Is There a Scientific Field Dedicated to Energy Issues?

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SUMMARY

The discussion confirms the existence of a scientific field dedicated to energy issues, specifically termed "energy studies," which is actively researched at institutions such as Oxford, Cornell, and MIT. The International Energy Agency acknowledged the occurrence of peak oil in 2006 for conventional sources, while Wikileaks revealed that Saudi Arabia's oil reserves are significantly overstated. These revelations indicate a direct correlation between energy prices and economic stability, suggesting that the lack of a coherent framework for understanding energy's role in the economy is a critical gap in current research.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of peak oil concepts
  • Familiarity with energy economics
  • Knowledge of ecological economics
  • Basic principles of sustainable engineering
NEXT STEPS
  • Research "energy studies" programs at universities like Oxford and MIT
  • Explore the implications of "peak oil" on global economies
  • Investigate the work of researchers like Charlie Hall on energy equations
  • Examine resources from clearinghouses like The Oil Drum and Peak Oil
USEFUL FOR

Researchers, policymakers, and students interested in energy economics, sustainability, and the impact of energy resources on global economic stability will benefit from this discussion.

cdux
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Currently there are clear indications that there is a strong case for a phenomenon of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil" .

1. The International Energy Egency, who was traditionally very conservative about it (and still is), recently admitted that it occurred in 2006 for conventional sources

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2010/11/101109-peak-oil-iea-world-energy-outlook/

2. The Wikileaks operation recently revealed that Saudi Arabia has much lower reserves than claimed

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/feb/08/saudi-oil-reserves-overstated-wikileaks
These findings are pointing to clear indications that the global economy may be slowing down since 2008, precisely because energy - which produces goods, which helps produce goods, which helps transfer goods, which fertilizes the land, which helps cultivate the land etc. - is directly responsible for the crisis when its prices are too high.
However, there appears to be a general confusion on the processes that create such phenomena. There appear to be only vague references by physicists on conservation of energy, on needs to use energy to translate to "work", etc. but few details, and most importantly not a coherent structure of the framework that goes from energy sources to our pocket.

So, is there such a field? And if not, does it have to be established?
 
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It's called energy studies and is done at Oxford, Cornell, MIT, and probably lots more. Just Google it.
 
cdux said:
So, is there such a field? And if not, does it have to be established?

the limits to growth is at least a sub-discipline of many fields...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_economics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_engineering
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecosystem_services

And for the energy equation in particular check out researchers like Charlie Hall...

http://www.esf.edu/efb/hall/

For peak oil information clearing houses...

http://www.theoildrum.com/
http://www.peakoil.net/
 
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