Why are we addicted to oil? Do you think the Industrial Revolution led to our addiction to oil?

Question

Solutions for alternative energy?

Answer 1

Because it's yummy. I enjoy burning gasoline because of how good exhaust fumes look, and because of their lovely smell. That's why I'm addicted to oil, and no other energy source could replace it.

Answer 2

OIl is cheap, available and works for a wide variety of uses.  There is no feasable alternative currently

Answer 3

America certainly is, but not countries like Brasil, which have largely replaced it with ethanol (ethyl alcohol), C2H5OH. No, the industrial revolution was fueled by coal and coking coal, and wood, to a lesser extent; oil came later, when it was found to be more economical and practical for locomotives and steamships, particularly for warships. Biodiesel, ethanol, and hydrogen fuels. Solar, wind, geothermal & wave power. There are some types of algae with a fairly high proportion of oil, and research is being done to improve on them, and to extract it economically, in commercial quantities. Many devices have been invented that reduce fuel consumption: these get bought up by representatives of the big oil companies, and are never seen or heard of again!!! Many people have speculated that the real reason America is in Iraq at present was never weapons of mass destruction; that was just a convenient fiction: the real reason is OIL!!!

Answer 4

I don't see any addiction to oil.  Oil is the preferred source of many fuels because it is the most economic.  If the economics were to change, then people would quickly change to an alternative source.  This is not addiction, it is microeconomics 101.  You should be more careful in your choice of words.