Article Archive
Earth Day and Four Decades of Fear
A vast array of blatherings have accumulated over the years, warning the end is nigh.
Greed Is Green: How the Profit Motive Helps the Environment
The search for increased profitability has long delivered both economic and environmental improvements by promoting the evermore efficient use of material resources.
A Dream Delayed: Man’s Mission to Mars
NASA has decided that private enterprise will have to take on the job of reaching Mars. A new generation of space-minded tycoons is ready for the mission. We can do it.
America’s Broadband Service Is Not Falling Behind
It’s easy to think that the grass is greener abroad, but when it comes to broadband being delivered efficiently, there’s no place like home.
Memories of Peak Oil
Is it too much to hope that even some catastrophists and peak-oil cultists will find it impossible to ignore the latest numbers?
Just How Polluted Is China Anyway?
Decades ago, I wrote the first comprehensive books on China’s energy and environment. I have not been surprised by the country’s continuing environmental degradation; even so, I could not have predicted such a deterioration of air quality.
China’s Sick Yellow River
China’s water pollution is even worse than its better-known air pollution. As long as the Chinese people have few private rights, government-backed pollution will continue.
Ignorance, the Ultimate Asset
To understand the success of modern knowledge economies and why government planning is folly, we must first understand that ignorance truly is bliss.
Voyager I at the Heliopause
An extension of human ingenuity will soon reach the farthest limit of the sun’s empire. Beyond is true interstellar space.
Depending on Energy, Not Energy Independent
When considering energy independence, one has to strive for clear thinking and consider all of the potential tradeoffs and potential unintended consequences involved.
The Impossibility of Rapid Energy Transitions
Understanding energy system inertia and momentum is key to judging whether a rapid transition toward any type of energy is feasible.
Jeremy Grantham, Starving for Facts
A column by legendary asset manager Jeremy Grantham is more suitable for the tabloids than for one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious scientific weekly magazines.
Why Growth Is the Environment’s Best Friend
The single best thing we could do to minimize energy’s impact on the environment is to not only maximize our own economic growth but also to help developing countries increase theirs.
Did President Obama Restore Science to Its Rightful Place?
On a whole host of issues, Obama has placed politics before science.
Internet Search and the Nature of Competition
Antitrust law protects consumers by protecting the competitive process — not individual competitors.
Is It Time to Stop Putting Food in Our Cars?
The ethanol mandate continues to do more harm than good — inflicting environmental damage, raising food prices, and distorting energy markets.
An Unnatural History of the Electronic Mouse
Technology marches on and the mouse is done for, or so we are told. But what if history had been different?
Energy Is Everywhere
Nearly half of what people pay for energy comes ‘embodied’ in the various goods and services that they use, and about half of that comes down to two things: food and health care.