PrintNumber ErrorLocation Error Correction DateAdded
1 piv First Printing March 2010 TBD 5/13/2010
1 pxxi Add paragraph before last one on page. Many people have come to think of energy independence as a good for a number of obvious reasons. Politicians know this sounds good and promote it. But no matter what your reasons for seeking independence, it's almost certainly not practical or necessary to become 100% independent, because importing significantly less oil and from a broad range of countries would answer the strategic and reliability and other problems. But what percentage is to be the goal? And what is the maximum per cent we should import from one nation that we may not be on good terms with, versus what percentage from nations that we are? You the reader can fill in these blanks as you see fit, but for the sake of clarity in my thinking, and simplicity in my calculations, I have used the concept of 100%. And this is not because I am promoting the idea that this is absolutely necessary, only that it makes a very clear context for thinking and calculating our own domestic use of all the various current and possible energy sources. 5/2/2011
1 pxxi-xxii With so many people talking and writing about the energy issue, why should you pay attention to this book? Because to the best of my ability I have hunted down the most solid facts and information and analyzed them as carefully and as free of my personal biases as possible, searching out the facts, doing the calculations, and checking those measurements and calculations with experts in their fields. You will surely find some of the results surprising, and I hope you will also find them helpful. With so many people talking and writing about the energy issue, why should you pay attention to this book? Because to the best of my ability I have hunted down the most solid facts and information and analyzed them as carefully and as free of my personal biases as possible, searching out the facts, doing the calculations, and checking those measurements and calculations with experts in their fields. Some colleagues have suggested to me that the mineral and fossil fuel data are crude and unreliable. But these are our only starting point for any analysis at this time; we’re stuck with them unless major new data collection programs begin. You will surely find some of the results surprising, and I hope you will also find them helpful. 5/2/2011
1 p25 A petroleum resource is the oil that can be extracted economically. A petroleum resource is the total amount of oil that is estimated to exist. 5/2/2011
1 p37 Figure 2.1  A large tank, center, falls into a sinkhole near Daisetta, Texas. The sinkhole was caused by mining beneath the surface for natural gas. (Source: © AP Photo/KHOU-TV, Bobby Bracken)1 Figure 2.1  A large tank, center, falls into a sinkhole near Daisetta, Texas. The sinkhole was believed to be caused by mining beneath the surface for natural gas. (Source: © AP Photo/KHOU-TV, Bobby Bracken)1 5/2/2011
1 p43 Figure 2.6: Error. Say 10.0 and should be 1.0 fixed 5/2/2011
1 p43 I am not a petroleum geologist, or a geologist of any kind, so I cannot tell you how good the chances are that the “unknown but probable” is actually out there. My correspondence with Ray Boswell and others suggests, however, that the chances are good, and that if we are willing to take a risk, we might enjoy natural-gas energy independence for as long as a century. I am not a petroleum geologist, or a geologist of any kind, so I cannot tell you how good the chances are that the “unknown but probable” is actually out there. Admittedly, this data is crude, but they provide our best starting point for any anaylysis. My correspondence with Ray Boswell and others suggests, however, that the chances are good, and that if we are willing to take a risk, we might enjoy natural-gas energy independence for as long as a century. 5/2/2011
1 p66 At present, wind energy costs between $1 and $3 per installed watt. At present, wind energy costs are very similar, between $1 and $3 per installed watt. 5/2/2011
1 p92 Thus, if the goal is to counter global warming by replacing all fossil fuels with nuclear power, this goal cannot be met. Thus, if the goal is to counter global warming by replacing all fossil fuels with nuclear power, this goal cannot be met. Some people, who don’t like these findings, tell me that the data is inaccurate. In that case, they have two choices: get better data or trust to luck. 5/2/2011
1 p289 6 Estimates of the Years That Nuclear Power Plant Fuel Will Last are based on the IAEA estimates of Uranium Ore Reserves.
6 Estimates of the Years That Nuclear Power Plant Fuel Will Last are based on the IAEA estimates of Uranium Ore Reserves. The famous Physicist, Hans Bethe, pointed this problem out in 1979, but his point was ignored. (Bethe, H. 1979, “The Fusion Hybrid,” Physics Today. May 1979, pp44-57.)
5/2/2011
1 p313-330 Author requested additional indexing. fixed 5/2/2011