Energy – What It Is and What It Means

Regardless of whether in respect to blackouts, gasoline prices, climate change, the ecological foot print or diets – Energy is an important topic for 21st century’s society. Hence it is subject of many discussions in the media or the political process. However, the hard facts do not usually make headlines. But in the end, they are the most important to consider when trying to make ecologically and economically sound decisions. Because of that, this blog will focus on the fundamentals of the energy sciences.

Information about energy as such is widely available (e.g. at Wikipedia). My goal is to present and illustrate the most important principles in small portions that are easy to digest. At the end, I will publish the individual posts together as a book. This book should, after a few rainy Saturday afternoons, enable everyone willing to read it to interpret and discuss statements about energy related topics.

I hold a Master’s degree in Energy Science & Technology  from ETH Zurich. Thus, my judgment might be biased sometimes. Because of that I am looking forward to receiving your questions and comments. Especially if I omit crucial points because they are self-evident from my point of view. Furthermore I would like to clearly point out that this blog is meant as an introduction to the world of energy for everyone. That is, I might sometimes oversimplify things or only treat them briefly.

In the beginning I am going to focus on the fundamentals and try to release 2 to 3 posts per week. The individual posts are best interpreted as “sections” or “subsections” of a book. Building on the fundamentals I will also comment on relevant events, articles or political debate. With that I hope to illustrate how the knowledge given in the fundamental posts can be applied to everyday life.

Eventually, I would like to introduce the rough structure of the blog and the book that I plan to publish in late 2016 or early 2017. The chapters listed below correspond to the categories of this blog.

1. What is Energy?
   1. Work and Power
   2. Energy Services
   3. Energy Conversion
   4. Energy Efficiency
2.  Exergy – usable Energy
3. Energy and the World
   1. Energy Use
   2. Energy Generation
   3. Energy Transport
   4. Energy Storage