INTS100 Lecture 10: Energy, humanity and the future - wk 10
Document Summary
Energy, humanity and the future: sernau, technology and energy: prometheus"s fire or pandora"s box? , in introduction to. Neolithic times relied on manual labor for energy. The more energy we have access to the more productive and complex the society. The complexity of our human communities and of ecosystems is governed by the maximum energy available to us. Our problem is twofold: the majority of our energy stems from non-renewable fossil fuels, combusting them all threatens the biosphere with destruction. We live in a transitory petro-market civilization: a civilizational order and pattern of social reproduction where goods, services and life chances are ultimately mediated and arbitrated by the supply of fossil fuels etc Current consumption levels are unsustainable, yet policy makers are fixated on continued economic growth. Responsive to their citizens: sustainable, cheap and accessible energy. Depending on the government: greens v libs. Some methodological precautions: the dominant global metabolism: Money, growth, capitalism and the environment: energy and australia.
