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082			_a303.48 _bSMI-H
100			_aSmil, Vaclav
245			_aHow the world really works : _bthe science behind how we got here and where we're going _cby Vaclav Smil
260			_aNew York : _bViking, _c©2022
300			_a326 p. ; _c24 cm.
504			_aIncludes bibliographical references and index.
505			_tIntroduction: Why do we need this book? _t1. Understanding energy : fuels and electricity _t2. Understanding food production : eating fossil fuels _t3. Understanding our material world : the four pillars of modern civilization _t4. Understanding globalization : engines, microchips, and beyond _t5. Understanding risks : from viruses to diets to solar flares _t6. Understanding the environment : the only biosphere we have _t7. Understanding the future : between apocalypse and singularity.
520			_a"An essential analysis of the modern science and technology that makes our twenty-first century lives possible--a scientist's investigation into what science really does, and does not, accomplish. We have never had so much information at our fingertips and yet most of us don't know how the world really works. This book explains seven of the most fundamental realities governing our survival and prosperity. From energy and food production, through our material world and its globalization, to risks, our environment and its future, How the World Really Works offers a much-needed reality check--because before we can tackle problems effectively, we must understand the facts. In this ambitious and thought-provoking book we see, for example, that globalization isn't inevitable--the foolishness of allowing 70 per cent of the world's rubber gloves to be made in just one factory became glaringly obvious in 2020--and that our societies have been steadily increasing their dependence on fossil fuels, such that any promises of decarbonization by 2050 are a fairy tale. For example, each greenhouse-grown supermarket-bought tomato has the equivalent of five tablespoons of diesel embedded in its production, and we have no way of producing steel, cement or plastics at required scales without huge carbon emissions. Ultimately, Smil answers the most profound question of our age: are we irrevocably doomed or is a brighter utopia ahead? Compelling, data-rich and revisionist, this wonderfully broad, interdisciplinary guide finds faults with both extremes. Looking at the world through this quantitative lens reveals hidden truths that change the way we see our past, present and uncertain future"--
650			_aInnovations -- Aspect social.
650			_aInventions.
650			_aMATHEMATICS / Probability & Statistics / General.
650			_a Science -- Social aspects.
650			_a Technological innovations -- Social aspects.
942			_2ddc _cBK
999			_c172431 _d172431