A Question of Power: Electricity and the Wealth of Nations

What is electric power? To those in “high watt” areas, such as the United States and Europe, it’s a useful commodity that they basically take for granted. In contrast, residents of the “low watt” and “unplugged” (access to less power than it takes to run the author’s refrigerator) areas of the world associate electric power with light, warmth, and the chance for a better life (education, better jobs, more leisure, etc.)Some 3 billion human beings (45% of the global population) currently lack access to reliable, affordable and abundant electric power, and closing this gap is labeled the Terawatt Challenge. So while the power supply has plateaued in the US, it’s growing about 4% per year (doubling in 18 years) on a global basis.To Bryce, the “humanist response to the Terawatt Challenge is obvious.” It must be met, we can’t keep all these human beings in the dark! And he drives home this point by relating how the capability to generate electric power was developed and implemented in the US (including rural electrification during the New Deal era). Telegraph – streetlights – electric-power vehicles (later largely superseded by motor vehicles) – household lamps and appliances – elevators so buildings could be built taller – etc.As but one of the benchmarks of social transformation that are discussed, consider this: In 1500, 5% of the world’s population lived in cities. The comparable number is over 50% today, and it may hit 70% by 2050.Ah, but if humans generate all that electric power, won’t that cause disastrous global warming (aka climate change)? The author accepts this concern as valid, albeit without discussing the manmade global warming theory as such (full disclosure: I regard the theory as unproven), but sides with those who view access to electric power as a human right.Some assume this issue away by imagining that the desired electric power will all be generated by wind turbines and solar cells, but Bryce says this is impractical because wind and solar power are too intermittent and expensive to fill the bill. He envisions an eclectic approach, which will make judicious use of all available alternatives for electric power generation (see comments below), and basically assumes that there won’t be a climate catastrophe after all.•Wind – Varies on a day-by-day basis and also seasonally, so it can’t be used as base power to drive the grid without expensive storage facilities. Requires a huge amount of land (or offshore areas), which might otherwise be useful for other purposes. Strongly opposed by residents of adjacent areas based on appearance, noise, alleged inaudible hum, etc., especially as the size of wind turbines has been increased to improve efficiency. Deadly for birds and bats.•Solar – Currently accounts for a smaller share of electric power production than wind power, similar issues re intermittency and land use, but in the long run may be a better bet.However, experience has shown that jurisdictions (e.g., California, Germany, and Australia) attempting to quickly expand the use of “renewable energy” (e.g., wind or solar) have experienced a major increase in electric power costs and adverse reactions from the voters. An exception that is mentioned is Iceland, which has very cheap electric power from 100% renewable sources (hydro and geothermal).•Coal – Still used to generate a major portion of electric power, both in the US and globally, and can’t be eliminated overnight. However, coal has high carbon content, and therefore emits about twice as much CO2 per unit of electricity produced as natural gas not to mention other real pollutants.•Natural gas – Thanks to the “fracking revolution,” natural gas price has come down dramatically. US power plants are increasingly being run on natural gas, with coal plants being closed or converted, resulting in overall reduction in CO2 emissions. Also, the US is exporting an increasing volume of liquified natural gas, which despite the transportation costs can potentially replace coal or biomass being burned in other countries.•Nuclear – Environmentalists typically do not view nuclear energy as an acceptable substitute for fossil fuels citing the risk of runaway reactors, alleged impossibility of safely disposing of nuclear waste, etc. However, nuclear power is reliable, reasonably affordable (at least for existing nuclear power plants, some of which are being prematurely closed down), and could play a bigger role if current permitting and regulatory requirements were relaxed.This is a first rate analysis, in my view, which reaches sensible conclusions – whether one subscribes to the manmade global warming theory or not. It’s also an enjoyable read, offering a lot of interesting information. Five stars!

