PART II: Historical Analysis: Chapter 3: Fueling the Illusion of Progress: Energy and Industrialization in the European Experience.

The article focuses on energy and industrialization in the European experience. Understanding the past is essential for meeting current energy challenges. The paper emphasizes, an array of fixed ideas about energy patterns, which has long clouded accurate assessments of the industrializing process. First of all, since the 19th century, coal and steam have been extolled as catalysts of the Industrial Revolution. By 1780's, according to most accounts, fossil fuels had edged out wood fuel, muscle and waterpower in England. Secondly, the Industrial Revolution has been accepted as synonymous with progress.