Energy History

Through an unforgettable cast of characters, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy. Rhodes looks back on five centuries of progress, through such influential figures as Queen Elizabeth I, King James I, Benjamin Franklin, Herman Melville, John D. Rockefeller, and Henry Ford.

In this monumental history, Vaclav Smil provides a comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel-driven civilization and offers listeners a magisterial overview of humanity's energy eras.

In this updated and expanded edition of her alternative-health classic, Donna Eden shows listeners how to work with the body's energy systems to boost vitality and stamina, strengthen the immune system, relieve pain and common complaints such as colds and tension headaches, sharpen mind and memory, and enhance overall health with an invigorating five-minute daily routine.

The Energy Teachings of The Three was dictated to the author in Peru in 2012 where he had been in training in the Andean shamanic healing traditions. The teachings are based on the principles and practices of energy healing combining different chakra patterns so you can live in the world with the energy of love and presence as the focus of your life.

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.

In Charged, James Morton Turner unpacks the history of batteries to explore why solving "the battery problem" is critical to a clean energy transition. As climate activists focus on what a clean energy future will create the history of batteries offers a sharp reminder of what building that future will consume. With new insight on the consequences for people and communities on the front lines, Turner draws on the past for crucial lessons that will help us build a just and clean energy future, from the ground up.

Nuclear power once promised to be the solution to the world's energy crisis, but that all changed in the late twentieth century after multiple high-profile accidents and meltdowns. Power plant workers, finding themselves the subject of public opposition, became leery of reporters. But one plant in Zion, Illinois, allowed unrestricted access to one journalist: the Chicago Tribune's Casey Bukro. Bukro spent two years inside the Zion nuclear plant, interviewing employees, witnessing high-risk maintenance procedures, and watching the radiation exposure counter on his own dosimeter tick up and up.

Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) was a Serbian electrical and mechanical engineer who was born and raised in the Austrian Empire and later became an American citizen. His article "The Problem of Increasing Human Energy" (June 1900) is a philosophical study of the nature of mankind's relationship to the universe, with scientific extrapolations on how technological advancement might contribute to that understanding.

The first comprehensive look at the groundbreaking field of energy medicine and how it can be used to diagnose and treat illness, from one of the world’s foremost practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine.

Brings the history of these gods and goddesses to life, along with rituals and exercises to help make them part of the listener's spiritual practice. Figures like Brigid, Cernunnos, Rhiannon, and the Morrigan are honored for their magic, their bravery, and their mythical deeds. Among pagans, the gods and goddesses of Gaul, Ireland, Wales, and the other Celtic lands rank with the most popular and influential of the Greek, Roman, Norse, and Egyptian pantheons.

You may feel as if you don't control your emotional energy, that it's an inevitable consequence of the world around you and the forces bearing down on you. But that's not the case. To reach your full potential, you can learn to recognize and harness the energy in your brain. Leading neuropsychologist Julia DiGangi will teach you how through eight "codes." Some of the codes will surprise you. All will fortify you. You will learn why these codes work and how to apply them to your own challenges through exercises and reflections.

Written in 1900 by Nikola Tesla, this book gives great ideas on automation, agriculture, energy, and increasing human output to improve the human condition.

En esta monumental historia, Vaclav Smil ofrece una impresionante panorámica de cómo la energía ha impulsado el progreso cultural y económico de las sociedades humanas durante los últimos diez mil años, desde los primeros grupos de cazadores-recolectores hasta la civilización fósil, pasando por las sociedades agrícolas tradicionales y la "gran transición" que lo cambió todo.

We have long been taught that humanity’s relationship with energy is one of progress, with wood superseded by coal, coal by oil, oil by nuclear—until at some future point everything will be replaced by “green” energy. But the long-held belief in transition and sustainability is completely untrue, Jean-Baptiste Fressoz argues. More and More and More demolishes this disastrous fallacy, showing how our industrial age and beyond has in fact been powered by an ever-greater accumulation of each major energy source feeding off the others.

“This author certainly did not disappoint while delivering another masterpiece! This time she brings us on a vivid and historical journey of the first female band of Dominica, allowing the reader to soak up the sweet music while sharing the daunting trials and tribulations as well as the glorious victories and triumphs. Her lyrical poetry continues to awaken the reader’s every sense with her glowing colors and rich tastes. Truly brilliant Dominican author who continues to authentically encompass the culture of the Nature aisle.”

The transition to clean energy is moving far too slowly. Trapped by a century of fossil fuel investments and politicians that struggle to plan beyond the next election, the “Big Grid” that powers our modern world is outdated and in dire need of an upgrade. Freeing Energy offers a new and faster path towards a clean energy future — one that is more reliable, more equitable, and cheaper.

This is a very timely study of Russia's development into a global energy power from the Russian Revolution to the present day. Beginning in the late nineteenth century, Russia emerged not only as a key producer but also as one of the world's leading exporters of oil. Russia's transformation into a modern global power was connected to its ability to make use of its vast natural resources and produce energy in increasing quantities.

Instruments of modern physics can measure the energies of the electromagnetic spectrum, but these energies only account for roughly 4 percent of the total identifiable mass-energy of the universe. What makes up the remaining 96%? In this scientifically based yet accessible analysis, Yury Kronn, Ph.D., explores the nature of the remaining 96% of the universe’s mass-energies. Contemporary science calls this mass energy “dark matter,” and the ancients called it life force, prana, or chi.

Mind-body expert Shelley A. Kaehr, PhD brings you The Eight of Hermopolis, part of a new series on Egyptian Energy Healing. In the ancient Egyptian nome of Hermopolis, eight deities formed the Ogdoad, a sacred grouping, who embodied all of creation.

In this user-friendly and informative audiobook, prolific author and academic Vaclav Smil provides an introduction to this far-reaching term and gives the reader a greater understanding of energy's place in both past and present society. Starting with an explanation of the concept, he goes on to cover such exciting topics as the inner workings of the human body, and the race for more efficient and environmentally friendly fuels.