Hubbert's Peak: The Impending World Oil Shortage - Softcover

Deffeyes, Kenneth S.

9788122417081: Hubbert's Peak: The Impending World Oil Shortage

Softcover

ISBN 10: 8122417086 ISBN 13: 9788122417081

Publisher: New Age International Pvt Ltd Publishers, 2006

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Geophysicist M. King Hubbert predicted in 1956 that U.S. oil production would reach its highest level in the early 1970s. Though roundly criticized by oil experts and economists, Hubbert's prediction came true in 1970.

In this revised and updated edition reflecting the latest information on the world supply of oil, Kenneth Deffeyes uses Hubbert's methods to find that world oil production will peak in this decade--and there isn't anything we can do to stop it. While long-term solutions exist in the form of conservation and alternative energy sources, they probably cannot--and almost certainly will not--be enacted in time to evade a short-term catastrophe.

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Review

One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2002
Honorable Mention for the 2001 Award for Best Professional/Scholarly Book in Geography and Earth Science, Association of American Publishers
"Deffeyes has reached a conclusion with far-reaching consequences for the entire industrialized world. . . . The conclusion is this: in somewhere between two and six years from now, worldwide oil production will peak. After that, chronic shortages will become a way of life. The 100-year reign of King Oil will be over."--Fred Guterl, Newsweek

"A most readable handbook. . . . If [Deffeyes] is right we have, at most, two or three years in which to prepare for yet another price shock, and to accelerate our move away from oil as fuel. The strength of the book lies in its solid background and well-explained basis for that single prediction."--Stuart Young, Nature

"Deffeyes makes a persuasive case. . . . This is an oilman and geologist's assessment of the future, grounded in cold mathematics. And it's frightening."--Paul Raeburn, Scientific American

"An important new book."--Robert Kuttner, Boston Globe

"The story behind Hubbert's analysis--is told with engaging wit, humor, and great insight. . . . Deffeyes writes with the taut reasoning of a scientist and the passion of someone raised in the industry. . . . His background is ideal for the subject, and the book is a gem. . . . Read Hubbert's Peak."--Brian J. Skinner, American Scientist

"[Some] experts . . . worry that the global peak in production will come in the next decade. . . . A heavyweight has now joined this gloomy chorus. Kenneth Deffeyes argues in a lively new book that global oil production could peak as soon as 2004."--The Economist

"A persuasive prophecy. Hubbert's story is important and needs to be told. I suspect that historians in years to come will recognise Hubbert's Peak as a historical turning point."--Tim Burnhill, New Scientist

"Deffeyes, using Hubbert's methodology, shows that the trajectory of world reserves is closely following the pattern of U.S. discovery and depletion, with just a few decades' lag. Drilling deeper, in more remote locations, and with more elaborate technologies won't tap reserves that don't exist. . . . America's energy policy needs to tilt away from oil and in favor of conservation, new technology, and domestic renewables. The time to act is now, before the next wave of gas lines and rationing is upon us."--Robert Kuttner, Business Week

"In the politics of oil, the left is passionately, sentimentally, tree-huggingly pro-environment, while the right shrugs as it climbs into its official mascot, the biggest sport utility vehicle available. . . . In the slide down Hubbert's Peak, political differences will matter less. If those who planned the Sept. 11 attacks know as much about economics as they do about aeronautics, their next target may be the Saudi Arabian oil fields, on which America, Asia, and Europe are overly dependent."--Martin Nolan, The Boston Globe

"Kenneth Deffeyes has written a most readable handbook which is well illustrated and has copious notes. But his book is more than that. . . . The strength of this book lies in its solid background."--Stuart Young, Nature

"There are few things as important nowadays as the energy system, and few books on the subject as thought provoking as this one."--J.R. McNeill, Wilson Quarterly

"We have long been told that fossil fuels wouldn't last forever, but Deffeyes hypothesis is still startling: Sometime during the next decade, the supply of oil won't keep up with the demand. Because of its broad impact Hubbert's Peak is a must-read for almost everyone--scientists, policy-makers, environmentalists, people who buy cars."--Ann Wagner, NationalJournal.com

"An ideal freshman reading assignment in any geology course concerned with energy, geological resources, public policy, general science applications in our modern world, or similar topics. All teachers, from high school through graduate level, in all natural sciences, political science, government, business, and engineering courses should read this book and encourage their students to consider its ramifications in their fields."--C. John Mann, Journal of Geoscience

"[A] small and delightfully readable book."--Choice

"Deffeyes's unsettling message is that, although society has been slow to respond to the Hubbert's Peak forecast of world oil decline, a permanent drop in oil production will nevertheless begin within the next decade. Humanity has a brief period in which to wean itself from crude oil, increase energy conservation, and design alternative energy sources."--Dan Johnson, The Futurist

"I commend this book . . . to anyone concerned about the future development of planet Earth."--John Parker, Geoscientist

"This book sends a message loud and clear: World petroleum production is going to peak within this decade, maybe as early as 2005, but no later than 2009 and there is hardly any way of escaping from this truth. . . . The book is accessible, easy to read and informative."--Subhes C. Bhattacharyya, Natural Resources Forum

"An intelligent, briskly written and refreshingly nontechnical book."--John R. Alden, Baltimore Sun

"This book . . . should be read . . . by all politicians, by all students, no matter what their discipline, and indeed by anyone concerned about their grandchildren's welfare. Reading Hubbert's Peak is the intellectual equivalent of bungee jumping, being simultaneously exhilarating and terrifying."--R. C. Selley, Geological Magazine

From the Back Cover

"This book is important in that it is addressed to the general public, which is overwhelmingly ignorant of the fundamentals of earth's resources and basic economics. It will be very useful to teachers, news media personnel, and public policy makers."--Craig W. Van Kirk, Colorado School of Mines

"The timing of this book is excellent. Energy issues will be heard with increasing frequency during the next five years, and the general public will be looking for information with which they can make sense of changes in energy supply and prices."--Robert K. Kaufmann, Boston University

"I read this book with pleasure and profit, learning a great deal painlessly."--Robert M. Solow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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