technologies that are very close ie.. cheap lithium ion batteries. nanoparticles that could make hydrogen cheaper than gasoline..
Sadly, as a technologist, I should disagree with the "very close" description. We still have to depend on public transport, rail and conservation for near future. Battery and Hydrogen are nowhere near maturity to replace oil. The capital costs to build & replace the batteries and charging systems are still not well understood. e.g. we all know about CO2 emission/green house effect/global warming etc, but can anyone tell the effect of scrapping, say, tens of millions of high capacity lithium batteries per year? What are its impacts on air & water pollution? health impacts (cancer/birth defects/mental retardation? – Lithium is used in psychiatric medicine) We may get stuck with problems like nuclear waste or asbestos.
