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Vaclav Smil is a phenomenon with an appetite for facts over prejudice and fashion. Essential reading for anyone who cares about the future – eminent architect, Lord Norman FosterAn endlessly entertaining career through fascinating territory – Simon Ings * Daily Telegraph *Both informative and entertaining … I suspect that many Physics World readers would be delighted to find this book waiting for them under the Christmas tree. Indeed, it would be perfect reading material for anyone who enjoys a mathematical analysis of the world around them * Physics World *In a world of specialized intellectuals, Smil is an ambitious and astonishing polymath who swings for fences … They’re among the most data-heavy books you’ll find, with a remarkable way of framing basic facts * Wired *There is perhaps no other academic who paints pictures with numbers like Smil * Guardian *

Vaclav Smil is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Manitoba, Canada. He is the author of over forty books on topics including energy, environmental and population change, food production, and public policy. His books for a general reader include Numbers Don’t Lie and the New York Times bestseller How the World Really Works. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, Smil is the expert’s expert.