The Future of
BUILDINGS, TRANSPORTATION and POWER
Most people have fantasized about stepping into the future, if only for a moment. Will there be flying cars? Will buildings be sleek, “smart,” and clean, or will they be just one more dysfunctional component of a decaying infrastructure? Will there be robots everywhere? Will we have clean energy and clear skies or polluted air and water?
The evolution of buildings, transportation and power will determine how our future looks and feels, and in this book Roger Duncan and Michael Webber argue the Energy Efficiency Megatrend will shape our future technology. Buildings and vehicles will evolve into sentient-appearing machines such that we will be living, working and moving about inside robots. Buildings may develop personalities and the transportation system will have any manner of vehicle available at a moment's notice. This complex, interconnected system will be powered by the clean and efficient conversion of fuels and energy flows that surround us.
Co-written with Roger Duncan, a former Austin city council member and former general manager of Austin Energy, the city’s municipal electric utility.
Co-written with Roger Duncan, a former Austin city council member and former general manager of Austin Energy, the city’s municipal electric utility.
Praise for The Future of Buildings, Transportation and Power
“A fascinating, highly educational tour of the ideas and technologies that will
power the future.”
—Peter Fox-Penner, energy expert, author of Smart Power and Power After Carbon
“Respected energy veterans Roger Duncan and Michael Webber off er a
provocative vision of how buildings, transports, and electricity may meld
with effi ciency, information, and innovation to create more—or, if we
choose unwisely, less—than the sum of their interactive parts. Whether
or not you agree, this readable treatment helps frame the forces shaping
the modern energy revolution.”
—Amory B. Lovins, Cofounder and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute
“What started as a brainstorming session between two thoughtful
energy experts and grew over years of nurturing, polishing, challenging
and reassessing, has fi nally emerged as an insightful book that will
challenge and transform your thinking about how we use energy today and
in the future. It is a clear-eyed look at megatrends swirling around us,
trends that are so large they can be hard to understand.”
—Russell Gold, Senior Reporter, The Wall Street Journal and author of Superpower and The Boom
power the future.”
—Peter Fox-Penner, energy expert, author of Smart Power and Power After Carbon
“Respected energy veterans Roger Duncan and Michael Webber off er a
provocative vision of how buildings, transports, and electricity may meld
with effi ciency, information, and innovation to create more—or, if we
choose unwisely, less—than the sum of their interactive parts. Whether
or not you agree, this readable treatment helps frame the forces shaping
the modern energy revolution.”
—Amory B. Lovins, Cofounder and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute
“What started as a brainstorming session between two thoughtful
energy experts and grew over years of nurturing, polishing, challenging
and reassessing, has fi nally emerged as an insightful book that will
challenge and transform your thinking about how we use energy today and
in the future. It is a clear-eyed look at megatrends swirling around us,
trends that are so large they can be hard to understand.”
—Russell Gold, Senior Reporter, The Wall Street Journal and author of Superpower and The Boom
