Author: Nick Jenkins Publisher: ISBN: 0198813929 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 161
Book Description
Energy supply is foundational to modern society, but damaging to the environment. This book takes a 'systems view', from extraction of primary fuel, through conversion to usable energy, and transportation to point of use. It explores initiatives to generate electricity in an environmentally benign manner, and decarbonise the supply of energy.
Author: Nick Jenkins Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0192543520 Category : Nature Languages : en Pages : 161
Book Description
Modern societies require energy systems to provide energy for cooking, heating, transport, and materials processing, as well as for electricity generation. Energy systems include the primary fuel, its conversion, and transport to the point of use. In many cases this primary fuel is still a fossil fuel, a one-use resource derived from a finite supply within our planet, causing considerable damage to the environment. After 300 years of increasing reliance on fossil fuels, particularly coal, it is becoming ever clearer that the present energy systems need to change. In this Very Short Introduction Nick Jenkins explores our historic investment in the exploitation of fossil energy resources and their current importance, and discusses the implications of our increasing rate of energy use. He considers the widespread acceptance by scientists and policy makers that our energy systems must reduce emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases, and looks forward to the radical changes in fuel technology that will be necessary to continue to provide energy supplies in a sustainable manner, and extend access across the developing world. Considering the impact of changing to an environmentally benign and low-carbon energy system, Jenkins also looks at future low-carbon energy systems which would use electricity from a variety of renewable energy sources, as well as the role of nuclear power in our energy use. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Author: John Maxwell Irvine Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0199584974 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 161
Book Description
Following the increasing cost of fossil fuels and concerns about the security of their future supply. However, the term 'nuclear power' causes anxiety in many people and there is confusion concerning the nature and extent of the associated risks.
Author: Nick Jelley Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0192559303 Category : Technology & Engineering Languages : en Pages : 169
Book Description
Energy is vital for a good standard of living, and much of the world's population does not have enough. Affordable and adequate sources of power that do not cause climate change or pollution are crucial; and renewables provide the answer. Wind and solar farms can now provide the cheapest electricity in many parts of the world. Moreover, they could provide all of the world's energy needs. But while market forces are fast helping the transition from fossil fuels to renewables, there are opposing pressures, such as the USA's proposed withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, and the vested interests in fossil fuels. This Very Short Introduction describes the main renewable sources of energy- solar, wind, hydropower, and biomass- as well as the less well-developed ones- geothermal, tidal, and wave. Nick Jelley explains the challenges of integrating renewables into electricity grids, and the need for energy storage and for clean heat; and discusses the opportunities in developing countries for renewable energy to empower millions. He also considers international efforts and policies to support renewables and tackle climate change; and explains recent innovations in wind and solar energy production, battery storage, and in the emerging power-to-gas provision for clean heating. Throughout, he emphasises what renewable energy can deliver, and its importance in tackling climate change, and in improving health, welfare, and access to electricity. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Author: Mark Maslin Publisher: OUP Oxford ISBN: 0199641137 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 177
Book Description
In this Very Short Introduction, Mark Maslin looks at all aspects of climate, from the physical and chemical factors that drive it and how climate differs from weather, to how climate has affected human settlements and the cyclic features of it. He ends with a look at climate change and our current approaches to solving it.
Author: Kornelis Blok Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 1000214435 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 282
Book Description
This textbook provides an introduction to energy analysis for those students who want to specialise in this challenging field. In comparison to other textbooks, this book provides a balanced treatment of complete energy systems, covering the demand side, the supply side, and the energy markets that connect these. The emphasis is very much on presenting a range of tools and methodologies that will help students find their way in analysing real world problems in energy systems. This new edition has been updated throughout and contains additional content on energy transitions and improvements in the treatment of several energy systems analysis approaches. Featuring learning objectives, further readings and practical exercises in each chapter, Introduction to Energy Analysis will be essential reading for upper-level undergraduate and postgraduate students with a background in the natural sciences and engineering. This book may also be useful for professionals dealing with energy issues, as a first introduction into the field.
