[intro.] What will happen if America had no way to import oil? America uses one-third of the world’s energy most of which is powered by oil. However, America are only able to produce one-third of the oil needed to run what the country burns now. The other two-thirds of the oil needed come from unstable parts of the world such as the Middle East and Africa. Without oil, America may lose its world power to a country that does not only rely on oil to power their country. [Should I put what is oil and why it is the way it is here.] Oil is the byproduct of ancient plants that have been buried and compressed over millions of years. In order to extract it from underground people send in waves of energy through the ground and read how long it takes for the waves to come back. After, the oil company locates the oil and then begins to drill to expose the oil and then start pumping it out of the ground. The reason oil has value is that it is an liquid that is able to burn at high heats due to the high level of carbon and hydrogen. Burning oil releases carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and methane, all are powerful poisons and greenhouse gasses. [How America is ruled under the oil company.] The oil companies have been taking advantage of the world. The companies realize that people will do whatever it takes in order to get warmth, to get around, and make a living. Knowing that America needs oil to function, oil companies are able to control how the economy flows, how much gas prices are, and how much it cost in order to get goods that people need to survive. [the oil company on the electric car]”By the 1900’s most cars were electric.” (Reformation) However, Henry Ford the owner of Ford Automobiles changed the electric car, when he mass-produc... ... middle of paper ... ...useless when the wind stops causing the power to shut of almost instantly. Nuclear power. nuclear power is a controversial power source due to the amount of radiation it releases. However, nuclear power is one of the most powerful fuels but it creates the a dangerous waste product that will have to be attended to for “___” years. Battery. batteries have been the new power substitute. However, batteries are unable to hold much energy. The battery has not been tested for long-term effects. Works Cited Cao, Jian-hua, et al. "Separation Of Propane From Propane/Nitrogen Mixtures Using Pdms Composite Membranes By Vapour Permeation." Chinese Journal Of Polymer Science (World Scientific Publishing Company) 27.5 (2009): 621-627. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 May 2014. Kilkenny, Niall. "Who Killed the Electric Car?" Who Killed the Electric Car? 2009. Web. 17 May 2014.
Rockefeller was America’s first billionaire, and he was the true epitome of capitalism. Rockefeller was your typical rags-to-riches businessman, and at the turn of the twentieth century, while everyone else in the working class was earning ten dollars max every week, Rockefeller was earning millions. There has been much discussion as to whether Rockefeller’s success was due to being a “robber baron”, or as a “captain of industry”. By definition, a robber baron was an industrialist who exploited others in order to achieve personal wealth, however, Rockefeller’s effect on the economy and the lives of American citizens has been one of much impact, and deserves recognition. He introduced un-seen techniques that greatly modified the oil industry. During the mid-nineteenth century, there was a high demand for kerosene. In the refining process from transforming crude oil to kerosene, many wastes were produced. While others deemed the waste useless, Rockefeller turned it into income by selling them. He turned those wastes into objects that would be useful elsewhere, and in return, he amassed a large amount of wealth. He sold so much “waste” that railroad companies were desperate to be a part of his company. However, Rockefeller demanded rebates, or discounted rates, from the railroad companies, when they asked to be involved with his business. By doing so, Rockefeller was able to lower the price of oil to his customers, and pay low wages to his workers. Using these methods,
Fifth Edition Vol 2, New York: Longman, 1999. Hidey, Ralph W. and Muriel E. "History of Standard Oil Company (New Jersey), Vol. 1" Pioneering in Big Business" " Taking Sides Clashing Views on Controversial Issues in American History" eds.
One of the Gilded Age’s most prominent well-known philanthropist’s, John D. Rockefeller, had a lasting effect in the United States. He was America’s first ever billionaire. Rockefeller entered the oil business by first investing on an oil refinery in Cleveland, Ohio in 1863. He established his own oil company named “Standard Oil”, which controlled nearly 90 percent of America’s oil refineries by the 1880’s. At first, Rockefeller borrowed money from some of his buddy’s to buy out some stocks and take control of his first refinery in Ohio. He then formed the “Standard Oil Company” along with his brother William Rockefeller and other groups of men, John D. Rockefeller was the largest shareholder of the company. Standard oil was a monopoly in the oil industry for buying other refineries who were competition to Standard oil in order to distribute and market there oil around the globe. Standard oil even went as far as making their own oil barrels and employed scientists to develop other uses for kerosene and petroleum products. John D. Rockefeller was viewed as a target of “muckraking” by journalists, who viewed him as a monopoly giant setting up a monopolistic company in America which helped build his vast oil empire. Critics accused Rockefeller of engaging unethical practices such as competitive pricing when it came to products and negotiating with railroads to eliminate his competitors. The United States Supreme Court wou...
Carbon, Max W. Nuclear Power: Villain or Victim?: Our Most Misunderstood Source of Electricity. Second ed. Madison, WI: Pebble Beach, 1997.
