Asphalt - A History (Hardcover)

La Brea Tar Pits once trapped prehistoric mammals. Today that killer has a chemical cousin in the Athabasca oil sands of Alberta, Canada-immense deposits of natural asphalt destined for upgrading to synthetic crude oil. If the harvesting of this natural asphalt continues unabated, we might find ourselves stuck in a muck of a different kind. Humanity has used asphalt for thousands of years. This humble hydrocarbon may have glued the first arrowhead to the first shaft, but the changes wrought by this material are most dramatic since its emergence as pavement. Since the 1920s the automobile and blacktop have allowed unprecedented numbers of Americans to experience the beauty of their continent from the Adirondacks to the Rockies and beyond, to Big Sur and the Pacific Coast Highway. Blacktop roads, runways, and parking lots constitute the central arteries of our environment, creating a distinct "political territory" and a "political economy of velocity." In Asphalt: A History Kenneth O'Reilly provides a history of this everyday substance. By tracing the history of asphalt-in both its natural and processed forms-from ancient times to the present, O'Reilly sets out to identify its importance within various contexts of human society and culture. Although O'Reilly argues that asphalt creates our environment, he believes it also eventually threatens it. Looking at its role in economics, politics, and global warming, O'Reilly explores asphalt's contribution to the history, and future, of America and the world.

General

Imprint:	University of Nebraska Press
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	July 2021
Authors:	Kenneth O'Reilly
Dimensions:	229 x 152 x 30mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover - Cloth over boards
Pages:	344
ISBN-13:	978-1-4962-2207-7
Categories:	Books > Earth & environment > The environment > Management of land & natural resources Books > Humanities > History > World history > General Books > Business & Economics > Economics > Economic systems > General Books > Professional & Technical > Mechanical engineering & materials > Materials science > General Books > History > World history > General
LSN:	1-4962-2207-5
Barcode:	9781496222077

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!