Coal by barbara freese and shelly frasier audiobook. Updated with a new chapter describing the highstakes conflict between coal s defenders and those working to preserve a livable climate, coal offers a captivating history of the mineral that helped. The book examines the role that coal has played in human history. Paritcularly, freese describes the history of coal in england. Mar 28, 2018 download the report the united states, china, and india together constitute about 70 percent of global coal consumption and 64 percent of global coal production. A human history, author barbara freese explores the relation between humans and coal from the 14th century to present day. Strange artifacts reveal history of human origins is wrong. Coal is chinas main source of energy and the chinese coal industry employs roughly five million workers a year. Its light on the geology, and heavy on the historical implications of coal.
Rhodes also looks at the current energy landscape, with a focus on. The fascinating, often surprising story of how a simple black rock has altered the course of history. Last week on the flight to and from denver, i consumed via audio book, freely downloaded from my public library system the 2004 microhistory coal. In energy, rhodes highlights the successes and failures that led to each breakthrough in energy production.
Prized as the best stone in britain by roman invaders who carved jewelry out of it, coal has transformed societies, launched empires, and expanded frontiers. A human history is an engaging book intended for the general reader, and it is a book that. Coal may seem as though it just sprung up sometime around the industrial revolution, and although it is true that this rise in the industry brought coal to the forefront, coal as a fuel source has actually been around since the. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is the property of its content suppliers and protected by us and international laws. The book is a brilliant social history and a compelling polemic. Reading with clear, crisp enunciation in a deliberate style, frasier pulls the listener into this absorbing social history of coal. Coal mining continues as an important economic activity today. Coal is the largest source of energy for generating electricity in the world, and the most abundant fossil.
Last week on the flight to and from denver, i consumed via audio book, freely downloaded from my public library system the 2004 microhistory. A human history illustrates that this familiar carboniferous mineral has played a key role in human advancement. Had the coal ban held up in the centuries that followed, human history would have been radically different. It also adds information about the transition from england to the u. Ever since the times when early nomads used the slashandburn method, coal has been around acting as jewelry for the romans and as fuel for peasants and the noble class in britain. In the last decade, china has been averaging between 2. The fascinating history of a simple black rock that has shaped our worldand now threatens it. The strikers hold a mass protest rally at the black diamond coal company near fayette city. The global market for coal continues to be dominated by china, where coal consumption falls for much of the outlook as the economy adjusts to a more balanced. Miners at the mineral ridge coal company go out on strike june 1 against a tencent wage reduction. Environmental cost of coal introduction to environmental. A human history on free shipping on qualified orders.
Barbara freese takes us on a rich historical journey that begins hundreds of millions of years ago and spans the globe. A brief history of coal worldwide recruitment solutions. The beyond coal campaigns main objective is to replace dirty coal with clean energy by mobilizing grassroots activists in local communities to advocate for the retirement of old and outdated coal plants and to prevent new coal plants from being built. Yet despite the human tragedies, the environmental cost, the unpaid wages, the strikes and protests, the individuals and families who have built their lives around the mines are reluctant to give up hope on the prospect of a return to the heady days of coals golden age. Although in recent times oil and natural gas have come into prominence as. He addresses how we learned from such challenges, mastered their transitions, and capitalized on their opportunities. A human history is american author and attorney barbara freeses 2016 book chronicling the political, natural, and social history of the mineral coal throughout the ages as a nonfiction. The history of coal mining goes back thousands of years.
The novel talks about the history coal has had on ancient civilizations to modern day societies, and from the uk to the usa to china. A human history barbara freese prized as the best stone in britain by roman invaders who carved jewelry out of it, coal has transformed societies, powered navies, fueled economies, and. It made china a twelfthcentury superpower, inspired the writing of the communist manifesto, and helped the northern. Ultimately, the history of these challenges tells the story of humanity itself. Coal tends to be invisible today, but it is still the source of much of our electricity. Barbara freese traces the history of coal, discussing how it has been used in different cultures, how it is mined, what negative effects it has had on people, economics, and the environment, and the role it has. The last third of coal is dedicated to the environmental impact it. A human history from the worlds largest community of readers. Get 50% off this audiobook at the audiobooksnow online audio book store and download or stream it right to your computer, smartphone or tablet. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The steam engine and the railway expanded things, as coal provided cheap iron and steel for all kinds of things that advanced the western world. The united states has more coal reserves than any other country in the world.
In this remarkable book, barbara freese takes us on a rich historical journey that begins hundreds of. Compared to wood fuels, coal yields a higher amount. A human history book download link on this page and you will be directed to the free registration form. I am an environmental attorney, energy policy analyst, and author of two books. Anything that is found in lumps of coal or in coal seams during mining, had to have been placed or dropped into the vegetation before it was buried in sediment. The history of coal in the united states is predicated on a longterm. Above all, it fuelled the industrial revolution in britain, propelling the rise of a small rural kingdom into the greatest commercial empire in the world.
