Energy and Human Ambitions on a Finite Planet

A free online textbook in Earth Sciences: Energy and Human Ambitions on a Finite Planet.

WHY IT’S INTERESTING

Where is humanity going? How realistic is a future of fusion and space colonies? What constraints are imposed by physics, by resource availability, and by human psychology? Are default expectations grounded in reality? This textbook, written for a general-education audience, aims to address these questions without either the hype or the indifference typical of many books.

SERENDIPITYA little unexpected

FamiliarWeird

A CLOSER LOOK

The message throughout is that humanity faces a broad sweep of foundational problems as we inevitably transition away from fossil fuels and confront planetary limits in a host of unprecedented ways—a shift whose scale and probable rapidity offers little historical guidance.

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FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE

Open Textbook Library · University of MinnesotaEnergy and Human Ambitions on a Finite Planet

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