How the World Really Works: A Scientist’s Guide to Our Past, Present and Future by Vaclav Smil. Vaclav a Czech-Canadian scientist and policy analyst. He is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg Canada.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the 2000 recipient of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology.
In addition, Vaclav was named by Foreign Policy magazine to its 2010 list of FP Top 100 Global Thinkers. In 2013, he was appointed by the Governor General to the Order of Canada. Finally, he was the 2013 EADS Distinguished Visitor at the American Academy in Berlin.
So, What really makes our modern world work? Vaclav proposes the answers in four grand transitions of civilization: populations, agriculture, energy, and economics. In fact, he outlines how each transition has greatly transformed our world and how our global society functions.
Vaclav is relying upon today’s computing ability to tap into vast amounts of data to tell powerful stories and he succeeds. This book has become a world wide bestseller and certainly is addressing the impact future climate change will have upon our world and global societies. Furthermore, Vaclav is delivering somewhat startling statistics throughout the book.