Author: Tim Lenton Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0191028959 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 169
Book Description
When humanity first glimpsed planet Earth from space, the unity of the system that supports humankind entered the popular consciousness. The concept of the Earth's atmosphere, biosphere, oceans, soil, and rocks operating as a closely interacting system has rapidly gained ground in science. This new field, involving geographers, geologists, biologists, oceanographers, and atmospheric physicists, is known as Earth System Science. In this Very Short Introduction, Tim Lenton considers how a world in which humans could evolve was created; how, as a species, we are now reshaping that world; and what a sustainable future for humanity within the Earth System might look like. Drawing on elements of geology, biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics, Lenton asks whether Earth System Science can help guide us onto a sustainable course before we alter the Earth system to the point where we destroy ourselves and our current civilisation. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Author: Hermann-Josef Wagner Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media ISBN: 364220709X Category : Technology & Engineering Languages : en Pages : 131
Book Description
The authors have tried to strike a balance between a short book chapter and a very detailed book for subject experts. There are three prime reasons behind for doing so: first, the field is quite interdisciplinary and requires simplified presentation for a person from non-parent discipline. The second reason for this short-version of a full book is that both the authors have seen students and technically oriented people, who were searching for this type of book on hydro energy. The third reason and motivation was considering engineers who are starting their career in hydro energy sector. This book is targeted to present a good starting background and basic understanding for such professionals.
Author: Eberhard O. Voit Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0192563440 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 161
Book Description
Systems biology came about as growing numbers of engineers and scientists from other fields created algorithms which supported the analysis of biological data in incredible quantities. Whereas biologists of the past had been forced to study one item or aspect at a time, due to technical and biological limitations, it suddenly became possible to study biological phenomena within their natural contexts. This interdisciplinary field offers a holistic approach to interpreting these processes, and has been responsible for some of the most important developments in the science of human health and environmental sustainability. This Very Short Introduction outlines the exciting processes and possibilities in the new field of systems biology. Eberhard O. Voit describes how it enabled us to learn how intricately the expression of every gene is controlled, how signaling systems keep organisms running smoothly, and how complicated even the simplest cells are. He explores what this field is about, why it is needed, and how it will affect our understanding of life, particularly in the areas of personalized medicine, drug development, food and energy production, and sustainable stewardship of our environments. Throughout he considers how new tools are being provided from the fields of mathematics, computer science, engineering, physics, and chemistry to grasp the complexity of the countless interacting processes in cells which would overwhelm the cognitive and analytical capabilities of the human mind. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Author: Raymond T. Pierrehumbert Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0192577948 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 161
Book Description
Not long ago, the Solar System was the only example of a planetary system - a star and the bodies orbiting it - that we knew. Now, we know thousands of planetary systems, and have even been able to observe planetary systems at the moment of their birth. This Very Short Introduction explores this new frontier, incorporating the latest research. The book takes the reader on a journey through the grand sweep of time, from the moment galaxies begin to form after the Big Bang to trillions of years in the future when the Universe will be a dilute soup of dim galaxies populated mostly by red dwarf stars. Throughout, Raymond T. Pierrehumbert introduces the latest insights gained from a new generation of telescopes that catch planetary systems at the moment of formation, and to the theoretical advances that attempt to make sense of these observations. He explains how the elements that make up life and the planets on which life can live are forged in the interiors of dying stars, and make their way into rocky planets. He also explores the vast array of newly discovered planets orbiting stars other than our own, and explains the factors that determine their climates. Finally, he reveals what determines how long planetary systems can live, and what happens in their end-times. Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
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Author: Nick Jenkins
Author: Nick Jenkins
Author: John Maxwell Irvine
Author: Nick Jelley
Author: Mark Maslin
Author: Kornelis Blok
Author: Tim Lenton
Author: Hermann-Josef Wagner
Author: Eberhard O. Voit
Author: Raymond T. Pierrehumbert