Books

immoral to ask them to avoid using, in the very near Energy for a future, the fossil fuels and the nuclear plants that Sustainable World might improve their quality of life substantially. If The engine of mankinds prog- one adds that the worlds population will continue ress, which unfortunately is not to grow up to 9 billions by the middle of this equally shared, has been fed during century, we cannot escape a requirement for global the last two centuries by a steady and power production to increase to about 25 TW by cheap flow of fossil fuels. It has only 2050, the majority of which should be carbon-free, recently been recognized that this has major essentially electricity, as highlighted by Armaroli negative impacts on the earth and its inhabitants and Balzani. (environment, climate, etc.) and that these resour- The second solution recommended by the ces are not inexhaustible. In their remarkable, authors, again one on which everybody should timely, and probably unprecedented book, two agree, is an unprecedented development of new outstanding chemists, and Vin- technologies based on renewable sources of energy. cenzo Balzani, remind us of that reality and provide This implies that both fundamental and technolog- us with an impressive amount of clear data and ical energy sciences, within chemistry, physics, and information about energy production and con- biology, should be financially supported by govern- sumption (oil, gas, coal, and nuclear energy). ments, industries, and research agencies up to a They emphasize the urgent need to invest in the level that will inevitably involve a reduction in the various alternative energy scenarios, based on support of other areas. These are not easy decisions innovative exploitation of renewable sources of to take. An important point raised by the authors is energy (biomass, and solar-generated that we are not presently in a situation that allows fuels such as hydrogen, photovoltaics, wind power, us to limit our investment to only one technology. etc.), and to get us detoxified from fossil fuels. We really need to explore, scientifically and These two subjects are treated equally in the book. technologically, the various potential scenarios, Interestingly, the authors have chosen an appro- and this shows how complex and expensive the priate scientific and technical level so that their pathway to the new society will be. On the other presentation is accessible to any citizen of our hand, it is disappointing that, even though they planet, who should be convinced, as I am myself, repeatedly emphasize their faith in science and that the energy issue is the major challenge facing technology, the authors seem to present a quite humanity in the 21st century. The recent Japanese pessimistic view of our chances of solving the tragedy will raise renewed doubts about the devel- energy problem. They conclude that most of the opment of nuclear energy for some time, and even possible solutions (biomass, nuclear energy, hydro- though current predictions indicated only a mar- gen, etc.) are insufficient and inadequate, when the ginal increase of the contribution of huge amount of extra energy required (between 10 to the global energy supply, this challenge will and 15 TW in 2050) is translated into quantities generate increased controversy in countries such as such as surfaces of PV modules, number of nuclear France. or carbon-burning plants, number of wind turbines, What are the solutions proposed here? As an and total weight of batteries. Of course, this is true obvious remedy on which we should all agree, the if a particular technology is supposed alone to authors stress throughout the book the need for a supply the whole required power, but again, as drastic reduction in global energy consumption. stated above, this is not realistic and our future will That implies major changes in our energy-consum- depend on a mix of different ing habits, especially in affluent countries (the 12% sources. In fact, we succeeded in increasing energy of the worlds population who live in the G8 consumption from 2.8 TW in 1950 to 15 TW in 2010 countries consume 50% of the total energy supply), by setting up complex infrastructures all over the and also the development of new technologies for world. We should be slightly more optimistic that saving energy and improving the efficiency of humanity, on the basis of science and technology energy systems. As the authors point out, it will but also democracy, will succeed in inventing the not be easy for governments, especially during novel infrastructures required to provide the difficult times of economic and financial crisis, to carbon-free 15 TW needed in 2050. ask people to change their lifestyle and to accept, at Finally, the most important message, in my least temporarily, a lesser quality of life. Further- opinion, is in the positive statement that “the most Energy for a Sustainable more, this message might not be understood by a abundant and inexhaustible resources that we can World From the Oil Age to a Sun- large fraction of the worlds population (the 25% of trust are renewable energies directly or indirectly Powered Future. By Nicola the poorest people who consume only 3% of the related to sunlight”, which explains why the authors Armaroli and Vincenzo Bal- zani. Wiley-VCH, Weinheim global energy), who lack the minimal energy have devoted a large proportion of their book to 2010. 368 pp., softcover required for sufficient food and an adequate this topic. Therefore, I fully agree with the authors E 29.90.—ISBN 978- 3527325405 standard of health and education. It would be that, in the future, besides photovoltaics which

6704 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2011, 50, 6704 – 6705 convert sunlight into electricity, the most important works for a number of clinically useful drugs, as achievement will be artificial photosynthesis, a well as providing valuable chemical leads in the carbon-neutral process through which solar agrochemical sector. Consequently, the value of energy, combined with water and carbon dioxide, this edited volume is indeed high and provides the can be converted into fuels, hydrogen, methanol, expert and non-expert reader a snapshot of some of and hydrocarbons. This is currently an extremely the latest developments in this area. active field, but more research should be devoted to The range of topics covered in this volume will improving conversion efficiencies and overcoming be of interest to those within the field of natural the limitations of the low intensity and intermit- product science, as well as though engaged in tency of sunlight. medicinal chemistry and drug discovery. In general, There is no future other than a sustainable the chapters are well written and presented, world. That is what we learn from Armaroli and although additional referencing for some chapters Balzani, who have produced a reference book on would have improved the contribution. Section 1 of this complex but essential question of future energy the volume provides a valuable perspective on the supplies. significance of natural products in the area of anticancer agent development as well as natural Marc Fontecave products in modulation of neurological disease. Laboratoire de Chimie et Biologie des Mtaux Sections 2 and 3 cover aspects of natural product Grenoble and exploitation and enhancement for use as antimi- Collge de France, Paris (France) crobial agents particularly antibiotics and antima- larial agents. Section 4 provides a number of DOI: 10.1002/anie.201102819 interesting contributions on natural product bio- synthetic pathways that will give the reader insight to how nature constructs these valuable materials and how chemists may access and manipulate these Functional pathways. Section 5 provides an overview of a Molecules from number of contributions from the 2009 conference Natural Sources that have not been captured in other sections. The editors have prepared a valuable contribu- This edited volume presents both tion on natural product chemistry that will make a oral and some poster contributions valuable addition to the broader chemistry com- from the 2009 “Functional Molecules munity. The volume should be a must-read for from Natural Sources” conference held at those particularly involved in the area of medicinal the University of Oxford and is the third chemistry. edited volume in this series. The book consists of Functional Molecules from five sections that include eighteen chapters written Mark von Itzstein Natural Sources by some of the leading researchers that work in the Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University Edited by Stephen K. Wrigley, Robert Thomas, Colin Bed- area of natural product chemistry and its applica- Queensland (Australia) ford, and Neville Nicholson. tions. RSC Publishing, 2010. 244 pp., hardcover, Natural product chemistry continues to be very £ 109.99.—ISBN 978- topical and has delivered the majority of frame- 1847552594

Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2011, 50, 6704 – 6705 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim www.angewandte.org 6705