Over the past two centuries, the use of coal and later oil and gas has allowed an unprecedented increase in the standard of living. Over the past fifty years, the dominance of nuclear energy has given us access to an even more powerful source of energy. More recently there has been a revival in interest for renewable energy sources, which have for a long time dominated the history of humanity. This new edition has been fully updated, describing energy sources from the past, from today and for the future, as well as focussing on their usage by looking at all the different issues (technological, economic, environmental etc.). Each source of energy is presented with its advantages and disadvantages. This book gives advice on how to use energy more efficiently in order to become less dependent upon fossil fuels, which are slowly being depleted and becoming more and more expensive. The inclusion of many tables and figures allows the reader to compare data on energy (eg. on energy reserves, consumption, production etc.).