and looks at the energy transition in eight of the world's leading economies. The last chapters focus on the advances in the decarbonization of the global energy supply and consider how the energy transition will continue in the coming decades.This fully updated and substantially expanded edition addresses the many new developments affecting energy supply, such as the recent expansion of hydraulic fracturing, oil price fluctuations, the Fukushima nuclear power plant catastrophe, advances in solar and wind generation, adoption of combined cycle gas turbines, and increased availability of electric cars. The coverage highlights the differences in the pace of transitions in various countries, thereby providing a complete and accurate picture of the current state of energy development in different parts of the world. The book serves as an invaluable resource for students as well as for anyone interested in a realistic appraisal of the current state of energy transitions in various nations and regions and the likely future development of the global energy supply.

This bold and controversial argument shows why energy transitions are inherently complex and prolonged affairs, and how ignoring this fact raises unrealistic expectations that the United States and other global economies can be weaned quickly from a primary dependency on fossil fuels.