Book Corner News & Reviews: Environment

Showing posts with label Environment. Show all posts

Thursday, January 21, 2021

The Future of Buildings, Transportation and Power Book Review & Book Tour Giveaway

As an environmental engineering consultant for many years, I often find myself drawn to books related to energy and technology--both from historical perspectives and futuristic ones. Today, I have a book that takes a look at the future in terms of that seek to explain where we are from an energy stance--while also predicting the future a bit as well. Read my thoughts on The Future of Buildings, Transportation and Power, learn about the authors & enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.

Book Title: The Future of Buildings, Transportation, and Power by Roger Duncan and Michael E. Webber

Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+), 290 pages
Genre: Non-fiction Futurism
Publisher: DW Books
Release date: July 2020
Content Rating: G. No erotic or bad language

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About the Book

The evolution of buildings, transportation and power will determine how our future looks and feels, and in the book Roger Duncan and Michael E. Webber argue the Energy Efficiency Megatrend will shape our future technology. Buildings and vehicles will evolve into sentient-appearing machines such that we will be living, working and moving about inside robots. Buildings may develop personalities and the transportation system will have any manner of vehicle available at a moment's notice. This complex, interconnected system will be powered by the clean and efficient conversion of fuels and energy flows that surround us.

My Review

The Future of Buildings, Transportation and Power is Intelligently Written Yet Easy to Understand. The authors have obviously drawn from experience and put in a great deal of research in creating this book. The book is well organized, flows well from chapter to chapter, and offers massive amounts of facts, figures, and details that they draw from to create their predictions of our energy future. While the book provides a lot of technical information for average readers, it does so in an easy-to-read, easy-to-understand manner that is almost conversational at times.

Reality Meets Science Fiction in this Book. If you enjoy science fiction with an edge of fact--this book should both appeal to your fiction-reading interests--and frighten you as some of the realities of the energy concepts evolve for you. The authors introduce ideas that we have all heard, especially in recent years, and present some thoughts and perspectives that may be new to many readers.

Would I Recommend The Future of Buildings, Transportation and Power? Whether you are simply interested in the many moving parts and the technical aspects and future potentials (and pitfalls) of our structural, energy and transportation worlds--or have a desire to understand and do your part in curbing environmental impacts--this book has something for you as a reader and learner. The authors present a lot of heavy information in an easy to read style--and offer several insights worth considering. It was eye-opening at times without creating a feeling of doom and gloom. I would definitely recommend it to readers interested in energy and climate change.

Buy the Book

Amazon
B&N ~ IndieBound

Meet the Authors

Roger Duncan is a former Austin, Texas City Council member and the former General Manager of Austin Energy, the municipal electric utility. He is also a former Research Fellow at the Energy Institute at the University of Texas.

Michael E. Webber is the Josey Centennial Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas, and Chief Science and Technology Officer at ENGIE, a multi-national energy services and infrastructure company.

connect with the authors: website

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Friday, September 11, 2020

Angela Thompson 10:36 PM 0

The Shale Controversy Book Spotlight & Book Tour Giveaway

Today, I have an environmental nonfiction novel in our book spotlight! Check out The Shale Controversy, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.

The Shale Controversy

by Ian Dexter Palmer

Genre: Environmental Nonfiction

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About the Book

The Shale Controversy assesses the pros and cons of the shale revolution. Written for lay readers as well as experts, the book lists the personal benefits of cheap gas and oil as well as the trade balance achieved for the United States. On a global scale, cheap energy has lifted millions of people into the middle class.

But there are downsides of the revolution. One is the threat, present and future, of earthquakes in connection with drilling of shale wells. The biggest downside may be the threat of global warming –attributed to greenhouse gases from the burning of fossil fuels, including shale-oil and shale-gas.

Australia is a poster-child for global warming and Dr Palmer in 2019 drove past kangaroos killed by a severe drought that turned into the worst wildfires in a century in late 2019. He also visited the corals being bleached by global warming in an otherwise pristine part of the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns.

This leads Dr. Palmer’s thoughts to the immense challenges faced by oil and gas companies. Should they cut back on drilling and fracking, and by how much? Dr. Palmer rounds out the book with solutions to avoid potential disasters that that the experts insist are coming at us fast.