It includes a great many interesting anecdotes, as well as some good analysis of the social, health, and environmental consequences of coal use. A human history by barbara freese in epub, rtf, txt download ebook. A human history is a well researched and well written novel on coal. Get 50% off this audiobook at the audiobooksnow online audio book store and download or stream. Through an unforgettable cast of characters, pulitzer prizewinning author richard rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy. This natural process of coal formation takes up to 400 million years to accomplish. A human history is american attorney and writer barbara freeses 2016 natural, political, and cultural history of coal and its use as a resource by humans the book opens in the 14th. Barbara freese prized as the best stone in britain by roman invaders who carved jewelry out of it, coal has transformed societies, powered navies, fueled economies, and expanded frontiers.
Prized as the best stone in britain by roman invaders who carved jewelry out of it, coal has transformed societies, powered navies, fueled economies, and expanded frontiers. Coal is a black or brownishblack sedimentary rock that can be burned for fuel and used to generate electricity. For those interested in world history, this book fills in many blanks. As it happened, though, in the late 1500s the english faced an energy crisis when their population rose and their forestsdwindled. A human history the fascinating, often surprising story of how a simple black rock has altered the course of history. It is a pleasurable read, full of innumerable factoids and insights about how coal has affected human history. For a discussion of the coal extraction process, see the article coal mining. Coal ash and other solid combustion byproducts are stored locally and escape in various ways that expose those living near coal plants to radiation and environmental toxics. In fact, onefourth of all known coal in the world is in the united states, with large deposits located in 38 states.
In the et scenario, global coal consumption broadly stagnates around current levels, in sharp contrast to the past 20 years or so when coal was the largest source of energy growth. Full steam ahead a precious seed the rise and fall of king coal invisible power a sort of black stone a burning. Barbara freese traces the history of coal from its formation three million years ago through its role in industry and disease, including its part in the establishment of china as a twelfthcentury superpower and in. A tale of three coal markets center for strategic and. Coal history, coal social aspects, coal environmental aspects publisher perseus pub. A human history barbara freese prized as the best stone in britain by roman invaders who carved jewelry out of it, coal has transformed societies, powered navies, fueled economies, and expanded frontiers. Barbara freese the fascinating history of a simple black rock that has shaped our worldand now threatens it.
A strict thermodynamic perspective must see energyits overall use, quality, intensity, and conversion ef. The miners made twentyfive cents per wagon of coal, they asked for thirtycents per wagon. Coal culture timeline coal culture projects special. Ever since the times when early nomads used the slashandburn method, coal has been around acting as jewelry for the romans and as. Theres coal s importance to human history hence the books title, and theres coal s role in the destruction of the environment. A human history by barbara freese, paperback barnes. Yet coal s transformative power has come at a tremendous human and environmental cost, and it now poses an urgent threat to the planets climate. As with many of these sorts of books, its basically a compilation of related nonfictional explications of topics of diverse. A human history and millions of other books are available for instant access. Sep 08, 2009 research on how human health is impacted by energy resources such as coal is an emerging area. Buy this book coal has been both lauded for its efficiency as a heating fuel and maligned for the lung. Coal has been mined at a small scale since prehistoric times, but it truly became the dominant global fuel in the 18th century, providing the energy required by the technological advances of the industrial revolution. Taking us on a rich historical journey that begins on the banks of the river tyne, barbara freese explores the profound role coal has.
For a more complete treatment of the processes involved in coal combustion, see the article coal utilization. Coal ash contains the radioactive elements uranium and thorium. Delaware county district library ohio scanned in china. Each country is an important contributor to the global coal supply and demand picture and yet each stands at a very different stage in its relationship with coal.
Prized as the best stone in britain by roman invaders who carved jewelry out of it, coal has transformed societies, powered navies, fueled economies, and. A human history free epub, mobi, pdf ebooks download, ebook torrents download. It is composed mostly of carbon and hydrocarbon s, which contain energy that can be released through combust ion burning. Coal has a rich history in america, and it has become a staple of our society in ways that many of us dont realize. Get your kindle here, or download a free kindle reading app. Coal has transformed societies and shaped the fate of nations. The largest producer of coal, not just anthracite coal, is indeed china. Thesis coal has always been both a creative and a destructive force. The last third of coal is dedicated to the environmental impact it canis havehaving on the planet. Mar 27, 2020 this article considers the geological origins, structure, and properties of coal, its usage throughout human history, and current world distribution.
A human history provides a concise account of the interactions between humanity and coal, particularly in the united states, united kingdom, and china. Coal coal is the most plentiful fuel in the fossil family. In this remarkable book, barbara freese takes us on a rich historical journey. End music the usgs has been digging into this field called medical geology for some time, and today we are joined by three usgs scientists to discuss this research, specifically the links between coal resources and kidney diseases. My major concern with the book is that almost every statement in it is supported by sources such as one observer, one letter to the newspaper. Coal offers a captivating history of the mineral that helped build the modern world but now endangers our future. It covers a variety of aspects of the history of coal concetrating on the human story.
A human history was written by barbara freese to focus on the history of coal and how mankind has used it as part of their lifestyle. Uploaded by booksalecataloger1 on september 26, 2011. That sediment eventually fossilizes and becomes rock. Barbara freese takes us on a rich historical journey that begins hundreds of millions of years ago and. Again, it tells us that coal took britain from a rural nation to a worldclass commercial power.
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