This academic, multi-author reference work serves as a general and non-technical resource for students and teachers to understand the importance of energy; to appreciate the influence of energy on societies around the world; to learn the history of energy; and to initiate educational discussion brought forth by the specific social and topical articles presented in the work. SCOPE AND COVERAGE From Alaska to China to Brazil and around the world, energy is the fuel of modern civilization. The United States alone, which constitutes 5 percent of the world's population, consumes 24 percent of the...