Praise for The Shale Controversy

“Despite having been in oil and gas for over ten years, I’ve always struggled with how to simplify the complexities of the industry. Dr. Palmer has done it in his book. It is thorough, fact rich, fair and easy to follow. If you want to explore the big questions, better understand the issues and decisions associated with powering our world, this book is a must read.”

-- Mark Madison, Managing member, Absolute Oil+Gas.

“Dr. Palmer presents a balanced, informed, and captivating overview of the shale oil and gas revolution in the 21st century. The reader is given a clear understanding of shale fracking and the impact on the environment, earthquakes, and global warming as well as the economic benefits.”

-- John Cameron, Well Completions Consultant.

“The author of this book will take you on a fascinating journey from the risks and benefits of fracking, to an examination of an undeniable threat and dilemma faced by mankind – all a part of the twenty first century shale gas and oil revolution. The book offers valuable ideas for solutions to the problems.”

-- Ion Ispas, Associate Professor, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX.

Goodreads * Amazon

About the Author

Ian Palmer has a Ph.D. in cosmic rays and spent thirty years as a petroleum engineer, consulting around the world. He gives entertaining talks on fracking, shale-gas, earthquakes, and global warming. He now lives and hikes in the Mountains of New Mexico.

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Giveaway

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Monday, March 30, 2020

Angela Thompson 5:45 AM 0

Clean Water for Developing Countries Book Blitz & Giveaway

Today, we are joining the book blitz for a nonfiction, environmental studies novel! Check out Clean Water for Developing Countries, learn about the author & enter the book blitz giveaway at the end of this post!

Environmental Studies

Date Published: January 8, 2020

Publisher: Clean Water Press

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About the Book

The main purpose of this book is to assist the reader in choosing the best method for providing clean and safe water in a developing country. Most of the book’s content comes from the knowledge gained from:

-Fifty-plus years of research and teaching in water resource engineering, hydrology and clean water for developing countries at both the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of California, Berkeley.

-Thirty-five years as an expert witness on numerous hydrologic and water resource engineering legal cases.

-Clean water projects that I was involved within Kenya, Peru, Honduras and Guatemala between 2011 and 2017.

-Attendance at various courses including ones at the Centre for Affordable Water & Sanitation Technologies (CAWST) in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and at “Potters for Peace” in Dodgeville, Wisconsin.

-My many colleagues and students.

The sites needing clean water can be diverse, e.g. an individual household, an entire village, a group of villages, a school, a clinic, an orphanage, etc. The focus of this book is to provide the reader with a basic understanding of how to bring clean water supplies to these entities. The optimal approaches will depend on both the Point of Use (POU), which may be large or small and the state of the water (quantity, turbidity, type and concentration of pathogens/bacteria/viruses present) at the water source. Point of Use (POU) is the location where the water is to be consumed.

The majority of those impacted by unsafe water live in isolated rural areas of the developing world. Cost, sustainability, cultural differences and acceptance by those who will use the water are all important factors in providing clean drinking water to these people.

These factors include:

-Community Involvement. By far, the most successful water enhancements in developing countries are tied to community organizations, particularly among the female population.

-The Source of Water. It could be from groundwater, rainwater harvesting or surface water, such as springs, creeks, rivers, lakes, and reservoirs.

-The Quality of the Source Water. The water may have physical, biological and/or chemical pollution.

The Size of the Demand Population. Is it an individual household, a school, an orphanage, a small or large village, or a group of villages? Obviously, this affects the amount/volume of clean water needed, and this affects the methodology to be used.

-The location of the population to be served. Are they close together or widely dispersed?

Buy the Book

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About the Author

John Dracup was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, where his parents settled because the climate reminded them of their native Glasgow, Scotland. He is a civil engineer and hydrologist. He holds degrees in Civil Engineering from the University of Washington, Seattle, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge and the University of California, Berkeley.

He has taught water resource engineering and hydrology at both the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of California, Berkeley for over 50 years. In his research, he has focused on the optimization of large-scale water resource systems and the impact of climate change on hydrologic variables. He has conducted clean water projects in Africa as well as in Central and South America.

Professor Dracup is a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Geophysical Union among others. In 2001, he was a Fulbright Scholar to Australia. In 2015, the Rotary Foundation cited him for his efforts in supplying clean, safe water in developing countries. He lives in Santa Monica, California with his wife and family.

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