The next Bath Science Café will take place on Monday 12 December 2011 and will explore whether there is any hope for the continuation of western civilisation as oil production declines.
The talk will be presented by Professor Chris Rhodes, Director of Fresh-lands Environmental Actions, an organisation based in Reading which is dedicated to providing and analysing information concerning future energies.
Across the world 30 billion barrels of crude-oil are produced each year, not only for fuel but to make practically all products ranging from plastics to pharmaceuticals, and nearly all of our food.
However, world oil production is set to decline within the next five years. Professor Rhodes argues that should we continue to use oil as we do currently, civilization as we know it in the west will collapse.
He claims that our salvation requires a re-adaptation of how we live, from the global to the local; to a world of small communities far less dependent on transportation. Professor Rhodes says that contrary to popular belief, technology will not save us unless we cut our energy use and particularly our demand for oil.
Professor Rhodes has written numerous scientific articles on the subject of energy use and future energies, and recently published his first novel ‘University Shambles’ – a black comedy on the disintegration of the British university system.
The event will take place at The Raven in the centre of Bath, and will begin at 7:30pm. For more information about the Bath Science Café please visit http://bathsciencecafe.org.
The official Twitter hash tag is #BathSciCafe.