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Category Archives: What to do
Rare Earth – why we may be the only intelligent species in the universe
Preface. I think that Ward & Brownlee’s 2000 book “Rare Earth: why complex life is uncommon in the universe” is one of the most profound and important books I’ve ever read. What if we are the only intelligent species in … Continue reading
Book review of Mikhail’s “The beekeeper: rescuing the stolen women of Iraq”
Preface. This is a gruesome post you may want to skip. My main interest in this book was what will happen to the hundreds of millions forced to flee in the future because of the crash of civilization as oil … Continue reading
Posted in Collapse of Civilizations, Collapsing, Mass migrations, Middle East, Refugee Camps, Social Disorder, Terrorism
Tagged refugees
8 Comments
Book review: the stranger in the woods. The extraordinary story of the last true hermit
Preface. This has nothing to do with peak everything, but it was an interesting and profound book, and those of you who are survivalists may find yourself in a similar situation… Alice Friedemann www.energyskeptic.com author of “When Trucks Stop Running: … Continue reading
Replacing diesel tractors with horses or oxen – what will that be like?
Preface. Since fossil fuels are clearly finite, at some point increasing numbers of farmers with diesel vehicles and equipment will want to replace them with horses, which can do the work of six people. Here’s what energy expert Vaclav Smil … Continue reading
Posted in Agriculture, Life Before Oil, Muscle Power, Peak Food, Vaclav Smil
Tagged agriculture, horsepower, muscle power, oxen
10 Comments
Using manure for fertilizer in the future – it won’t be easy
Preface. At John Jeavons Biointensive workshop back in 2003, I learned that phosphorous is limited and mostly being lost to oceans and other waterways after exiting sewage treatment plants. He said it can be dangerous to use human manure without … Continue reading
Posted in Life Before Oil, Soil, Waste, Water
Tagged eutrophication, excrement, fertilizer, manure, phosphorus, sewage, water
8 Comments
Book review of Wrigley’s “Energy and the English Industrial revolution”
Preface. I’ve made a strong case in my book “When trucks stop running” and this energyskeptic website that we will eventually return to wood and a 14th century lifestyle after fossil fuels are depleted. So if you’re curious about what … Continue reading
Posted in Agriculture, Agriculture, Energy, Life Before Oil, Limits To Growth
Tagged coal, industrial revolution, land, wood
7 Comments
From Horsepower to Horse Power. When Trucks stop, Horses start.
Preface. Before the industrial revolution there were only four sources of mechanical power of any economic significance. They were human labor, animal labor, water power (near flowing streams) and wind power. Work done by animals, especially on farms, was still … Continue reading
Muscle Power
Preface. Before fossil fuels, the energy to do work came from muscle power and the heat from burning biomass, mainly wood. When I visited the Deutsches museum in Munich in 2017, I saw two animal treadmills: The first picture shows … Continue reading
Posted in Agriculture, Energy, Life Before Oil, Muscle Power, What to do
Tagged muscle power, treadmill
3 Comments
Vaclav Smil. Making the modern world: materials and dematerialization
Preface. I can’t believe I read this book, it is just a long litany of the gigantic amounts of materials we exploit, with no analysis, implications, or the meaning of what impact this will have on the planet. I certainly … Continue reading
Posted in Infrastructure, Life Before Oil, Limits To Growth, Peak Resources, Vaclav Smil
Tagged materials, recycling, vaclav smil
10 Comments
Rex Weyler on “what to do” about limits to growth, peak energy
Preface. Professor Nate Hagens is teaching a class at the University of Minnesota about the state of the world that may be expanded to all incoming freshmen. Many despair when they learn about limits to growth and finite fossil fuels. … Continue reading
