The world is using oil at four times the rate it is finding it, and the output of many existing fields is beginning to decline. Whenever it occurs, the decline in oil and gas output will be a turning point in human history since the use of increasing amounts of fossil energy has been the basis of globalisation and rapid economic growth. The thirty energy experts who contribute to this book discuss when the turning point will actually occur and whether other energy sources can be developed in time to avert the looming energy shortage. They discuss a number of questions: *