17
Our deep dependency on fossil fuels, and the inherent qualities that make them
easy to use and hard to replace, compounds the numerous practical challenges to
develop clean, high-density, forms of energy. Coal, oil, and natural gas have unique
combinations of portability, compactness, high-energy concentration, and relative
stability that are well matched with human needs and habits. The easiest to reach
fossil fuel stores are already depleted. Challenges in extraction continue to grow, but
new technical means and methods have kept pace to increase output of these finite
resources.
Without abundant and cheap energy, the supply of ever-new products and services slows or stops. Without this steady supply of goods and services, living standards for the world’s top quintile would immediately start to erode. The lower
socioeconomic four-fifth would find it impossible to secure the same high standards
for themselves without the same energy advantage that the top one-fifth has taken as
a matter of course.
Current industrial production and distribution methods, and the consumption
behaviors of billions that drive them, cannot continue without carbon-based fuels.
The only energy resources left to fuel human activity and satisfy essential and nonessential needs will be those left after we have literally burned through everything
else. Setting aside the negative environmental consequences from extracting, processing, and burning them, fossil fuels are finite, and we will eventually run out
of them.
So what are our energy options? Any realistic answer to this question from a
designer’s perspective requires first thinking about what drives our energy systems
and the basic forces at play at multiple scales. Science has developed concise language best suited to describe what is going on at all scales of energy conversion.
Science is, in fact, primarily concerned with these phenomena. The specialized
domains of physics, chemistry, biology, and other scientific fields describe, in minute detail, the interplay between energy and matter and the consequences for human
beings. Many who gravitate toward the “creative” design disciplines, however, do
so with expectations that they will be engaged solely in nontechnical pursuits. Some
suffer through high school and college science and math classes just to complete
degree requirements. Motivated by a desire to effect a positive change through sustainable design, they may not yet fully recognize the benefits that even a cursory
understanding of basic principles can produce. Our unexamined relationship to
energy production, distribution, and consumption continues to cause damage to
humans and the environment. Familiarity with some basic terms and concepts from
elementary biology, chemistry, and physics covered in this chapter helps designers
consider fundamental drivers and limitations. The hope is to expand and improve
the range of design responses to reduce future damage and repair damage
already done.
2.1 Design Shapes the Natural World
Our deep dependency on fossil fuels, and the inherent qualities that make them
easy to use and hard to replace, compounds the numerous practical challenges to
develop clean, high-density, forms of energy. Coal, oil, and natural gas have unique
combinations of portability, compactness, high-energy concentration, and relative
stability that are well matched with human needs and habits. The easiest to reach
fossil fuel stores are already depleted. Challenges in extraction continue to grow, but
new technical means and methods have kept pace to increase output of these finite
resources.
Without abundant and cheap energy, the supply of ever-new products and services slows or stops. Without this steady supply of goods and services, living standards for the world’s top quintile would immediately start to erode. The lower
socioeconomic four-fifth would find it impossible to secure the same high standards
for themselves without the same energy advantage that the top one-fifth has taken as
a matter of course.
Current industrial production and distribution methods, and the consumption
behaviors of billions that drive them, cannot continue without carbon-based fuels.
The only energy resources left to fuel human activity and satisfy essential and nonessential needs will be those left after we have literally burned through everything
else. Setting aside the negative environmental consequences from extracting, processing, and burning them, fossil fuels are finite, and we will eventually run out
of them.
So what are our energy options? Any realistic answer to this question from a
designer’s perspective requires first thinking about what drives our energy systems
and the basic forces at play at multiple scales. Science has developed concise language best suited to describe what is going on at all scales of energy conversion.
Science is, in fact, primarily concerned with these phenomena. The specialized
domains of physics, chemistry, biology, and other scientific fields describe, in minute detail, the interplay between energy and matter and the consequences for human
beings. Many who gravitate toward the “creative” design disciplines, however, do
so with expectations that they will be engaged solely in nontechnical pursuits. Some
suffer through high school and college science and math classes just to complete
degree requirements. Motivated by a desire to effect a positive change through sustainable design, they may not yet fully recognize the benefits that even a cursory
understanding of basic principles can produce. Our unexamined relationship to
energy production, distribution, and consumption continues to cause damage to
humans and the environment. Familiarity with some basic terms and concepts from
elementary biology, chemistry, and physics covered in this chapter helps designers
consider fundamental drivers and limitations. The hope is to expand and improve
the range of design responses to reduce future damage and repair damage
already done.
2.1 Design Shapes the Natural World