America is dependent on other nations for their ability to create energy. The United States is the world’s largest consumer of oil at 18.49 million barrels of oil per day. And it will continue to be that way for the foreseeable future considering the next largest customer of oil only consumes about 60% of what the U.S. does. This makes the U.S. vulnerable to any instability that may arise in the energy industry. In 2011, the world’s top three oil companies were Saudi Aramco (12%), National Iranian Oil Company (5%), and China National Petroleum Corp (4%). The risk associated with these countries being the top oil producers is twofold. One, they are located half way around the world making it an expensive to transport the product logistically to a desired destination. And two, the U.S. has weak, if not contentious,...
Pratt, Joseph A. “Exxon and the Control of Oil.” Journal of American History. 99.1 (2012): 145-154. Academic search elite. Web. 26. Jan. 2014.
People need oil for daily life and work. Since World War II, oil has caused many serious problems in the United States and throughout the world. Remarkably, economic and social problems were heightened by the emerging energy crisis. By 1974, the United States gained a third of its oil by importing from the Middle East. James Oakes, et al.
The major problem that the production and use of oil have the environmental is it continuous release of carbon dioxide into the environment. Through the combustion of fossil fuel, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. This, in turn, causes drastic effects to the climate, known as climate change. Climate change causes severe weather and droughts. Hurricane can increase in intensity and flooding can become a major issue. Global warming also happens, which causes more heat, smaller ice caps, and the shutting down of the global ocean conveyor belt. The global ocean conveyor belt is what keeps Europe warm and Antarctica cold. If the global ocean conveyor belt stop working, it can cause an ice age. This can possibly cause the next mass extinction.
After the United States developed the atomic at the end of World War II, interest in nuclear technology increased exponentially. People soon realized that nuclear technology could be used for electricity, as another alternative to fossil fuels. Today, nuclear power has its place in the world, but there is still a lot of controversy over the use of nuclear energy. Things such as the containment of radiation and few nuclear power plant accidents have given nuclear power a bad image. However, nuclear power is a reliable source of energy because it has no carbon emissions, energy is available at any time, little fuel is needed for a lot of energy, and as time goes on, it is becoming safer and safer.
The United States has had several scares throughout its history in terms of oil, most turn out to be over exaggerations of a small event. However, these scares highlight a massive issue with the U.S. and that issue is the U.S.’s dependence on foreign oil. Why does it matter that our oil should come from over seas? In a healthy economy this probably wouldn’t be as relevant, but the U.S.’s economy is not exactly healthy at the moment. There are 4 things that I would like to address: what the problem is, how it affects us, what some solutions are, and what solutions I feel are best.
" Oil is the life blood of our modern industrial society. It fuels the machines and lubricates the wheels of the world’s production. But when that vital resource is out of control, it can destroy marine life and devastate the environment and economy of an entire region…. The plain facts are that the technology of oil-- its extraction, its transport, its refinery and use-- has outpaced laws to control that technology and prevent oil from polluting the environment…" (Max, 1969). Oil in its many forms has become one of the necessities of modern industrial life. Under control, and serving its intended purpose, oil is efficient, versatile, and productive. On the other hand, when oil becomes out of control, it can be one of the most devastating substances in the environment. When spilled in water, it spreads for miles around leaving a black memory behind (Stanley, 1969).
Claim: Solar power has the potential to become the United States main supply of energy and replace are needs for more conventional and harmful forms of power generation.
The oil companies had to get the oil that was found in the south and then refine this oil to make it ready to power the automobiles.(Automobile 814) Due to this high demand of oil for the use in automobiles, the oil companies, such as Standard Oil, could impose a high price on oil. (Jones, 112) This high price caused the oil companies to obtain a large profit, which i...
Transportation is another benefit of oil. Of course we all know that we use oil to run our vehicles, but that is not the only benefit. Oil is also used in combustion engines.
Oil is a very important recourse in our daily life; it would be very hard to imagine life without oil. Though recently scientist have discovered that oil is about to finish in the near future, but some argue otherwise. Should the world continue to rely on oil as a major source of energy? Should we find a new source of energy? How much time do we have left? A lot of questions are left unanswered, or answered with different point of views. In this situation, we have to look at things from different point of views; who is going to get effected, and whom are we affecting, think about the damage we are causing or going to cause, and the losses and gains. This topic is very sensitive because a lot of things are at stake, making the wrong decision or being carless about it can affect us humans on the long run. Many people are arguing about that the oil price is slowly increasing, since oil is finishing in most countries, therefore the demand increase. They also argue about how we have transitioned from wood to coal, and to oil, and now we are being pushed out to a new energy source. They are wondering whether the new source of energy will require more natural resource, and will it be at a reasonable price? I will tell you which side I am on, and why I am on this side. I will try to give good points supporting my reasons and explain why I choose this answer.