Oil: A Beginner's Guide (Beginner's Guides)

Author Vaclav Smil is Distinguished Professor in the Faculty of Environment at the University of Manitoba, Canada. In this captivating book, the author of the acclaimed Energy: A Beginner’s Guide, Vaclav Smil, explains all matters related to the black stuff’, from its discovery in the earth, right through to the political maelstrom that surrounds it today. He is the first non-American to receive the American Association for the Advancement of Science Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology and is a Special Fellow of the Royal Society.. Without oil, there would be no globalisation, no plastic, little transport, and a global political landscape that few would recognise. He has written over 10 books on energy and been a keynote speaker at both the World Economic Forum and the Global Roundtable on Clima

Sachs, Director, Earth Institute at Columbia University and author of The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time"Terrific. "At last, an accurate and readable book which effectively presents the whole range of issues which are required for an understanding of the complex global oil system." -- Peter Odell, Professor Emeritus of International Energy Studies, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, and recipient of the 2006 OPEC Award"Smil's knowledge is famously and fabulously encyclopedic." -- Professor Jeffrey D. Smil has done it again, producing a book from which we can all create new insights, this time explaining oil production, consumption and the broader impacts it has upon society." -- Chris Mottershead, Distinguished Advisor Energy and the Environment, BP plc, and Director of the Carbon Trust in London"In a fluent, easy style Smil delves into the world of oil from its discovery on the ground through to its effect on prices at the petrol pumps, a

. He has written over 10 books on energy and been a keynote speaker at both the World Economic Forum and the Global Roundtable on Climate Change. Author Vaclav Smil is Distinguished Professor in the Faculty of Environment at the University of Manitoba, Canada. He is the first non-American to receive the American Association for the Advancement of Science Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology and is a Special Fellow of the Royal Society

Excellent Graybeard This is an excellent primer on oil for people who want to be oil-literate. Here's what the book covers.- Oil's uses and benefits.- What oil is, how it's found, and where it's been found.- How oil is produced, transported and processed.- Oil economics and politics.- Oil-related social and environmental issues.- Oil-related energy security issues.- How long oil will last.This 202-page book contains 28 helpful charts and diagrams, plus many excellent si. "A decent intro for a non-technical layman" according to W. Moncure. As an apology for giving this book three stars let me first say that I am by all means a layman when it comes to geological and oil terminology. While this book was excellent at describing the areas of sizeable oil deposits, the types of deposit, the types of oil and gas that are extracted from these geographical regions / types of areas, oftentimes I found Smil's technical argot and other such language a bit of a reach for me. That being said I skim. matthew b. johns said Great for an Absolute Novice. Living in Houston, I am familiar with much of the oil and gas vernacular, but this book took much of what I have heard and created a story to encapsulate those phrases into a bigger picture. It didn't quite get into the details I was hoping to learn about the refining process, but the overview of it is fantastic. There is a lot of technical information that is useful to go deeper. I plan to read it a second time to better understand that.