Robert Bryce’s new book, A Question of Power: Electricity and the Wealth of Nations, contains a wealth of information about the nature and importance of electricity to the modern world. But Bryce’s book is no dry academic tome. It makes technical details of electricity production and distribution accessible to the general reader, and at the same time is written with an eye toward understanding the human costs and benefits of electric power (or the lack of it). Bryce writes with sympathy for those many millions around the world who lack electricity and with passion for their absolute need, if they are to rise out of poverty, of access to continuous electric power.The book also gives a voice to those people in the first world who have had electric power but are now being subjected to a misguided effort in the fight against climate change to spread massive wind turbines and solar panels across the landscape. Bryce does not reject the science of climate change but advocates a transition in the developed world, first, from coal to (lower carbon dioxide emitting) natural gas and then, to the next generation of greenhouse-gas-free nuclear power, or N2N—a program that seems eminently sensible.Overall, A Question of Power is a splendidly written book, an urgently needed voice at a time when a significant percentage of humanity still lives in (un-electrified) crushing poverty. In my view, a very important book, by one of the (if not THE) very best writers on energy today.

Very educational for those ignorant about what is a ubiquitous service in the USA. I'm 71 years old and have NEVER had to live anywhere without electrical service. This makes for a very blessed life that most Americans don't appreciate. Having worked in the electrical business for 40 years I have a great interest in the subject. Not enough credit is given to Tesla, who discovered alternating current, which is the greatest achievement made in the electrical field. It allows transmission of power over great distances. Yes, Edison did invent the incandescent lamp, but he also stubbornly refused to accept AC power. Westinghouse and Tesla were right.Wind and solar are pointed out as the fakes they are. The only thing "green" about them is the cash they generate for the manufacturers and the politicians that tout them. Identifying them as "unreliable" is absolutely correct. Thermal power, especially nuclear, must be considered, as the author points out, if we are to continue to have the reliable power Americans expect. The reality of arithmetic in our ever growing power demands will not be overcome by hand-wringing pipe dreamers touting unreliables that DON'T ADD UP.Read this book and educate yourself. Most shocking (pun intended) fact I learned: How much power is used to grow dope in this country!

If you are listening to politicians and activists for information on energy, you are being led to a future in which civilization will go backwards. Energy has brought billions out of poverty, whereas green energy can never replace high-output, low cost sources. Food supplies and quality of life will be in danger. The millions who still have no, or minimal access to energy, will be lost.Bryce approaches the issues with science, real data, and doesn't get pulled into political nonsense. Part history on the electric age, part warning to the future if we continue down this path, this is an essential guide for all citizens. See Also Zubrin's The Case For Nukes, and Epstein's Fossil Future.

It was well researched and clearly argued, effectively exposes the green technology dream as delusion, and very compact . Succinctly done.

The book has some interesting ideas and food for thought. However, the book's hypothesis and main goal of explaining the "terawatt challenge" sadly seem be more based on ideology than of facts. It is true that the author identifies this problem also for other groups, but he himself goes on to "discuss" wind energy. In my opiniion, the author heavily relies on newspaper and single interview sources to make a point about wind energy (one whole chapter) instead of painting a bigger picture and asking the same question for every technology. Instead of making a good comparison between energy sources, he makes the same mistakes he describes in his book and makes recommendations based on ideology.

A must-read book for those interested in climate policies!

Especially appreciated was the quotation attributed to Edison: "Make electricity so cheap on ly the rich will burn candles"

