Powering the Future

It's a matter of interpretation whether this book is ultimately optimistic, pessimistic, or just honest. In his "armchair journey" into Earth's energy future, physicist and Nobel laureate Laughlin transports readers to a hypothetical age, some 200 years from now, when every last lump of coal and drop of oil has been extracted from the planet. Some may be unwilling to accept this proposed future, especially in light of the inevitable environmental wreckage it would cause. Laughlin, however, assumes that human nature is such that we will demand energy first and seek to manage the consequences second. Even so, he believes that we could continue to power our machines with a combination of natural, synthetic, and alternative energy sources. Many will cheer his endorsement of biofuels; not so many his assertions that nuclear power will be essential. Solar energy, too, would be a necessity, although environmentalists may cringe at the idea of deserts shaded by a canopy of solar collectors. His proposal that colonies of robots will manage energy-transport systems on the ocean floor isn't likely to win anybody's green seal of approval either. Laughlin contends that any technology that can be economically developed will be. The easy flow of the text masks the book's erudition (there are over 450 detailed notes).