- ISBN13: 9780199737239
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
Today there are over a billion vehicles in the world, and within twenty years, the number will double, largely a consequence of China’s and India’s explosive growth. Given that greenhouse gases are already creating havoc with our climate and that violent conflict in unstable oil-rich nations is on the rise, will matters only get worse? Or are there hopeful signs that effective, realistic solutions can be found?
Blending a concise history of cars and their impact on the world, leading transportation experts Daniel Sperling and Deborah Gordon explain how we arrived at this state, and what we can do about it. Sperling and Gordon assign blame squarely where it belongs-on the auto-industry, short-sighted government policies, and consumers. They explore such solutions as getting beyond the gas-guzzler monoculture, re-inventing cars, searching for low-carbon fuels, and more. Promising advances in both transportation technology and fuel efficiency togeth… More >>
Two Billion Cars: Driving Toward Sustainability
May 14th, 2010 at 8:16 am
Within 20 years, the number of cars on this planet will double to 2 billion, largely as a consequence of China’s and India’s growth. Two billion cars cannot be sustained on this planet - neither fuel nor emissions, to say nothing of crowding will allow it. Yet, little change is happening.
The problem - readers already know that.
Rating: 2 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 10:47 am
DECLAIMER: I have not read the book, I have only take his classes.
I had him for a Professor for two classes, once for Environmental and Energy Aspects of Transportation and for Transportation Policy. The former was the first class I had at UC Davis and blew me away. In one quarter every myth stating that we needed oil for our way of life was blown away. Proff Sperling did an amazing job informing us on how energy is used, or rather, how poorly it is used. When he stated that only 3% of the energy put out by a car is used to transport the occupant I had an realization that the internal combustion engine is fundamentally flawed. Great class, great teacher, and he as done great things for CA.
That being said, to all you out there who has seen “Who killed the electric car”, Sperling holds some of the blame. In the early 2000s he jumped on the hydrogen bandwagon, a ride that has gone no were, and to do so he took the axles off the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate, which stated by 2003 10%!!!! of all new cars needed to be battery powered. TEN PERCENT! He recommenced that instead of 10% of cars to be electric, 80% of cars should be cleaner, but still internal combustion engines. He did this because the Auto manufactures were screaming and crying about how it would kill their sales… and look at them, and us now.
Long story short Sperling rocks.
Rating: 5 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 11:08 am
I didn’t read the whole book, I kind of skimmed until I got to chapter five, which looked more interesting, a history of the oil age. But the inconsistencies and glaring omissions started to add up. The Iraq War was omitted, the praise of the energy companies alternative energy research just didn’t jibe with my long term memory. Omitted Congress closing the Enron loophole (very odd, since one of their theses is that the oil market is broke). The decades long (and intentional) closing of refineries. Then I noticed that a lot of events were scrubbed of their political context, American politics seems devoid of Republicans or Democrats.
I still wasn’t getting it at this point, so I flipped to the recommendations chapter..pretty bland stuff. Then my eyes lit on “Restructure Taxes, Fees…” which is good, I consider that important…but it was all tax changes for the little people.
I skim the table of contents, and what do I see in a new light? The title of chapter 3 “Breaking Detroit’s Stranglehold on Energy and Climate Policy”, Jiminy Christmas, now the title of the book makes sense too, “Two Billion Cars.”
This book is a propaganda piece commissioned by the oil companies to shift the blame for, everything basically, onto the auto industry. Probably part of a continuing PR campaign, now that they have climbed down from denying climate change isn’t happening. Of course they
don’t blame the politicians of either party, they will have to bribe, er, co-operate with whoever is in office.
I would read this book with a skeptical eye. If you want a good book about the history of oil, try “The Prize”. If you want a good book about alcohol fuel, try “Alcohol can be a Gas”. If you want to pay out of your own pocket to read advertising, this is the book for you. Maybe the rest of the book is outstanding, but I’ll never know.
Rating: 1 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 11:51 am
This book contains everything you need to know about the automotive industry, its current state, its myriad of future directions, its successes, and its failures. The book’s focus is on energy — how will the world continue to maintain the future growth of automobiles and transportation while conventional forms of energy become scarce and more valuable. This book will point out a lot of things you didn’t know, and will make you a more-informed individual when making decisions regarding transportation.
The book analyzes the technological, political, economic, and psychological challenges associated with automobiles. As you read the book, you’ll realize that the technological challenges are actually the easiest to overcome, while the psychological challenges are the hardest to overcome. You will probably reflect on your own past decisions as you read each chapter. The book focuses heavily on the automotive industry, its hold on energy policies, and how their technological decisions are driven nearly entirely by potential economic outcome. There is a good comparison of American auto manufacturers with foreign auto manufacturers, highlighting that American companies take fewer risks when it can potentially affect profit.
The book comes at an interesting time, considering the recent record high-cost of petroleum. As the price of gasoline continues to fluctuate, public and government sentiment continues to change, almost daily. The book provides a good foundation, however, that people should not lose sight of what should be done, not only for the improvement of the environment, but also for the improvement of society and the automotive industry.
At first glance, you may think this book will only appeal to environmentalists or liberals, but it actually should be an interesting read for anybody. The book uses history to show why we are in our current position and where we can go. It is an easy read — if you have ever read articles about the energy crisis in news magazines, this book is written as an extended magazine article. It is casual and informative, and never gets too technical.
If you have even the slightest interest in the automotive energy crisis, pick this up.
Rating: 4 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 12:01 pm
This book has really good organization of a wealth of data. I think this book would be really good as a resource if you are researching sustainability or the oil problem, but it’s not really something you’d want to sit down and read. Two Billion Cars is very informative, but sometimes the data is hard to understand, and it reads to people ONLY who are very interested in this subject, rather than a more general audience.
Rating: 4 / 5