He is, quite simply, one of the most provocative American thinkers and writers alive today. He is James Howard Kunstler, author most recently of the novel, World Made by Hand.
In recent years, Mr. Kunstler has become best known for making the case that “peak oil” is here, now, the moment when we begin the […]

There are three convergent items that all raise the question of the link between global warming and future fossil fuel use. Recent testimony to Congress from oil executives once again included assurances that there is sufficient oil to last for decades, and that no matter what, oil, coal and gas will still comprise the […]

I am always interested when Matt Simmons, author of Twilight in the Desert, appears on the TV and comments on future oil prices. He is an oil analyst with a penchant for telling the truth rather than spinning either overly optimistic or pessimistic stories about peak oil (the day we will have used half […]

I’ve read a lot of books about climate change in the past few years. Two of the most stunning are essentially picture books. I think I know why they had a bigger impact on me than traditional books. When I talk with people about climate change, the ones who live close to the […]

This just hit the web at OilDrum, news of new future scenarios from Shell. Known for their scenario work in the past, the CEO of Shell, Jeroen van der Veer, sent this memo to Shell employees, and released it on the Shell website.
What does it say? That the energy picture is changing rapidly. […]

In case you missed the news, Nanosolar shipped its first commercial thin-film, printed solar cells in December 2007, to a purchaser in Germany. This is a milestone in the production of solar, in which solar power becomes cheaper than coal. Not only that, but the Nanosolar production plant nearing completion will produce 430 […]

Here is my outlook for 2008, recorded December 21, 2007.

Overview – 2008 will be a year that feels like a whip-saw. Promising innovations. Economic turmoil. Large events
The Economy 2008 - Paradoxes
2008 will be one of paradox, innovation balanced by turmoil. Because of the tremendous interconnectivity of researchers, the availability […]

In case you missed the news today, oil hit $100 a barrel on the NYMEX oil futures market today, for the first time. This was the price, briefly, for oil to be delivered in January 2008. Before the day ended the price dropped back to $99.62.
As I note in my Outlook […]

In the November 15, 2007 edition of Rolling Stone, Al Gore in an interview suggests that large, not small, ideas are needed to deal with the climate crisis.
“”The current Presidential candidates call me from time to time. ‘Al, do you have any advice on how I could tweak my position on the climate crisis?’ I […]

If you are in Washington DC this weekend, and the coming week, it looks like it would be interesting to visit the “Solar Decathlon” on the Capital Mall. Sponsored by BP, this is an opportunity to demonstrate and test various designs for solar in the home. Twenty university teams (MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, […]