The Future of Buildings, Transportation and Power - Paperback

by Roger Duncan (Author), Michael E. Webber (Author)

Most people have fantasized about stepping into the future, if only for a moment. Will there be flying cars? Will buildings be sleek, "smart," and clean, or will they be just one more dysfunctional component of a decaying infrastructure? Will there be robots everywhere? Will we have clean energy and clear skies or polluted air and water?

The evolution of buildings, transportation and power will determine how our future looks and feels, and in this book Roger Duncan and Michael Webber argue the Energy Efficiency Megatrend will shape our future technology. Buildings and vehicles will evolve into sentient-appearing machines such that we will be living, working and moving about inside robots. Buildings may develop personalities and the transportation system will have any manner of vehicle available at a moment's notice. This complex, interconnected system will be powered by the clean and efficient conversion of fuels and energy flows that surround us. Duncan is a former Austin City Council member and former General Manager of Austin Energy, the city's municipal electric utility. Webber is the Josey Centennial Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas, and Chief Science and Technology Officer at ENGIE, a multi-national energy services and infrastructure company.