There's hardly any other topic which evokes more political response than energy. In most debates emotions are strong and facts are sketchy if not totally wrong. Robert Bryce's books are literally like a lighthouse in these dark stormy waters. I have read almost all of his books, recommended them to dozens of people, and have almost always gotten a positive feedback.The zeitgeist splits energy into two opposite camps - "Clean Energy" vs. "Conventional aka Dirty Energy". Nuclear is of course is "scary" and "unsafe". The narrative goes - "The world has to transition from Dirty (Coal + Oil) to Clean (Wind + Solar) as quickly as possible."Though popular, this is an overly simplified and a deeply flawed view of the world. One which if executed without understanding the numbers involved, simply perpetuates poverty and energy scarcity. This has been the case in much of India and Africa where overly romanticised views of Wind, biomass & Solar energy by politicians and environmentalists has resulted now in structural energy deficiency. This will take many years if not decades to resolve.While the press boasts about India's achievements with its growing economy, rapid urbanization and increasing middle class. Most people do not realize that India's per capita electricity consumption is less than that of an average American refrigerator. Despite an ambitious and (overly glamorized ) Renewable energy program, India will never move away from Coal. We could have transitioned to a mix of Nuclear along with coastal Natural Gas plants, however the progress on that front is too slow and with fears of Nuclear blown out of all proportion by the media unlikely to happen in this decade or next.To understand why, Solar & Wind will never scale sufficiently to meet humanity's energy needs you need to read Robert Bryce's books. Two of them are essential reads.1. Smaller, Faster, Lighter, Denser Cheaper2. A question of Power: Electricity & Wealth of NationsBoth books are as much fun as they are enlightening. The trouble with good technical books on energy is that people often complain that they need an Engineering Phd to make sense of all the numbers to put them into meaningful context. Not so with this book. Robert has an uncanny ability to distill complex math into something so clear and colorful that reading them could be mistaken for weekend/holiday leisure reading. But don't be fooled by the book's easy style, it covers issues which are important and rarely get talked about. To take just one brilliant example - New York Indian Point Nuclear reactor which occupies 1 sq km has electricity generation of 16.4 TWh (Terrawatt hours). New York Central Park can comfortably house three such Nuclear plants potentially generating (16.4*3) 49.2 TWh.To put that into perspective, India's most industrialized state, Gujarat, has energy consumption of 116 TWh. Likewise if the single New York Nuclear reactor were to be replaced with equivalent amount of Wind Energy you are going to take ~1400 sq Km of land, almost exactly the entire land area of Delhi, capital city of India.Wind Energy being considered Cheap is to imagine that our planet has millions of hectares of prime real estate available for free. Apart from land usage there are plenty of health and land value degradation issues with Wind Energy which have been covered quite elaborately in the book.Geothermal & Big Hydro while quite popular with green lobby are very location specific and not scalable. The amount of resettlement & rehabilitation which surrounds Big Hydro makes it politically nonviable in India and much of the world. Entire villages, forests submerged under water makes even the environmentalists somewhat uneasy.One thing which has shown some promise in Clean Energy rubric is Solar + Batteries. There's been an appreciable improvement in efficiency, cost of Solar Panels and storage capacity of batteries in last 5-6 years. With an increasingly electrified world you are going to have remote sensors, cell phone towers, communication relays, iOT, places where grid won't always be available. Solar + battery solution certainly helps. Also rooftop solar pitches in well for lighting, light electronic loads which are now ubiquitous part of life. That being said, to imagine that pan planet Solar Panelling will usher in an age of emission free world is a fantasy too far.If the world has to have cheap, abundant electricity on tap the only conceivable future is one of Nuclear Energy with Natural Gas paving the way. In India, Africa & China I'd say its Coal + Nuclear, as pricing and Natural Gas transportation to hinterland is beset with host of challenges, none of which are easy to overcome.Robert Bryce's book Electricity & Wealth of Nations, covers an entire arc of history of electricity, its social benefits, politics around generation and some of the key developments which never get talked about. I never knew the relation between electricity and average height of city skyscrapers until I read the book. You are not going to have well functioning city ergo economic development without cheap and abundant electricity.Apart from Thomas Edison's lightbulbs & electric grids the innovation of Frank Sprague with electric traction, the unshakable resolve of a few politicians like Lyndon Johnson, George Norris, Sam Rayburn, Burton Wheeler played a pivotal role in ensuring that electric grid reaches the remotest corners of America. Sadly, they don't make politicians like that anymore.Of the 545 Indian MPs only one (Dr. Swamy) ever mentioned that given the vast coastline of India, Nuclear + desalination should be an obvious choice towards eliminating the country's electricity & drinking water problems.Its exceptionally unfortunate that Policy making, political rhetoric are devoid of science. When Scientists are called in for testimony, it's only as a witness for a pre-arranged Congressional finding. If only there were more individuals like Robert Bryce and more books like his, we might actually end up living in a world which was healthier, prosperous and exponentially more fulfilling than what it is presently.More Engineering & Math books should take cue from Bryce's method of simplifying arcane math & notation into what's easily relatable. More policy and government departments should be inspired by Robert's style instead of publishing empty platitudes followed by 40 pages of endless statistics. It's not too much to ask for.Do read this book - Electricity & Wealth of Nations. I promise you, it won't disappoint.