ABSTRACT
We will now turn from looking at ancient societies, and how they failed to adapt to the changing world, to focus on the modern world and the global system we have created. After reading this chapter, you may think that I am naïve and an advocate of living like hobbits or ewoks in some misguided romantic vision of a science fiction idyll. I would counter this by saying that continuing to rely on fossil fuels for every aspect of our lives is more naïve (and not at all romantic). Take one minute to look around you and try to find a single thing that is not made of, transported by, or manufactured using fossil fuels in some way. I often ask my students how their lives would change if fossil fuels disappeared overnight. Most say something related to transportation and a few mention electricity, but nobody mentions the food system. The majority of our food is fertilized by nitrogen that is synthesized in factories using coaland natural-gas-fueled chemical reactions. Those fertilizers are shipped and dispersed by fossil-fuel-powered equipment and used to grow food that is transported using diesel and jet fuels. Without the production of food, everything else quickly becomes pointless.
