ABSTRACT
The word "energy" has become a synonym for all sources of power in the realm of human activity. With the advent of the Industrial Age the dependency of all human activities on energy sources has become all apparent. Especially since the shift from wood and coal burning to oil as the main energy carrier after World War II, the future of mankind became more and more connected to the problems of energy supply. The exponential rise in the number of people on this globe is intimately connected to the energy available, the resulting industrialization, and increased food supply due to the use of artificial fertilizer, an energy-rich compound. Even in underdeveloped countries with oil resources, the imbalance of population growth and industrial capacity has created situations far less desirable for these populations than those prevalent during colonial times. As the main energy source, oil, became more expensive, the growth of industrial capacity was decisively reduced.
