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For many people, the word “industry” brings to mind images of sprawling factories belching toxic emissions in a blighted natural landscape. “Industrial” has become synonymous with pollution, human rights abuse, and corporate greed. In Industrial Evolution, Lyle Estill seeks to reclaim the term, with its original connotations of hard work, diligence and productivity, and to show how community-scale enterprise can create a vibrant, sustainable local economy. Industrial Evolution is a story of survival. It is about how the small group of committed entrepreneurs introduced in Small is Possible managed to keep their dream alive and thriving through the economic recession, emerging with a model of what a sustainable local economy might look like in a post carbon future. Compulsively readable and seasoned with light humor, this grassroots account demonstrates that ecological stewardship and enterprise at an appropriate scale can lay the foundation for abundance.

Industrial Evolution skips the doom and gloom and is all about solutions. By showing that it is possible to take the big out of industry, this book motivates people to work together in a meaningful way. Filled with inspirational tales of success, failure, perseverance, and real world experiences that anyone can relate to, Industrial Evolution is a must-read for activists, organizers, politicians, and anyone who cares about resilient communities.

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Just how high will gas prices go? Nobody knows, but you can save money on gas now and find the right fuel-efficient vehicle for your needs via our new Guide to Green Cars. With reviews of more than 50 cars that get 35-plus mpg, proven tips for maximizing mpg, and the latest on hybrid, electric, clean diesel and flex-fuel vehicles, this 100-page special issue will be an invaluable resource whether you need a new ride now or down the road.

Articles in this guide include:

• Buying a Green Car
• Living with a Plug-In Hybrid
• Fuel from Plants! The Basics of Biofuels
• The Truth About Electric Car Safety
• How to Calculate Gas Mileage
• Best Green Large Vehicles
• And many more!

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A behind-the-scenes look at the robustly competitive race to dominate the market for electric cars, the larger-than-life moguls behind them, and the changes that are transforming the auto industry.

In the 1980s, it was unimaginable that the home computer would become as common and easy to use as a toaster. Today, plug-in charging stations and smart grids seem like something still far off in the future. But by 2020, the auto industry will look very different from today’s field of troubled auto giants. The combination of technological breakthroughs and charging networks driven by global warming and peak oil makes it clear that revolutionary change in the auto industry is happening right now.

In High Voltage, Jim Motavalli captures this period of unprecedented change, documenting the evolution from internal combustion engines to electric power. Driven by the auto world’s ambitious and sometimes outlandish personalities, the book chronicles the race to dominate the market, focusing on big players like Tesla and Fisker, as well as a tiny start-up and a battery supplier. Flashing forward to the changes we’ll see in the coming years, High Voltage shows a not-so-distant future where we will live on a smart grid, our cars “fueling,” that is, charging, while we shop or sleep. The ramifications of these changes will be on a grander scale than most of us ever imagined—altering foreign policy, reducing trade deficits, and perhaps even ending global warming.

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Thoroughly revised and expanded, Build Your Own Electric Vehicle, Third Edition, is your go-to guide for converting an internal combustion engine vehicle to electric or building an EV from the ground up. You'll also find out about the wide variety of EVs available for purchase and how they're being built. This new edition details all the latest breakthroughs, including AC propulsion and regenerative braking systems, intelligent controllers, batteries, and charging technologies.

Filled with updated photos, this cutting-edge resource fully describes each component: motor, battery, controller, charger and chassis. The book also provides illustrated, step-by-step instructions on how to assemble all the parts, and exclusive web content features current supplier and dealer lists. Custom-built for environmentalists, engineers, students, hobbyists, and mechanics, this hands-on guide puts you in the fast lane toward a cost-effective, reliable green machine.

Build Your Own Electric Vehicle, Third Edition, covers:

• Environmental impact and energy savings
• The best EV for you: purchase trade-offs, conversion trade-offs and conversion costs
• Chassis and design
• Different types of electric motors and controllers
• Lithium EV batteries
• Chargers and electrical systems
• EV builds and conversions
• Licensing and insuring your EV
• Driving and maintenance
• List of manufacturers and dealers regularly updated on website

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Based on scientific and professional understanding of how to make quality alcohol in considerable quantities, this book is filled with detailed articles on distillation principles, how stills are designed for optimum production and several recipes for mashing corn. Other articles cover the complete process of making alcohol fuel. Also featured are plans for making several experimental stills, an 8-inch packed column still, mash cookers and other equipment for production of alcohol fuel. Detailed charts answer the many questions sure to be asked by the novice distiller.

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Did you know you can power a truck on wood scraps? Drive around for free, using a gasifier you can build yourself!

Wayne Keith's proven gasification system has carried him nearly 300,000 miles on renewable, clean-burning wood fuel. After 10 years and nine converted trucks, he knows a thing or two about gasifiers. Now he's written his experience and time-tested system into a book of plans! Here's your chance to save time and money with a design that works.

Have Wood Will Travel includes all the info you need for building and operating a Keith gasifier. These are step-by-step plans with photos, diagrams and helpful tips along the way. Instead of basic blueprints, you get an up-close look at how Keith puts the gasifier together, which materials to use and how to size the system to your specific vehicle. You'll also find extensive instructions on the operation and maintenance of your finished gasifier. As a bonus, there's an overview of the tractor-powered wood chunker Keith uses to process his fuel.

All this info and more is available online, to premium members at the Drive on Wood! website (driveonwood.com). Six months of premium access is included free with the purchase of the book.