The great hope for a quick and sweeping transition to renewable energy is wishful thinking. Vaclav Smil More Quotes by Vaclav Smil More Quotes From Vaclav Smil Behind every morsel of bread, fruits, or meat is a large amount of transformed fossil fuels. Vaclav Smil fossil-fuels behind meat bread Evolution has made us omnivores, and substantial quantities of meat can be produced by feeding plant matter whose production does not directly compete with growing food crops: crop residues, food processing waste, low-quality grain, and controlled grazing by ruminants. Vaclav Smil plant evolution matter food I studied what the Germans call the Naturwissenschaften, the natural sciences. Everything from biology to geology. How the clouds are formed, how the animals live, and what makes the rocks. So I know about nature. Period. Vaclav Smil live biology nature clouds Most scientific or engineering discoveries would never become successful products without contributions from other scientists or engineers. Every major invention is the child of far-flung parents who may never meet. Vaclav Smil meet parents never child We insist on celebrating lone heroic path-finders, but even the most admired and the most successful inventors are part of a more remarkable supply chain of innovators who are largely ignored for the simpler mythology of one man or one eureka moment. Vaclav Smil more moment man successful Meat is undoubtedly an environmentally expensive food. Vaclav Smil undoubtedly meat expensive food Some countries that grow lots of pork, like Denmark and the Netherlands, are either eliminating antibiotics or reducing them. We have to do that. Otherwise we'll create such antibiotic resistance, it will be just terrible. Vaclav Smil grow will create like We're a society that demands electricity 24/7. This is very difficult with sun and wind. Vaclav Smil electricity society sun wind Meat eaters don't like me because I call for moderation, and vegetarians don't like me because I say there's nothing wrong with eating meat. It's part of our evolutionary heritage! Meat has helped to make us what we are. Meat helps to make our big brains. Vaclav Smil nothing me heritage eating The history of energy use is a sequence of transitions to sources that are cheaper, cleaner, and more flexible. Vaclav Smil more flexible energy history Economic and technical imperatives - not any preconceived directives - will keep propelling the process of energy transition. Vaclav Smil will economic energy process When you talk in terms of electricity, renewable is very important. Hydro in Manitoba. Hydro in Sweden. Wind in Denmark. Of course, those are very important. Vaclav Smil you electricity important wind
