A list of books on oil. Oil sinks.
Here is some light reading on light crude with a tilt to history, science, and talking your way out of a business meeting on various and sundry hydrocarbons. Read 1,000 pages, and you too can catch the commodity knife in the dark.
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Seven books to help you understand Oil
Oil Books: The Prize
The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power by Daniel Yergin
Deemed “the best history of oil ever written” by Business Week and with more than 300,000 copies in print, Daniel Yergin’s Pulitzer Prize–winning account of the global pursuit of oil, money, and power has been extensively updated to address the current energy crisis.
The Quest
The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World by Daniel Yergin
A master storyteller as well as a leading energy expert, Daniel Yergin continues the riveting story begun in his Pulitzer Prize–winning book, The Prize. In The Quest, Yergin shows us how energy is an engine of global political and economic change and conflict, in a story that spans the energies on which our civilization has been built and the new energies that are competing to replace them.
The Quest tells the inside stories, tackles the tough questions, and reveals surprising insights about coal, electricity, and natural gas. He explains how climate change became a great issue and leads readers through the rebirth of renewable energies, energy independence, and the return of the electric car. Epic in scope and never more timely, The Quest vividly reveals the decisions, technologies, and individuals that are shaping our future.
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi: Oil and Beyond (Power and Politics in the Gulf) by Christopher Davidson
Abu Dhabi is a new economic superpower that will soon wield enormous influence across both developing and developed worlds. The principal emirate of the United Arab Emirates federation commands over 8 percent of global oil reserves, has nearly $1 trillion in sovereign wealth funds to invest and is busily implementing a thoughtful economic master plan. It has also pumped huge amounts of money into culture, sport and infrastructural development in an attempt to eclipse even its ubiquitous UAE partner–Dubai–as an international household name. Abu Dhabi will host the Formula One Championship decider in 2009, is opening the world’s first Ferrari theme park, has a rapidly expanding airline and is setting up satellite branches of the Guggenheim and Louvre museums. Gulf expert Christopher Davidson’s book charts the emirate’s remarkable trajectory from its origins as an eighteenth-century sheikhdom to its present position on the cusp of preeminence. Abu Dhabi’s impressive socio-economic development, he offers a frank portrayal of a dynasty’s dramatic survival, demonstrating the newfound resilience of a traditional monarchy in the twenty-first century and its efforts to create a system of “tribal capitalism” that incorporates old political allegiances into modern engines of growth. Finally, he turns his attention to a number of problems that may surface to impede economic development and undermine political stability. These include an enfeebled civil society and invasive media censorship, a seemingly unsolvable labour nationalisation paradox, an underperforming education sector, and increasing federal unrest.
Oil & Gas Production in Nontechnical Language
Oil & Gas Production in Nontechnical Language by Martin S. Raymond
This nontechnical treatment is a great introduction to oil and gas production for anyone from beginning petroleum engineering and geology students to accountants, salespersons, and other professionals interested in the industry. Co-authored by Martin Raymond, a veteran production manager, and William Leffler, one of the top petroleum nontechnical writers, it is an easy-to-read reference for those who deal with petroleum industry personnel and production issues in their jobs, but need a quick overview of the technical and business issues. Complete with helpful charts and diagrams, this book covers everything from production equipment and processes to theory, business operations, and strategies.
The History of the Standard Oil Company
The History of the Standard Oil Company: Briefer Version by Ida M. Tarbell
Muckrakers — a term coined in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt — referred to American journalists, novelists and critics who, in the early 20th century, attempted to expose corruption in politics and the abuses of big business. One publication spearheading these exposés was McClures Magazine, and Ida Tarbell was the writer whose dramatic revelations eventually lead to effective regulation of the Standard Oil Company. Her story, serialized by McClure’s in 1902 and 1903, tells the history of John D. Rockefeller’s company. The first major industrial monopoly in the U.S., Standard Oil, in 1901, was the largest corporation in the country, and at its peak, controlled as much as eighty-five percent of oil refining in America. But with all his wealth and power, Rockfeller could not protect himself from Tarbell. Her story of the company, which became a model for militant journalists in the future, managed to place the blame for increasingly commercialized American ideals and practical behavior at Rockefeller’s doorstep. Combining descriptions of his business practices with his personal characteristics and even his physical appearance, Tarbell created an image of a cunning and ruthless person — a picture that not even decades of Rockefeller philanthropy were able to dispel. This edition (the “briefer version” of her book; the original was more than 800 pages.) makes a great muckraking classic much more accessible to readers. As such, it will be invaluable to students and teachers of American economic history and a fascinating read for anyone interested in the muckraking era and the days of unregulated big business.
Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies
Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies by Michael Matson
Inorganic chemistry can be an intimidating subject, but it doesn’t have to be! Whether you’re currently enrolled in an inorganic chemistry class or you have a background in chemistry and want to expand your knowledge, Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies is the approachable, hands-on guide you can trust for fast, easy learning.
Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies features a thorough introduction to the study of the synthesis and behavior of inorganic and organometallic compounds. In plain English, it explains the principles of inorganic chemistry and includes worked-out problems to enhance your understanding of the key theories and concepts of the field.
- Presents information in an effective and straightforward manner
- Covers topics you’ll encounter in a typical inorganic chemistry course
- Provides plain-English explanations of complicated concepts
If you’re pursuing a career as a nurse, doctor, or engineer or a lifelong learner looking to make sense of this fascinating subject, Inorganic Chemistry For Dummies is the quick and painless way to master inorganic chemistry.
Oil Books: The Commanding Heights
The Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy by Daniel Yergin
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Prize joins a leading expert on the global economy to present an incisive narrative of the risks and opportunities that are emerging as the balance of power shifts around the world between governments and markets — and the battle over globalization comes front and center.
A brilliant narrative history, The Commanding Heights is about the most powerful economic forces at work in the world today, and about the people and the ideas that are shaping the future. Across the globe, it has become increasingly accepted dogma that economic activities should be dominated by market forces, not political concerns. With chapters on Europe, the US, Britain, the Third World, the Arab States, Asia, China, India, Latin America, and the former communist countries, Yergin and Stanislaw provide an incisive overview of the state of the economy, and of the battles between governments and markets in each region. Now updated throughout and with two new chapters, The Commanding Heights explains a revolution which is unfolding before our very eyes.
