Dark Ages

[lotrfan55345]

http://www.darkage.fsnet.co.uk/index.htm

Pretty interesting theories... Does this sound pausible to you at all? He predicts and upcoming "dark age" ... I know there may very well be one since of peak oil...

[zed]

Some of the stuff there is interesting but there is alot of sociological BS wrapped around it. There is an elaborate framework constructed for the evolution of civilization with little evidence to establish that declining civilizations necessarily follow those patterns. When the author says things like "The supposed problem of running out of resources is a pure myth and fantasy" and "The current environmentalist perception of warming as a problem is simply perverse", it tells me he doesn't understand the consequences of those things. He even implies that healthy civilizations take meteor impacts in stride!

I too believe a dark age may be in our future, but if that happens we may never return to the type of civilization we currently have. Peak Oil scenarios are quite nightmarish because civilization from the mid-1800s forward has been predicated on cheap fossil fuel energy. Without that resource it will be tough for society to recreate the wealth we have today.

Resource depletion and massive environmental change can doom human society forever. Technology and human ingenuity can't solve everything, especially when climate change has made it difficult to grow any significant quantities of food.

[Hellwillmeet]

It will lead to WW3.One way or another.

[zed]

Some theorize we are seeing the opening rounds of WW3 in Iraq right now. Akin to Europe in the mid 1930s..

[lazserus]

This whole article sounds pretty silly. One sociological aspect the author left out is that previous civilizations didn't die off in a single stroke, their decents were individual and unique compared to others.

Peak Oil scenarios are quite nightmarish because civilization from the mid-1800s forward has been predicated on cheap fossil fuel energy. Without that resource it will be tough for society to recreate the wealth we have today.
I have to disagree. I don't think new energy plans will boom as fast as the oil industry did, but that all depends on our supply of fossil fuels at the time. When the oil industry blew up in the 19th century it opened doors we never imagined existed, hence the explosive market. But seriously, do you think people will no longer purchase energy/fuel if it's not oil?

Some theorize we are seeing the opening rounds of WW3 in Iraq right now.
If any who conjecture that have doctorates, then you have to wonder which cereal box they got it out of. Europe headed towards World War because of Nazi Germany. Remember, it was primarily German resistance. Italy was more of a pest than an actual threat and Japan didn't start causing significant problems until after the Allies crushed Nazi resistance. It's had to cause a World War when majority of the world is all attacking the same place.

[lotrfan55345]

But seriously, do you think people will no longer purchase energy/fuel if it's not oil?

What kinds?

I think it all boils down to transportation. We need to transport fuels or whatnot to the coal/nuclear power stations. That transportation will probably be in some sort of diesel/gasoline powered automobile. Oil is so integrated into the American industry and economy, it will take a very long time to get the infastructure for another form of energy.

Oil for food production:

"In the US, approximately 10 calories of fossil fuels are required to produce 1 calorie of food. If packaging and shipping are factored into the equation, that ratio is raised considerably. This disparity is made possible by an abundance of cheap oil. Most pesticides are petroleum- (oil) based, and all commercial fertilizers are ammonia- based. Ammonia is produced from natural gas, a fossil fuel subject to a depletion profile similar to that of oil. Oil has allowed for farming implements such as tractors, food storage systems such as refrigerators, and food transport systems such as trucks. Oil-based agriculture is primarily responsible for the world's population exploding from 1 billion at the middle of the 19th century to 6.3 billion at the turn of the 21st. As oil production went up, so did food production. As food production went up, so did the population. As the population went up, the demand for food went up, which increased the demand for oil.


Within a few years of Peak Oil occurring, the price of food will skyrocket as the cost of producing, storing, transporting, and packaging it will soar.


www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net

[lazserus]

There ARE other alternatives to power automobiles. Most of which are already designed, just not utilized.

[zed]

There ARE other alternatives to power automobiles. Most of which are already designed, just not utilized.

That's not the issue, the issue is what do you fuel them with and where does the fuel come from? The beauty of oil is that it is energy dense and can be easily extracted from the ground with wells. In the early days (like the Texas oil boom) there was so much around it was practically free. Alternative schemes (like biodiesel, hydrogen, etc) require much more input energy to create fuel, thus limiting the efficiency of these alternatives.

Currently, there is no alternative to oil that is anywhere near as cheap and powerful to use. Civilization may be able to exist with something else in lieu of oil, but it likely means that fuel will not be as cheap and possibly less available as well.

Some believe the situation with the world's oil supply is getting critical, with production of oil peaking. Regardless of when the peak happens, it will be imperative that the world economy begins to transition to alternative fuels around this point, otherwise we really are in for a dark age.

The situation with oil (and the first world's dependence on it) is why some think there is a whole lot more war in front of us. Of course, only time will tell on that.

[MacRasta]

I advize solar and wind power, and every man for himself!

[lazserus]

Zed, we've developed hydrogen powered vehicles. When using such an energy source like hydrogen, there will never be a shortage. There are no wells, there are no shortages, and there are no wars to be fought over hydrogen fields.

Hydrogen is just one of hundreds of possible solutions. Energy is greated everywhere all the time, it's just a matter of harnessing it.

[lotrfan55345]

But... the electricity/fossil fuel to get the hydrogen...

It is said that we will need 200% the energy capacity for hydrogen, and 46% of the electricity in the US is from fossil fuels... Where will we get that 246%? Renewables only power 15% of the electricity at the moment...

Tesla Technology?