Modern human civilisation, industrialisation, urbanisation, and rapid economic growth and prosperity are inextricably linked to ever-increasing energy consumption. Animals consume energy in the form of food for survival. Only modern humans consume most energy not for food but for convenience, comfort, and the consumption of various goods and services. We consume about 2,500 kcal of food per day per capita. That is roughly equivalent to 3 kWh of energy.

Every year, a person consumes about 1,000 kWh of energy as food. All humanity (8.3 billion) thus consumes about 8,300 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy per year as food. Considering that global primary energy consumption in all forms by humanity is about 200,000 TWh, we consume about 25 times the energy that we eat as food for survival. In a fundamental sense, our energy consumption distinguishes us from all other animals and has enabled us to enjoy a measure of comfort, convenience, and quality of life unmatched by any other species.

Rise Of Modern Energy Use

Until the 1850s, our energy consumption was limited to firewood for cooking and heating. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, things changed rapidly. In 1804, Richard Trevithick designed the first steam-powered railway locomotive. From the 1850s, rail transport took off. In India, the first passenger train ran from Bombay to Thane in 1853. In the US, the first transcontinental rail track was completed in 1869. The use of coal kept increasing for railways from 1850 onwards.

With Thomas Edison's invention of the electric bulb in 1879, and with alternating current winning the "War of the Currents" in 1895 as an........

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